Chapter 877: Mewtwo's Journey Across Time and Space (Part 1)
One Demon God after another closed in from every direction.
They cordoned off Sootopolis City completely, as though this place had become an inescapable cage destined to imprison Kazuya.
"So tired..."
Kazuya's thoughts gradually slowed.
He could barely keep his eyelids open, and even the shallow rise and fall of his chest had grown faint.
"Kazuya."
A familiar voice whispered beside his ear.
He lifted his head slightly.
Subconsciously straining his eyes to peer ahead.
Standing before him were five shimmering, translucent phantoms.
Scizor.
Lucario.
Dragonite.
Skitty.
Cofagrigus.
"If only you were all still here... how wonderful that would be..."
Kazuya lowered his head, murmuring under his breath.
A flicker of focus returned to his hazy senses.
"Will you fight once more?"
The five phantoms walked to Kazuya's side, looking down at him.
"...I will."
The moment the word fell.
As if gifted with substance, the five phantoms extended their hands, hauling him up from the earth.
Watching Kazuya stand on his own two feet once more.
Shadow's pupils trembled faintly. In utter bewilderment, She demanded: "I don't understand."
"What is it you truly want?!"
"Is saving this world truly what you desire?!"
This question.
Had tormented Her for an agonizingly long time.
Ever since Kazuya fell in that decisive battle against the two Shadow Lugia, this question had gnawed at Her soul.
Saving the world.
What benefit did that ever bring him?
What was he truly after?
Why did he have to pursue such an endeavor?
To the point of casting Her aside, leaving Her all alone in this desolate world.
Kazuya raised his head. Gazing up at the Demon Gods blotting out the sky, an ambitious smile spread across his lips: "I want..."
"A life without regrets."
With that.
He shot into the sky alone.
Within a chaotic expanse of grayish-white nothingness.
Mewtwo groggily opened His eyes. He reached out to grasp at the void, but seized only empty air.
Just then.
A black object drifted into His field of view.
Mewtwo couldn't muster the mental energy to contemplate why such an artifact was here, or what this realm even was.
He simply extended His hand out of sheer instinct.
The black keepsake settled squarely into His palm.
In the final split second before His eyes fluttered shut once more.
He caught a clear glimpse of its true form.
A frayed, battered black ribbon.
Weathered by countless storms and unyielding epochs.
To think it had been reduced to such a pitiable state.
Pitiable...
"Kazuya..."
With a faint, instinctive murmur.
Mewtwo blacked out once more, allowing the ribbon to carry Him as it drifted toward some unknown coordinate.
Who knew how much time slipped past.
When Mewtwo awakened once again.
He found Himself resting upon a warm, spacious bed.
A soft, warm orange glow illuminated His cheek from the side, leaving Him momentarily disoriented.
He turned His head to look.
"An oil lamp?"
Mewtwo furrowed His brow, tilting His head in quiet confusion.
An oil lamp.
Even during the New Magical Beast Era.
Such primitive lighting was virtually non-existent.
Because in the New Magical Beast Era, they still maintained vintage electrical generators; powering incandescent bulbs posed zero issue, far from the point of needing oil lamps.
This kind of lighting.
Mewtwo had only ever read about in archaic fables.
A lighting implement dating back at least a thousand years.
"Awake?"
A mature, commanding woman's voice drifted over.
Mewtwo shifted His gaze toward the sound, spotting a blonde human woman seated by the window.
A human?
Hadn't humanity gone completely extinct long ago?
Leaving only Chloe behind.
The woman was currently twirling that very black ribbon He had caught within the void between her fingers.
Naturally.
That was hardly the crux of the matter.
The crux was that Mewtwo saw the sunlight pouring through the windowpane.
Born into the New Magical Beast Era, He had never once laid eyes upon natural sunlight since drawing His first breath.
Yet.
Even though it was His first time witnessing it.
Mewtwo recognized it in an instant.
The golden radiance beyond the glass was precisely the dawn of hope they had yearned for across centuries.
Could it be... Kazuya succeeded?!
Mewtwo's eyes widened in disbelief.
Yet the moment that thought surfaced, Mewtwo snuffed it out Himself.
He was no longer the naive fledgling of centuries past.
Whether it was remotely possible for Kazuya to solo over a million Demon Gods and magical beasts...
Mewtwo knew the answer all too well.
Utterly impossible.
Mewtwo slipped down from the bed.
Piecing together His memories prior to losing consciousness, He strode toward the window to peer outside.
He appeared to be situated inside a stone fortress.
In the far distance lay a settlement.
Though His physical eyes couldn't make out every detail, His psychic senses could detect abundant traces of Aura flowing throughout the streets.
"Hmm...?"
Mewtwo's brow pinched tightly.
This town looked eerily familiar.
Resembling the legendary City of Aura, Rota.
And from His elevated vantage point, His current location ought to be Camphrier Castle—no, Cameron Palace.
He turned around.
Looking back at the blonde woman beside Him.
Mewtwo's mind raced through the archives of His memory, dredging up fragmentary historical chronicles before the name slipped from His lips: "Cynthia, the Sinnoh League Champion from 350 years ago?"
Blonde hair cascading nearly to her calves.
