EPILOGUE

Date: Twenty-Two Years Later, 134 P.A. / 2138 C.E.

Two decades would pass. Humanity retook control, and then began to tear down all that they had made in their fantasy, rebuilding up the civilization that had been repressed since the Apocalypse had ended. The pokémon came out of hiding to aid in the new construction, and many of the Pantheon, which had disbanded, had resumed their wandering states. It was as if the previous century had been a nightmare and the world had finally awoken from it. Mewtwo wondered, vaguely, if someone would once more creature a catalyst to render it asleep…but the world was on its true path once more, as though the intervention had never occurred, though was remember well in the minds of those who'd lived it.

Surprising Mewtwo vaguely, the humans never came for him, and the pokémon left him be. The chimeras helped the lonely, broken soul to raise his son, the only joy that life had given him. Jonah was his purpose, his beloved son. Every day, though he could scarcely see how this was, Jonah became more like his mother. While in appearance he had become a tall, pale, and lithe figure, his eyes those of his father, there with tiny things his human form did that reminded Mewtwo of his late-wife. His smile…his laugh…the sparkle in his eyes when he was happy. The way his voice sounded, smooth and sweet. There seemed to be a thousand things in his personality of his mother…and he had grown into a very admirable young man with them. Yes…Arei would have been so proud of her son.

As was Mewtwo…and a part of him felt ashamed that his sorrow over losing his lover had never fully left him, no matter how he savored his son's presence, no matter how much Mewtwo loved him. But the wound would never fully heal, and Jonah understood it as he came to comprehend his father's loss. For when Mewtwo could gather the strength to speak of her, he always spoke with a reminiscent happiness, that to Jonah, seemed more real to his father than reality. But he did not begrudge his father this, for his father loved him deeply despite, even as intensely protective as he'd been before Jonah had come of the pokémon training again.

Jonah, knowing well whose blood was flowing through him and imbuing him with so sweet of psychic gifts, never pursed this dream. He was a hybrid of pokémon and human genes, and the thought of controlling a pokémon seemed perverse to him. Mewtwo was grateful of this, for to be reminded of his choice and all he had lost because if it remained haunting to him. Instead, Jonah sought to master himself, and Mewtwo happily taught him all he knew. To both of their surprise, where Mewtwo knew no more, Jonah seemed to have room to expand further. It seemed the boy would have been well worth the Priests' wait, if the now extinct party had ever gotten their hands on him. Having not, Mewtwo was pleased to see his son grow with such freedom and willingly share his heart with others. He was a natural chimera, and so accepted widely without a thought. It was the best environment Mewtwo could have ever given him to grow up in.

Eventually, there came to be a time when Mewtwo took Jonah to the place his mother had been laid to rest. The valley had not seemed to change with the passing of two decades, and some of Mewtwo's sorrow faded as he gazed around at it, remembering how he had walked in this beautiful place with Arei. She had loved it here…and he told Jonah that. The young man, engaged to a pretty chimera of persian, espeon, and human blood, seemed perplexed.

"My mother liked it here? I suppose it is heavenly…I can see why, father."

"We were going to build a house near the river…in that hollow between the hills. She would have raised you here…and I would visit any time I could. That dream gave her such happiness…such hope."

He smiled sadly, finding a time flower. Years ago, when Jonah could only crawl, he had planted them here, for they drew the memory of the place and would play them out for one if properly prodded. Gently, he brushed it, willing it to again show him to scene it held…wanting his son to see his mother….

It obeyed. Mewtwo watched as Arei walked with him by the river, her hand in his, the other against the bulge of her abdomen. She was smiling, laughing…and then she came close, leaning against him, kissing him…asking it they truly could have their dream here. His heart no longer tore at him after all these years…all that was left was an intense longing that never seemed to leave him. Curious, he watched Jonah's reaction…and was slightly surprised to see a gleam of recognition in his eyes…and tears. Did he remember her? Could he, when he had been so very young?

