AUTHOR'S NOTE: Greetings, readers! Here is the 40th chapter of The Adventures of Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu in Kanto. Dr. Fuji from the anime, his wife make appearances in this chapter, and Amber is mentioned. I was inspired to write this chapter from watching the English dubbed version of Mewtwo's origin. Just a reminder that I don't own Pokémon. Pokémon, Pikachu, and all other character names are trademarks of Nintendo. I own Tristan and Hillary, though. As always, please feel free to read and review, and remember, feedback of any kind is always welcome.
TEASER: Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu arrive on Cinnabar Island and explore an abandoned mansion. Inside, they find journal entries that go as far back as 20 years before the present day. These journal entries transport them back to these events, but who or what is causing it, and what mysteries will they discover?
Chapter 40: MYSTERY OF THE LEGENDARY POKÉMON
(Music Cue: Surf the Sea (Version 2 with Violins) as heard in "The Battling Eevee Brothers"
Today, Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu are enjoying a nice ride as Lapras takes them through the open sea. They are just about to arrive on Cinnabar Island. It's there that Tristan plans to battle for and win his seventh Gym Badge. But little do they suspect that they will find some mysteries on the island.
"I can't wait till we get there," said Tristan eagerly. "Once we do, I'm going to challenge the Gym Leader right away!"
"But sometimes, Gym Leaders can take breaks, too," advised Hillary. "Other times, they do training, just like you do. You never know how strong a Gym Leader may be."
"I wouldn't worry about that at all, sis," replied Tristan. "Besides, I didn't collect my other six Gym badges for nothing. And I know this Gym battle will be hot, just like Cinnabar Island."
Hot was right, for Tristan saw a big volcano in the distance.
"That must be the big volcano Nurse Joy in Saffron City was talking about," said Hillary. "We must be at Cinnabar Island!"
"All right, Lapras," said Tristan, "full speed ahead toward Cinnabar Island!"
Lapras replied and swam toward the island.
Tristan, Hillary, Pikachu, and Lapras arrived at the dock a few minutes later.
"Thanks for the ride, Lapras," said Tristan.
"There's no doubt that you're a good swimmer," added Hillary as she gently stroked Lapras on the head.
Lapras cooed happily as it was being stroked.
"Lapras seems to like the attention," said Tristan as he gently stroked it, too.
Lapras loved it when both Tristan and Hillary petted it.
When they were finished, Tristan took out Lapras's Pokéball. "I'll let you get some rest for now, Lapras," he said. A red beam of energy shot from the center, transforming Lapras into red energy itself as it disappeared into the ball. "Now let's see if we can find the Gym."
Tristan and Hillary walked through the many crowds of people visiting Cinnabar Island.
"It looks like those guys just want to tour the island," groaned Hillary. "We must have fallen into a tourist trap."
"But the Gym has to be here," protested Tristan. "Nurse Joy said so."
Presently, they saw a big old building in the distance.
"Maybe we can escape the crowds into that building over there," suggested Tristan. "Come on!" and he raced off.
"Not so fast, Tristan!" called Hillary as she and Pikachu ran after him. "Wait for me!"
(Music Cue: The Caves of Mount Moon)
A few moments later, Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu arrived at the old building. It resembled a large mansion, but it was run down.
"It looks dangerous," shivered Hillary. "You go first, Tristan."
"Oh, come on, Hillary," said Tristan. "What could be scary in there?"
"Almost anything," shivered Hillary.
"Why don't we hold hands?" suggested Tristan. "That way we'll stick close together."
So Tristan and Hillary held each other by the hand to keep each other safe while Pikachu held on tight to Tristan's shoulder. They all cautiously went inside. Sure enough, it was dark, but there was enough light from the sun to help navigate their way around, even though they tried very hard not to step on each other's toes.
"Ow! Tristan that's my foot!"
"Sorry, sis."
They stopped long enough to find an object on the floor.
"What's this?" asked Tristan as he cautiously picked it up.
"What have you got there?" asked Hillary.
"It appears to be a book of some kind," replied Tristan. "It has to be at least 20 years old."
"Let's open it and see what's inside," said Hillary.
But as Tristan opened the book, he and Hillary saw that there were no pages inside.
"It's empty!" gasped Hillary.
"Just like this place," added Tristan.