That black hair accessory she never took off.
Her monochrome black attire and her right eye veiled behind her fringe.
These hallmark traits led Mewtwo to pin this historical figure down as Cynthia.
Even if...
Her height and proportions appeared noticeably more statuesque than recorded data.
That was beside the point now.
Did I tumble back to around League Calendar Year 200?
Mewtwo rubbed His chin in thought.
Then He glanced back at the oil lamp resting upon the nightstand.
Wait.
Something was wrong.
People in League Calendar Year 200 would never still be using oil lamps.
Furthermore, within the town of Rota, His Aura detected almost exclusively humans, with virtually zero Pokémon in sight.
Clearly.
This wasn't the League era.
This was the far more ancient Magical Beast Era.
Then this human who bore such a striking resemblance to Cynthia was...
"Indeed, I am Cynthia. To think you recognize me? And you referred to me as someone from '350 years ago'? Does that mean... you hail from around League Calendar Year 550?"
Cynthia nodded gently.
Steering Mewtwo away from overcomplicating things.
"...Correct. Though my head is spinning right now. What year is this?"
Mewtwo scratched His head in bewilderment.
In the Magical Beast Era, He had crossed paths with the Sinnoh Champion of the League era?
Had she also suffered an accidental temporal displacement?
What an absurd coincidence.
"Hmm... There should be roughly 800 years remaining before the founding of the League calendar."
Cynthia tilted her head slightly in thought, providing a temporal benchmark.
"...The era when Sir Aaron the Aura Guardian sacrificed himself to halt the war?"
"Yes, but slightly after. That crisis has already drawn to a close."
Cynthia acknowledged it calmly.
Even though it was she who had brought the war to a halt.
She had instructed Queen Ilene to credit Sir Aaron with ending the conflict publicly, allowing that tale to endure for a thousand years into the League era.
So Mewtwo was not mistaken.
"To think I traveled over 1,300 years into the past. No, I must return immediately. My companion is still waiting for me."
Mewtwo clenched His fists, His gaze resolute.
"And how do you plan to return?"
Cynthia arched an eyebrow.
She had been stranded in this era for six full years now.
Aging from 32 when she first arrived to 38 today.
While her features had barely weathered, her temperament had undeniably seasoned.
Over these six years, she had ventured far beyond Rota, attempting to track down Celebi or Dialga to see if she could return to the League era, to wait for Lucario at home.
Yet if such Legendary Pokémon were so easily located.
The world would have plunged into chaos long ago.
"There is a Celebi within Viridian Forest. With the war just concluded, this is an age of peace; the probability of Celebi appearing there is exceptionally high."
"If that fails, I can journey to the Spear Pillar or the three lakes of Sinnoh. With my power, I may be able to commune with Dialga or the Lake Guardians."
"Right, this era should still be under the dominion of the Dragon Kingdom. Perhaps I can seek aid in Liz's name. I recall that founding Queen was Kazuya's very first Trainer."
Mewtwo's mind worked in overdrive, muttering contingencies under His breath.
Cynthia perked her ears, listening intently.
The next second, her hearing snagged onto that single name: Kazuya.
Her eyes widened abruptly, incandescent delight and fierce anticipation blazing within her gaze.
Glancing down once more at the frayed black ribbon in her hands.
Cynthia was utterly certain.
The "Kazuya" this Mewtwo spoke of was none other than her Lucario!
However.
Cynthia was a seasoned Champion after all.
Her emotional composure was formidable.
Upon hearing that name.
She paced the chamber with furrowed brows, methodically piecing together the clues Mewtwo had dropped.
First Trainer.
Liz.
Dragon Kingdom.
Companions waiting for me.
A heavily wounded Mewtwo.
"Is Lucario currently locked in a catastrophic war across another world? With Dialga and Palkia likely taking the field as well?"
Cynthia clenched her fists, her expression turning dead serious.
From just a few scattered sentences from Mewtwo.
She had already deduced Kazuya's present predicament.
"The current ruler of Cameron Palace is named Queen Ilene, correct? I require an audience with her."
Mewtwo turned toward Cynthia to state His request.
In His view.
For Cynthia to dwell within these chambers.
Her rapport with Queen Ilene had to be quite close.
She could secure Him an audience.
And since Cameron Palace held a vassal relationship under the Dragon Kingdom, He could follow this lead through Queen Ilene to meet the reigning Dragon Queen.
Judging by this timeline.
The reigning Dragon Queen was either Liz or Dracaena.
Both shared profound ties with Kazuya.
Negotiations ought to proceed smoothly.
"Seeking an audience with her is pointless. This is not the world you hail from; within this reality, there is no Dragon Kingdom, nor is there a Queen Liz."
Cynthia shook her head, instantly extinguishing Mewtwo's train of thought, before asking with unwavering gravity: "I am Kazuya's Trainer. I need a comprehensive account of everything that has transpired between you and him."
Mewtwo froze on the spot, staring blankly at Cynthia.
He had never once heard Kazuya mention that Cynthia was his Trainer...
Furthermore.
Those words Cynthia had just uttered...
Had He traversed not only the boundaries of time, but the very fabric of space as well?
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