Thanks to hoshixcandy and WiseAbsol for their reviews!
Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon or any references to The Origin of Mewtwo. The character of Jade Fuji and any other original people and places belong to me, and cannot be used by other writers without my permission.
Once upon a time, there was a kingdom where people and Pokémon lived happily together. The king and queen ruled justly, and the land was peaceful. But the king and queen's son, Tomo, was an arrogant and selfish prince who believed himself to be the most powerful Trainer on the planet. He only had one Pokémon – a Lapras named Victory – but he defeated every single Trainer he battled against. He became so powerful that he stopped caring about Victory, and only about winning.
One day, the royal wizard warned the king of a powerful and deadly hurricane known as the Winds of Water. "It will be as though every Water Pokémon that has ever gone to heaven are striking down upon the Earth," the wizard predicted.
Prince Tomo overheard what the wizard said to his father. "If I can beat all the Pokémon on Earth," he said to himself, "surely I can defeat the ones in heaven, as well."
When the storm arrived, Prince Tomo rode across the ocean on Victory's back. She tried her hardest to battle the storm, but no matter how hard her Trainer pushed her, no matter how much he hurt her, she just couldn't overpower the storm. Just when things looked like they couldn't get any worse, a strong gust of wind blew Prince Tomo right off Victory's back and into the ocean. Victory searched for her Trainer for hours, but she finally had to give up and swim home.
In the morning, when the storm had ended, Prince Tomo's body washed up on the shore. He had tried to swim back himself, but he had drowned. The people of the kingdom were shocked at his death, but none were very sad. "No one who treated his Pokémon like that deserves to live," they said angrily.
Victory, however, began crying the moment she saw Prince Tomo, as Lapras are very loving Pokémon and care deeply about their friends, even if they are mistreated. Victory's tears were so full of sadness and love, they restored the life within Prince Tomo. Alive once more, the prince opened his eyes and threw his arms around Victory, thanking her over and over for saving his life.
And from that day forward, Prince Tomo was never cruel or arrogant about his wins, because he realized that life is wonderful, and it should never be taken for granted.
"The end," Jade finished, closing the book. She smiled down at her sister, who was tucked in tightly under the covers. "Nice story, huh?"
"Yeah," Amber agreed, smiling back. "Thank you for reading it, Big Sister."
"You're welcome. Now, go to sleep."
"Okay. I love you, Big Sister."
"I love you too, Amber. Good night."
"Good night."
As Jade slowly closed the door to Amber's room, she thought she heard a soft whisper coming from her sister's bed: "Life…is wonderful…"
"Good evening, Dr. Fuji. My name is Giovanni. Pleased to meet you."
Jade's father shook the stranger's hand. "It is an honor to meet such an esteemed Gym leader and business man. Won't you come in?"
The stranger smiled coolly. He had brown hair and wide, black eyes. His features looked as though they were chiseled out of stone. He wore a bright orange suit, and he held a black briefcase in his left hand. "Thank you, Doctor. Perhaps then I can show you the blueprints for…" Giovanni broke off, staring up at the house. "We are alone, aren't we?"
Dr. Fuji's smile froze. "Well…my wife has gone into town, and my daughter will most likely stay in her room…"
Giovanni's gaze rested on a second floor window. "Is that her?"
Inside, Jade shrank back from the window and pressed her back against the opposite wall, breathing hard. This Giovanni character…he wasn't from Papa's lab, nor did he look like a scientist…Papa said he was a Gym leader and a business man…so why was he here? My daughter will most likely stay in her room…she and Growlithe had been told to stay up there while someone came to visit. Papa had never lied to anyone before, especially not to his superiors, which this man obviously was one of.
Growlithe leapt off her bed and scampered over to her. "Growlithe grow?" he asked, looking at her questioningly.
Jade sat down and pulled Growlithe onto her lap. "I don't know what's going on, either," she whispered, scratching him behind the ears. "Papa never has dinner guests…and Mama didn't tell us she was going out tonight…" Jade closed her eyes, thinking. Come to think of it, Mama never goes out alone. She always goes with Papa or me or – Jade's hands balled into fists, and a single tear stubbornly fell from behind her closed eyes. Even after a month, she still couldn't bring herself to say her sister's name. Jade shook herself slightly, struggling to focus on the matter at hand. Getting on her hands and knees, she crawled back over to the window, barely daring to breathe. Growlithe crept up beside her, sniffing the air warily.
"So, I heard from one of your colleagues that you've taken an interest in cloning," Giovanni was saying.
"That's right," Dr. Fuji answered. "I already have…a few projects underway."
Jade blinked in surprise. Cloning? But…but Papa's an energy researcher! Why would he be interested in cloning? But a memory of last night resurfaced in her head, a memory she'd already relived a thousand times…
Jade slowly opened the door to the basement, bending down to pick up Growlithe as she did so. For a moment, all she saw was blackness, but a bright yellow glow seemed to fill the room. Unprepared, she shielded her eyes with one hand and tightened her arm around Growlithe, heedless of his whimpering. "Papa!" she called out in fear. "Papa, what's happening?"
Behind her closed eyelids, she saw the light dim and begin to go through a cycle of colors; from yellow to orange to purple to red to yellow again. An excited shout of laughter shot through the air. "I've done it! I've reawakened her consciousness!"
"…Papa?" Jade whispered, lowering her hand and squinting. The light was coming from a small glass tube, about as big as two jam jars stacked on top of each other, on the worktable at the foot of the stairs. Her father was outlined against the light, bent over the table. One hand was typing furiously at the computer, while the other was pressed against the tube.
At Jade's voice, Dr. Fuji looked up. Jade flinched; Papa had a wide grin on his face, but it didn't match the pale, sallow skin and dark circles under his eyes – reminders that he'd been down here for almost a week. "Look, Jade!" he called out, holding out a hand to her. "She's alive! I've brought her back to life!"
Apprehensive, Jade slowly descended the staircase, still keeping her grip on Growlithe. "Who's alive, Papa?"
Dr. Fuji's eyes glinted maniacally. "Amber! Your sister!"
Jade paused in mid-step. Her eyes widened to the size of golf balls, and her mouth opened slightly. "W-what?" Amber alive? Impossible!
"Look here!" Dr. Fuji urged, taking hold of his daughter's arm and pulling her closer to the table. "Within this chamber lies your sister's consciousness, her very spirit! It may look like only a light, but soon her body will begin to form, and she'll be with us again!"
Jade simply stared at the tube, dumbfounded. "But…but she's dead! You can't bring the dead back to life!"
Dr. Fuji shook his head. "I don't have to! With the research I've been gathering over the past month, I'll be able to create a living replica of Amber!"
Jade's jaw dropped. "A…a replica?"
The sound of hurried footsteps broke through Jade's conflicted thoughts. Her mother burst through the room, gripping the banister on the staircase and not bothering to wipe the steady stream of tears that flowed down her face. "Why are you doing this!" she sobbed, bending over the banister for support. "You can't bring Amber back!"
"You're wrong!" Dr. Fuji shouted back. "Look – she lives within this light! Her energy is undeniable!" He turned away from his wife, eyes focusing on the tube. "If my cloning theories are correct, we'll have Amber back with us one day soon!"
Mama's hands tightened on the banister, and it occurred to Jade that she knew about this already. She looked back at the tube, feeling her heart began to compress tightly in her chest. Could Papa really bring Amber back to life?
"No," she said out loud, feeling tears slide down her cheeks. "It won't be Amber. Just a copy…a clone."
She heard no more of the conversation between her father and Giovanni, and even if she had, she would have forced herself not to listen.
That's it for chapter two! The next chapter should be up by the weekend.