Pikachu agreed with them.
"Maybe we can find some clues to this book," suggested Tristan. "Come on." And he and Hillary walked cautiously through the abandoned mansion.
(Music Cue: The Moon Stone)
Tristan and Hillary found themselves on the second floor of the mansion a few moments later.
"I'm sure glad these stairs are still usable," said Hillary as she sighed with relief. "There's no telling how old or safe this mansion really is. Maybe we can...hey! Tristan, where are you going?!"
"I found something over here!" called Tristan as Hillary ran over.
"What is it?" asked Hillary.
Tristan had found an old crumpled piece of paper that resembled a book page. He slowly straightened the page out. "It looks like a journal entry from 20 years ago," he said.
"Do you know what it says?" asked Hillary.
"There are some words here," replied Tristan as he began to read. "Diary: July 5th. Guyana, South America. A new Pokémon was discovered deep in the jungle."
"What kind of Pokémon is it?" asked Hillary. "Do we even know if this Pokémon exists?"
"It's tough to say for sure," replied Tristan. "But I think if we put this journal entry back in the book, maybe we can figure out some more clues about this mysterious Pokémon." And he did just that as he and his friends continued their way through the mansion. But suddenly, the book started to glow in a white light.
"What's happening?" gasped Hillary.
"I don't know!" replied Tristan as the light started to flash and overtake them.
When the light dissipated, Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu found themselves in completely different surroundings.
(Music Cue: The Pokémon Castle)
"Where are we, Tristan?" asked Hillary nervously.
"I'm not sure," replied Tristan. "But I don't think we're inside the mansion anymore."
Then he and Hillary saw that the mansion was restored to its pristine glory.
"Tristan!" gasped Hillary. "We must have been transported to another place...perhaps another time!"
"Another time?!" exclaimed Tristan.
"Don't you see?" replied Hillary. "This mansion must have been full of life 20 years ago!"
"And today, it's abandoned!" added Tristan.
Suddenly, they saw two people, a man and a woman, walking into the mansion looking very despondent. They carried in a picture of a beautiful green-haired girl in a white dress.
"Who are these people?" asked Hillary. "And why are they upset?"
"I don't know," replied Tristan. "Let's watch and see what happens."
"How could this have happened?" asked the woman as she wept.
"Don't worry," replied the man as he hugged her. "There's nothing I can't do! However, if we're going to save our daughter, then we have to act fast!"
"Save her?" asked Hillary. "What does he mean by that?"
Tristan paused for a minute. Then he replied, "It sounds to me like there was some sort of an accident."
Hillary felt sad.
"There's no way we can save her," said the woman. "It's impossible."
"Nothing is impossible!" protested the man. "I'll find a way!"
Presently, the book began to glow brightly again. Instantly, the light overtook the scene of the pristine mansion, and Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu found themselves back inside the old mansion in the present day.
"What was that?" asked Tristan.
"I don't know," replied Hillary. "Maybe if we find more journal entries like the one you found, we can find more clues to the past, and what this mysterious Pokémon is. Maybe there's another page that tells what Pokémon they were looking for."
"But what is the Pokémon?" wondered Tristan.
Tristan's question was soon answered for just then, he found another crumpled page that looked as old as the first one. He straightened it out and read, "Diary: July 10th. We christened the newly discovered Pokémon, Mew."
"Mew?" repeated Hillary. "What's that?"
"I'm not sure, sis," replied Tristan as he put the second page in the old book.
That was when the book started to glow again, and the kids and Pikachu were overcome from the light and transported to another projection from 20 years prior. They saw what appeared to be many people in green hats and uniforms on an expedition of some sort.
"Now where did those guys come from?" asked Tristan.
"Someone or something must be projecting what happened 20 years ago into our minds!" exclaimed Hillary.
"But who'd do that?" asked Tristan.
"I don't know," replied Hillary. "But maybe this is an assignment someone wants us to complete in order to figure out the answers to these mysteries."
The people continued to walk into the ruins as Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu looked on.
"Is this projection..." began Tristan.
"It has to be another clue!" replied Hillary. "Look!" She saw another page float over to her, caught it, and then straightened it.