He made to step towards her, but the memory ended and the scene vanished. Jonah had reached out slightly…and now lowered a trembling arm, and gazed at his father. "I…I think I remember her face. Her voice. Little things, but…I remember her. Father, she was so young!"

"Yes. She was a year younger than you when she died."

Jonah jerked at that…anyone would. It was horrible to hear that you had outlived the age of your parent. She had been so wonderful. She had smelled like lilacs.

"She loved you so much, Jonah…she was never happier than when she was holding you…and you were so, so happy with her. When she died, you refused to stop crying for weeks. I tried everything…but it was not until I gave you a lilac branch that you quieted. You missed her, so much…and with those flowers woven about the spokes of your crib, I think you thought she was near you…you accepted my sole care of you after I did that…because you must have thought your mother was just out of reach."

Jonah needed to sit down…one tiny memory had surfaced in his mind. It was Arei, saying his name, picking him up from his blankets and holding him…saying they were going to a festival. "Reborn Souls"…that his father would watch over them as they went…. The older Jonah put his head in his hands, clinging to the memory, the joy and warmth of it….

She…she had never been quite real to him. Not until now. And suddenly, he understood his father's pain. He understood that even with his powers, why he had aged. Indeed…where one hundred years had not touched him, the twenty-two he had spent in grieving had affected him. He moved and thought like an old person, his fur was speckled with white hairs. Jonah worried that soon his father would just stop taking care of himself, especially now that he'd come of age.

Looking up at him quietly, he asked, "Father…could you tell me about her? I've heard rumors…you've mentioned some things, but…who was my mother?"

And for perhaps the first time in years, Mewtwo truly smiled. "I will tell you everything I know…everything…."

And so, he did…and afterwards, his son asked him why they'd come here now, not decades ago. Mewtwo sighed and said, "I did not think it would be healthy for you, to be raised in isolation with a traumatized male like me. It would have invoked too much pain in me…after all, were I to raise you alone and in the place where I had scattered her ashes and buried her urn? No…no, I think not."

The amulet was around Jonah's neck…he had worn it since he was eight. Mewtwo still wore the chain and rings, which felt warm around his neck now. He sighed, and gazed around. "Jonah…now that you're an adult…you do not need me. Soon enough, you'll be married to that sweet girl who will be my daughter-in-law…and you'll likely start you own family. They will become your life…and I urge you, protect them. Without them…your world falls down around you. I will be honest with you—after your mother died, I longed to join her…you were the only reason I did not.

"But now…Jonah, you can see that I have aged. It might be I only have a few years…and I am grateful for the time I was allowed to spend with you. But being that I may die in the next decade of so, I think I would like to live here. I will dig up her urn and rebury it on the hill over there that overlooks the valley…its resting place was only temporary anyhow. Then I…will build the house she wanted. I will live here…it's where I belong."

Jonah nodded, accepting this…he did not want to lose his father, but if he must, this would a fine place to lay him to rest with his late lover. "All right…I understand. But…can you try to hold on for a while? I want you to be at the wedding…I want you to hold your grandchildren when they come!"

He smiled. "For you, my son, I will try. I will gladly try…."

And so, another decade went by…Jonah and his Shara had two daughters and a son: Lyla, Eva, and Abel. The first two had been twins, now around seven years old, while Abel was only three. The family was staying in the cabin Mewtwo had built precisely where Arei had wished it…and now from the hill where her urn was buried, he let the souls of their laughter and joy flow into him, the light of the fire in the hearth inside working making the home aglow with warmth and light.

Mewtwo…was happy for them all. His daughter-in-law was a wonderful creature, and his grandchildren…it went beyond would how sweet and accepting they were. His love had extended from Jonah to encompass them all…and he felt ready to go now. He felt like this would be the perfect night, the perfect time, of peace and smiles….

A voice spoke, as if from a dream. "How are they, my love?"

