Emerging from the Viridian Gym, Aomori and Mewtwo ascended to the upper atmosphere, gazing down at the kaleidoscopic scenery below.
Noticing Mewtwo's entranced expression, Aomori asked with a smile, "How is the view of the outside world? Is it beautiful?"
"Beautiful?" Mewtwo shook his head. "I am not a superficial being like you humans. I care nothing for outward glamour; what interests me is something much deeper."
"That won't do, Mewtwo." Aomori wagged a finger. "Learning to appreciate beauty is a vital milestone in your growth."
"I find beauty in power. Is there a problem with that?"
"Beauty is ever-changing. If it's just power, it's far too monotonous."
Aomori, speaking words he barely believed himself, quickly changed the subject. "Team Rocket won't let you go easily. Let's head to Viridian Forest and give them a warning. We need to make them understand that their little tricks won't work on us."
Mewtwo gave a slight nod, and together they departed for Viridian Forest.
…
Upon receiving the news of Mewtwo's escape, Giovanni flew into a violent rage.
However, he could not recall the Team Rocket members searching for Mew in Viridian Forest to pursue Mewtwo. Doing so risked losing Mew as well, a net loss he wasn't willing to take.
As long as he captured Mew, he could eventually create hundreds or thousands of Mewtwos. A single rogue specimen was no longer a priority.
"Disregard Mewtwo for now. Everyone, proceed to Viridian Forest! Capture Mew!" Giovanni stood up. He didn't want to wait for news; he would go to Viridian Forest personally to oversee the operation.
"Leave the Viridian Gym to those three, Jessie and her group, for the time being." He wanted no distractions during this critical moment.
En route to the forest via airship, Giovanni received another update.
"Boss Giovanni, we've spotted Mew!"
"Excellent!" Giovanni barked his orders: "Secure it at all costs!"
…
Beneath the night sky and above the clouds, a pixie-like pink figure drifted aimlessly.
Suddenly, its eyes lit up as it spotted a massive floating fortress ahead. With a giggling chirp, it flew toward it.
A powerful defensive barrier blocked its path. Its eyes darted around, and the creature's body suddenly vanished, reappearing inside the fortress.
It covered its mouth and giggled, glancing at the interior before flying about as it pleased.
After scouting the hallways, it entered a room where many Pokémon were being held.
It flew curiously from one enclosure to another. Finally, on the top tier, it saw a small green hedgehog.
"Mew?" It tilted its head in thought, then squinted and smiled again. Using Teleport, it entered the cage, patted the little hedgehog on the head, and transformed into an identical green creature.
"Who? Who hit Shaymin?" Waking from a beautiful dream, Shaymin cried out in surprise upon seeing another version of itself, "Did that big meanie catch another Shaymin?"
The "Shaymin" smiled. Suddenly, its body glowed with a green light; its limbs lengthened, and the flowers on its head began to extend into ears.
"Sky Forme!" Shaymin was stunned again. "That felt so practiced. Are you an elder of the Shaymin tribe?"
"Mew!" It reverted to its original form, flying happily around Shaymin.
"You aren't a Shaymin, you're Mew!" Shaymin's mouth hung open. "I actually met a Mythical Pokémon... what a strange feeling."
"Were you caught, too? That shouldn't be possible."
"Mew." Mew flashed outside the glass and then back inside, showing it could leave whenever it wanted.
Shaymin's eyes sparkled. "Can Mew take Shaymin out, too? Shaymin wants to leave!"
"Mew!" Mew smiled and waved its small hands. Shaymin was instantly teleported out of the enclosure, but since it was in mid-air, it started to fall.
Fortunately, Mew caught it with psychic.
"Mew?"
"Shaymin can't change into Sky Forme at will yet," Shaymin explained, quickly thanking its savior once it was safe. "Thank you for the help, Mew! Shaymin can finally escape this place!"
However, realizing they weren't fully free yet, it decided to stick close to Mew. "Mew, can you do Shaymin one more favor? Shaymin wants freedom."
"Mew!" Mew patted its chest, indicating it would handle everything.
"Thank you so much, Mew. You're a very good Pokémon," Shaymin said with tears of gratitude.
Just as they were about to sneak away, Shaymin looked at the other Pokémon sharing its fate. "Maybe we should save them, too? They look so pitiful."
"Mew." Mew nodded and began flying in circles around the room.
Every time it passed a cage, the locked door clicked open.
Soon, all the cages were open. Simultaneously, a loud alarm began to blare.
"Oh no! You all should run!" Hearing the alarm, Shaymin grew worried. "That big meanie shouldn't be here, right? He hasn't shown up in a long time."
However, the imprisoned Pokémon did not all look happy to see the doors open.
Most remained indifferent. Only a small few stepped out, and some even looked at Shaymin and Mew with hostility, blocking their path.
"Why? Shaymin isn't your enemy, that big meanie is!" Shaymin said, utterly confused.
One of the Pokémon growled something that made Shaymin's eyes widen. "You say he is your master? Are you joking? We are just prisoners he locked up!"
Unfortunately, after Aomori's "special training," most of these Pokémon were fiercely loyal to him. No matter what Shaymin said, they ignored it.
Shaymin gave up in despair. It turned to Mew and pleaded, "Please, take Shaymin away."
"Mew." Mew waved its hand, and both it and Shaymin vanished.
When they reappeared, they were beneath the floating fortress. Shaymin screamed as it began a terrifying free-fall.
Mew flew beside it, freezing it in place with psychic, laughing uncontrollably.
"You scared Shaymin to death! Don't play with Shaymin like that, Shaymin will break!" the little hedgehog grumbled.
But it soon cheered up—it had escaped that horrible place!