"Look at this!" gasped Tristan in surprise as he took the paper from Hillary's hand. "It's another journal entry!" He began to read again. "August 6th. Today, my colleagues will reach the site where an ancient civilization may have created a shrine to Mew, the most powerful Pokémon to have ever existed, now believed to be extinct. Giovanni is financing the expedition."
(Music Cue: Victory Road (Last Road)
Tristan and Hillary both gasped in shock. Giovanni, as they both knew, was the leader of Team Rocket.
"Why would Giovanni finance an expedition for Mew?" asked Tristan. "And what do the man and woman and, perhaps, the picture of the little girl have to do with this?"
"Let's keep reading and find out," replied Hillary.
Tristan continued reading. "He agreed to fund my research, but only if I would try to create for him an enhanced living replica of Mew. I had to agree. All he wants is to control the most powerful Pokémon the world has ever known. I, of course, want something more...much more."
The man and his team of scientists stared at an ancient portrait of Mew as a shadow of the same Pokémon flew past.
Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu all gasped in shock as they caught a glimpse of Mew with their own eyes.
"Was that Mew?" asked Tristan.
"It sure looked like it," replied Hillary. "But that doesn't make any sense! Mew couldn't be here, could it?"
They then saw the man and his team exit the ruins with a strange green object in hand.
"That looks like some sort of eyelash!" remarked Tristan.
"Tristan, maybe we can figure out what that object that they're carrying is," suggested Hillary.
Tristan agreed and continued to read the journal entry. "Our team is bringing back what we believe to be a Mew fossil. I pray it's authentic. If so, I may finally have the DNA I need to create a Pokémon powerful enough to survive the cloning process. Perhaps, then, I can unlock the secret to restoring life itself."
"Restore life? But how?" wondered Hillary.
"Search me," replied Tristan.
The projection then changed to a laboratory with test tubes. The scientists were hard at work on a project.
"Now what are they doing?" asked Tristan.
"It must be something important," replied Hillary. "Otherwise they wouldn't have been able to start the cloning process like the journal entry said."
But what could those scientists be cloning from the fragment they found? thought Tristan.
Presently, the book glowed again, and the light overtook Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu. Sure enough, they were transported back to the present day in the run-down mansion.
"There have to be more clues somewhere in this place," suggested Hillary. "Let's keep looking for them and maybe we'll find some information on what it is those scientists were trying to create."
"That's a good idea," replied Tristan as he put the journal entry into the book and raced off with Hillary and Pikachu.
They kept searching the mansion for more journal entries for the next hour, but didn't have much success.
"There must be something we're not thinking of," said Tristan. "But I don't know what is, nor do I know where we should continue looking.
Just then, Hillary found a piece of paper crumpled on the floor and picked it up. "Do you think maybe this is the next clue?" she asked.
"Anything's possible," replied Tristan as he took the paper and straightened it out. He soon discovered that there was a note on it. He read the note. "I loved our daughter as much as you did, but she's gone. No one can bring her back, and I can't go on watching you try. I'm sorry. Goodbye."
That was when Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu all felt sad.
"The man and the woman must have separated from one another," said Hillary. "He must have wanted his daughter to come back, but didn't listen to his wife. Do you think that there's a reason for all this?"
Tristan said nothing.
"Earth to Tristan: Are you in there?" asked Hillary.
Tristan quickly snapped out of it and focused on Hillary. "Sorry about that," he said. "I was just thinking about whether that man succeeded in bringing back his daughter or not."
They continued to walk through the abandoned mansion until Pikachu spotted something.
"What's up, Pikachu?" asked Tristan.
Pikachu jumped off of Tristan's shoulder and pointed to another crumpled piece of paper.
(Music Cue: Messenger)
"Maybe it's another journal entry from the past," said Hillary.
Tristan and Hillary quickly ran to the crumpled piece of paper and straightened it out.
"You're right, sis. It's another journal entry," said Tristan. "Thanks, Pikachu."
"Pikachu," replied Pikachu.
Tristan read the journal entry. "Dairy: February 6th: Mew gave birth. We named the newborn Mewtwo."
"Mewtwo?" repeated Hillary. "Do you think Mewtwo and the man's daughter have a reason for being connected?"
"I don't know, sis, but I'm pretty sure it explains why Giovanni wanted to have a powerful Pokémon at his disposal," replied Tristan. "But is that the only reason for the man trying to get his daughter back?"