He smiled. "Very well. You know, Lyla looks very much like you. Of all of them, she had your hair and eyes. I suppose you might even guess what flower she was named after. Eve has your personality…and Abel, you should know, is saying his first words…. Our son and his wife…they are very happy."

"And you, Mewtwo? Are you happy?"

"I am at peace. But…I miss you. How can I not, when I take in all the world and every aspect reminds me of you? Of the love we shared, the joy we made?"

"Does Jonah know?"

"Yes. Hew knows everything about you…and he comprehends that even while you were lost because we chose the path that might have best protected him; that you were happier dying with the memories of him than living without his warmth. He truly was out blessing and our curse, Arei. Without him, we would not have been so completely drawn together…but because of him, we lost you…."

"It was worth it. We both know that, my love."

He felt her arms, so achingly familiar, wrap around him…the scent of lilacs in his nose. "Have you come to take me with you, my Arei? Finally, after all of these years?"

"Perhaps. Perhaps this is all a dream, though. Who knows?"

"I don't believe I care to. Those two years with you were a wonderful fantasy…they were more real to me than so many other things…."

"But we must all awaken to reality, my darling. We cannot cling to an illusion of happiness, no matter how pure…you never really let go."

"No. But why? Jonah is all right…my love for you, my agony for you, never hurt him. In seeing it, in comprehending it, he's become a greater man than I could have imagined. Don't you agree?"

She kissed his cheek. "…Yes. He's wonderful. You kept your promises…all of them."

"So…is it time, Arei?"

"It is."

He rose, following her, held her hand in a paw. He paused. "Will I lose you again? I am not human…I cannot go to heaven, nor hell. I…god did not create me, Arei. I have no soul! I—"

She came to him, held him, kissed his mouth, quieting him with a touch. "Do not worry so! No one ever said there as a god, or heaven, or hell."

"So, what awaits us? Death and rebirth, or do we fade into nothingness?"

"Has your false religion become your own? My Mewtwo, whatever awaits us will be ours, together. I know it."

And something happened in that moment as the world faded into blue. As he gazed up at her, held her, he saw the way her eyes flickered to indigo, her hair gleaming with teal for one shard of a moment in the gloom. He understood then, the barrier of fire that he had found in Arei's mind, and had so named her of that in the dead language of old. It had not been to keep him out…it had come aflame for him, in a soul's joy and need that came from finding what it had searched for…and the wall had been to protect them both from destroying one another.

And in that confusion, Mewtwo had mistaken the name: Arei. Re—for centuries, the prefix had meant "again," "anew," "back," or "backwards." It seemed to plain to the clone now, so obvious of who his Arei truly was. For he had always known her. Always. Her rebirth had meant more than Mewtwo could express.

"Your name…Arei…it's an anagram. An anagram I made in my shock at finding you again."

She smiled…she'd know since her death.

"Your named was never Arei, was it? It was Re-Ai."

And with that, he smiled, kissing her, his Arei, his Ai, one and the same in soul, if different in body and time, and his heart ceased to beat. They faded then into oblivion, and into a light which could mean their next comings.

And as the many came the next day, Lyla ran over the hills and found their grandfather. She called for him fondly, but he did not stir. Disturbed, she cried out for her family, and in a moment, they had appeared before her, gazing down with her at the motionless body of Mewtwo. Sorrow pervaded, and all at once, Lyla, Mewtwo's first and closest grandchild, began to cry. Eve and Abel soon followed suit, but then their parents, their eyes tearing too, smiled.

Jonah spoke then, holding his daughters as Shara did their son. "Don't cry for him. He's been suffering for a long time now…and now he has peace. He died happy."

Lyla gazed up at him, her orchid eyes question and flickering of Mewtwo's and Arei's legacy. "How do you know, papa?"

He smiled wider, his heart beating slow and firmly as he said: "Just look, my darling. He felt no hurt or fear. For his face, his expression…notice my daughter, that he is smiling."

THE END