"Shaymin is finally free—" Just as it was about to celebrate, Shaymin saw a massive Pokémon with long wings that blotted out the sky diving toward them.
"It's the big meanie's lackey! They've come for Shaymin!" Seeing the Pokémon lunge, Shaymin closed its eyes in despair.
The next moment, a strong gust of wind blew past, but Shaymin wasn't caught.
It opened its eyes curiously to find the enemy Pokémon circling the spot where they had just been, looking around in confusion.
Looking down at its own translucent body, Shaymin realized what had happened. It turned to Mew and thanked it sincerely once more: "Thanks to Mew, you saved Shaymin again."
Mew giggled and led Shaymin down toward the ground.
Passing through thick clouds, they saw many strange things flying about. Some were only a size smaller than the fortress above, while most were small machines the size of the Pokémon themselves, equipped with wings and round lenses.
Below them lay a vast forest as bright as day, with numerous searchlights sweeping across the canopy.
"Mew?" Mew had never seen such things and was immediately curious. It flew over one of the small drones and tapped it.
When the drone tried to turn, Mew moved with it. Mew seemed to have found a new game, happily teasing the poor little machine.
Watching the many unknown objects flying around, Shaymin said uneasily, "Maybe we should leave first?"
But Mew, caught up in the excitement, didn't hear a word and continued playing with the drone.
Inside the command airship, Ariana sat on a high chair. The large screen before her was split into countless small feeds, each corresponding to a flying monitor.
"Stay sharp! Don't miss a single detail!"
"Yes, Ma'am!"
Suddenly, a team member shouted: "X-1538 has captured a cloaked object!"
Ariana stood up abruptly. "Divert several monitors to that sector! Magnify the feed!"
A much larger image appeared in the center of the screen. After computer processing, the outline of a Pokémon emerged.
Ariana, who had memorized the photo of Mew a thousand times, narrowed her eyes. She recognized the identity of the Pokémon immediately. Licking her lips, she whispered, "Little cutie, found you at last."
"All units, seal off that sector immediately! I want it exposed!" Ariana waved her hand, issuing the command.
"Yes, Ma'am!"
Team Rocket acted like a tightly wound machine, moving into high gear.
The previously harmless-looking monitors revealed their teeth, swarming toward the area where Mew and Shaymin were. Long tubes extended from their wings, firing lightning-like beams.
"Mew!" Mew wasn't afraid. It treated the scene like a game of tag, moving with incredible speed. Sometimes, to increase its evasion, it transformed into Pidgeotto or Spearow.
Shaymin didn't share the sentiment. Having just escaped one nightmare only to enter another, it was on the verge of a breakdown. "Shaymin is a good Pokémon! Why treat me like this?"
As more monitors arrived, Mew began to struggle. It transformed into Zapdos and unleashed a massive Thunder, destroying several drones and winning a moment to breathe.
However, at that same moment, the airship deployed several fine nets to ensnare them.
"Use Teleport, quick!" Shaymin screamed.
"Mew!" Mew transformed into Alakazam and brandished its spoons to use Teleport, taking Shaymin out of the net's reach.
"Escaped again," Shaymin sighed in relief. "Mew, can we keep using Teleport to get out of here?"
"Mew." Mew nodded and used Teleport again.
However, no matter where they went, the enemy was there. It felt like they could never truly get away.
"How could it be so easy to escape?" Ariana watched Mew intently, ignoring the Shaymin beside it. "This is war, and war does not tolerate failure! Come, Mew, let us settle this."
A grand game of cat and mouse was unfolding in the Viridian Forest.
…
"Over here! Mew is over here!"
"Catch it, quickly!"
"Our promotion and raise happen today!"
"It certainly is lively," Aomori remarked as he and Mewtwo reached the outskirts of Viridian Forest, looking at the chaotic scene within.
"They shouldn't be chasing Ditto, right? Once it shows its true face, it can hide. Does that mean the real Mew actually came here?"
Having Ditto pose as Mew was supposed to be a ruse to draw away Team Rocket's main forces, preventing them from interfering with his kidnapping of Mewtwo and keeping the fight out of the city.
He hadn't expected Team Rocket's hunger for Mew to be so much stronger than he had imagined. Looking at the situation, they would uproot the entire forest if it meant catching Mew.
Furthermore, the appearance of the real Mew had thrown the entire situation into disarray.
Nevertheless, Aomori remained confident. With Mewtwo by his side, they could stand their ground even if Arceus appeared before them.
As long as Mewtwo didn't cause any trouble.
"Mew? Is it really here? I was created from its genes; I am its duplicate." Mewtwo clenched his fists and looked at Aomori. "I'm going to meet it. I want to know if I, the duplicate, am stronger, or if the original is!"
'I knew this would happen,' Aomori sighed. "Is that really necessary? You are two distinct individuals. What does it matter who is stronger?"
"It doesn't matter to you, but it matters to me." In this world, Mew was the Pokémon Mewtwo was most closely linked to; he felt an indescribable emotion toward it.
"Before I leave this world, I will have a final reckoning with it!" Without waiting for Aomori's response, Mewtwo flew toward the center of the chaos.
"This edgy teen... I'm going to have to discipline him after all." Aomori shook his head and followed behind.
…
In the woods, Mew transformed into Suicune and picked up Shaymin in its mouth, leaping gracefully through the trees before jumping into a lake.
"Don't let them get away!" A swarm of drones immediately hovered over the lake, watching the water.
"Roar!" A Gyarados leapt from the surface, creating a Twister that destroyed many drones, but more flew in to surround it.
Suddenly, a sphere of energy fell from the sky, striking the Gyarados and knocking it back into the water.
Auras of power radiating from him, Mewtwo appeared, his cold eyes fixed on the surface of the lake.
"I am Mewtwo. Let us settle this once and for all, Mew!"