Suddenly, the journal entry glowed brightly, and Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu were all transported back into the past, right at the moment when a bright orange light was beginning to fade.
A female scientist looked on despondently. "Doctor, we're losing her, too," she said.
The man, who Tristan and Hillary saw earlier looked sad. "Amber," he whispered.
"Amber?" repeated Tristan. "That's his daughter's name?"
Then, they saw a purple bipedal catlike Pokémon with a pink tail in a test tube.
"That must be Mewtwo!" gasped Hillary. "The Pokémon said to be cloned from Mew!"
Presently, Tristan and Hillary began to hear the Pokémon speak, much to their shock.
"These tears...what good are they?"
"Is that Mewtwo talking?" asked Hillary.
"It must be telepathy!" gasped Tristan.
Then, they saw waves pulsating from it in the test tube as it began to get upset. "Please, Amber, come back! Don't go, please! Amber?!"
The alarm started blaring in the laboratory.
"Oh, no!" gasped Tristan. "Mewtwo may be in trouble! We've gotta help!"
"It's no good!" replied Hillary. "This is a projection from the past! There's nothing we can do!"
The scientist was beginning to panic. "Doctor!" she exclaimed. "Mewtwo's brainwaves are out of control!"
"It's getting too upset! It mustn't remember this! Administer the cerum! Do it immediately!" ordered the doctor.
All the scientists ran back and forth, trying to contain the situation.
"I'll try 100 units," replied the scientist as she counted by tens and administered the substance in Mewtwo's mind. Sure enough, the pulsating brainwaves stopped and the alarm stopped blaring. "It's brainwaves are going back to normal. Everything seems okay, doctor."
"Nothing is okay!" replied the doctor. "My Amber is gone forever. Only Mewtwo survives..."
The journal entry began to glow again, and as the light overtook Tristan and his friends, they found themselves back in the abandoned mansion in the present day.
"I wonder where Mewtwo is now?" said Tristan. "Do you think it's going to be friends with the scientists?"
"I'm not sure, Tristan," replied Hillary. "Maybe you should put that last entry into the book and we'll see if we can find any more of them."
Tristan put the journal entry into the book and commenced his search through the mansion.
A few minutes later, Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu found a crumpled piece of paper buried under some heavy rubble.
"This paper has to carry some kind of clue," said Tristan. "We have to get it out without ripping it."
"Let's work together," added Hillary.
Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu grunted and lifted with all their might. The piece of rubble was big and heavy, but they managed to lift it off the piece of paper, but not without falling backward in the process.
Tristan straightened out the piece of paper and began to read it. "Diary: September 1st; 20 years later. Mewtwo is far too powerful. We have failed to curb its vicious tendencies. It's no use. I can't control it!"
"Can't control it?!" exclaimed Hillary. "If the scientists couldn't control Mewtwo, what's going to happen?"
Hillary question was soon answered for the journal entry began to glow again, and they were transported to the laboratory, but this time, they saw that Mewtwo had matured significantly.
"Look at that!" exclaimed Tristan.
"I know!" replied Hillary. "Mewtwo has grown up!"
They turned their attention to the test tube where Mewtwo had just broken out, and liquids were flowing everywhere.
"Radio Giovanni's helicopter! Tell him what's happened!" shouted one scientist.
"Quiet!" whispered the doctor loudly. "Let us hear its psychic powers!"
Mewtwo looked at the doctor, confused. "Psychic...powers?"
Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu gasped. They all knew it was Mewtwo talking.
"For years, we struggled to successfully clone a Pokémon to prove our theories...but you're the first specimen to survive," explained the doctor. He pointed to a portrait hanging on the wall. "That is Mew, the rarest of all Pokémon. From its DNA, we created you...Mewtwo."
"Mewtwo?" repeated the Pokémon. "Am I only a copy? Nothing but Mew's shadow?"
"You are greater than Mew, improved through the power of human ingenuity," explained the doctor. "We used the most advanced techniques to develop your awesome psychic powers."
Mewtwo looked disappointed. "So, I am simply the end result of your experiment. What becomes of me now that your experiment is over?"
"Oh, our experiment isn't over yet, it's just beginning!" smiled the doctor. "Now the serious testing begins!"
Tristan and Hillary were outraged at what the scientists said to Mewtwo.
"This is awful!" gasped Hillary.
"I know," replied Tristan. He angrily turned to the scientists. "You should all be ashamed of yourselves! How could people like you treat Mewtwo like it's nothing but an experiment to you?!"
But the scientists didn't hear him, for they were only projections. They were busily congratulating one another on the success of cloning Mewtwo.
(Music Cue: The Copy Pokémon Awaken)
All of a sudden, without warning, Mewtwo began to glow in a blue light, and so did its eyes, causing all the test tubes to break and the scientists to jump back in fear.
"Mewtwo must be using a Psychic attack!" gasped Hillary.
It was clear that Mewtwo was angry for what the scientists said to it, and it began its rampage all over the territory, blasting everyone and everything, causing a massive fire to rage out of control in the laboratory. Every scientist inside screamed and ran in terror as they tried to get away from the combination of Mewtwo's outrage and the fire. Mechanical arms tried to subdue it, but it easily blasted out of them using Psychic.
"This is awful!" gasped Hillary. "How could those lousy scientists treat Mewtwo like it meant nothing to them except a rat in a cage?! This is just wrong!"
'Mewtwo, please, you have to stop!" shouted Tristan. "You don't know what you're doing!"
"Pika pika!" added Pikachu.
"It's no use, Tristan!" replied Hillary. "This is only a projection, remember? Nobody will be able to hear us, not even Mewtwo."
Tristan could only watch in horror as tears formed in his eyes. He couldn't bear to see Pokémon behaving this way. He didn't know that it was the very same fiery experience with Team Rocket that caused him to be traumatized, nor did he know that it was the same Pokémon that helped rid him of his terrible memories.
The doctor ran from the fire as fast as he could and took out a book, even as the fire closed in on him and trapped him.
Hillary knew what that book was almost immediately. "That's the same journal we found!" she gasped.
The doctor opened up the book and began writing something in it, even as the flames licked his feet. "I haven't got much time," he panted. "I pray this remnant of our experiment survives! Twenty years ago, we discovered a fossil that proved to be the remains of the ancient Pokémon, Mew. There was some genetic material to replicate Mew, but Giovanni, who funded our project, insisted we try to design super-clones more powerful than any living Pokémon. Many attempts failed, but finally, our experiments proved successful. We produced a living Pokémon. We called it Mewtwo! But for some reason, the creature's anger is out of control. With its Psychic powers, it is destroying our laboratory!"
The doctor panted as he stared at Mewtwo, who used its Psychic attack to push the flames away, and faced him one last time as it prepared to launch its most devastating Psychic attack.
"We dreamed of creating the world's strongest Pokémon," shuddered the doctor. "...and we succeeded."
Mewtwo's attack overtook the laboratory, causing it to explode. Tristan and his friends covered their eyes as the light from the explosion engulfed them.
A moment later, Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu opened their eyes and found themselves back in the abandoned mansion in the present day.
"Whoa," said Hillary. "Mewtwo's attack was pretty powerful, wouldn't you say, Tristan? Tristan?"
Hillary turned to see Tristan, who was visibly shaken as tears fell onto his face. He was clearly in a state of shock. He couldn't believe that the most awful scene had happened right before his eyes.
"How sad," said Hillary, who was now beginning to worry. "This event must have traumatized him. But what can I do?"
Pikachu was concerned, too.
"Perhaps, I can help," said a gentle authoritative voice. It sounded familiar.
(Music Cue: Ash's Decision to Fight (2nd part) as heard in "A Goldenrod Opportunity")
Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu turned to see a purple bipedal feline Pokémon with a pink tail and a tube bypassing its neck floating toward them.
"Mewtwo," whispered Tristan.
"It can't be, can it?" gasped Hillary.
Pikachu marveled in awe.
"Don't be afraid," Mewtwo assured them. "I will take you to a place where we will all get to know each other better." As it spoke, Mewtwo glowed in a bright light, and so did everyone else, and in a matter of seconds, they all disappeared!
Just as Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu learned about Mewtwo's creation, Mewtwo itself has made an appearance, and has taken them with it. But where has it taken them to? And what new mysteries will our friends discover from meeting Mewtwo, the legendary Pokémon that was cloned from Mew? Don't miss the answers...next time!
TO BE CONTINUED...
