#the psychic damage i immediately took upon seeing this image

[capow02]

Me: oh cool, set it off made merch for the 10 year anniversary of duality! I can't wait to see what it looks like :))

The duality 10 year anniversary merch:

[extreme-technicality]

On Sir Fitzroy Maplecourt, knight (in absentia) of the Realm of Goodcastle

Sir Fitzroy Maplecourt, knight (in absentia) of the realm of Goodcastle, is peak chaotic good. In this essay I will discuss how his backstory, his choices, the origin of his powers, and the symbolism of a candle combine to create Fitzroy, the hero we didn’t know we needed but very much the one we deserve.

We know from Argo’s investigation into Fitz’s home life that he is the son of a long haul trucker caravaner and a (presumably) stay-at-home mom. His family name is one of the most prestigious elven families on Nua, though he’s functionally a member in name only. One day he got a letter inviting him to become a knight of the realm of Goodcastle for the low low price of 200 gold, several other fees, and a certificate of completion from Clyde Nite’s Night Knight school. His parents didn’t have much, and had to take out a hefty loan to send him to the school (as well as pay for all the fees). He didn’t fit in with the pompous, wealthy elites there, and they let him know it with every obvious snicker and the fact that his classmates actively avoided him outside of class. Griffin explicitly states that he (Fitz) adopted the pompous, proper air he puts on in canon as a direct result of the ridicule and ostracization of his knight school classmates. He finally received something other than mocking disdain from them when he randomly (one might say chaotically) turned his professor into a catfish. He only started to truly feel like shit about the catfishing when he heard they were going to expel him from the school and, by extension, his dream–the notoriety and fear from his peers and professor bothered him far less before there were tangible consequences for his actions, inadvertent though they were. Shortly after this, he was invited to Hieronymous Wiggenstaff’s School for Heroism and Villainy, full-ride–upon graduation, he would be allowed to return to Clyde Nite’s Night Knight School and finish his schooling there, then apparently on to the realm of Goodcastle to serve in the queen’s guard. In summary: Fitzroy Maplecourt is someone of humble background who aspires to Make Something Of Himself and help people along the way; as the catfishing incident displayed, he doesn’t much care how he does that, so long as his actions help people (as well as himself).

He didn’t always lean into that side of himself, however: the catfishing incident ended with Fitz also feeling conflicted about how his power manifested to harm the people around him. At the very beginning of Graduation, he’s constantly worried about controlling his magic and not necessarily using it. A knight, after all, would have little need for magic. This viewpoint changes gradually throughout the episodes as he bonds with Snippers and learns more about the nature of magic, specifically his own. It changes most drastically when he meets the origin of his magic, the entity who goes by Chaos. Immediately after he had that psychic conversation with his magical patron, it’s like he stopped giving a fuck about what is “right” or “proper”. He used his magic with precision and intimidated the centaurs–as well as his Hero classmates–into listening to him and doing whatever he said. It wasn’t the stated object of his assignment with the centaurs, wasn’t what anyone expected him to do, and made Chaos very, very happy. He maintained his chaotic mindset, threw himself into it in fact, once he returned to the school. He attacked Gray when convention would dictate he stood there and let him monologue; he mouthed off to the Unbroken Chain tribunal, and his first action as a full member was to call one of their highest-ranking members to trial on Argo’s behalf; he suggested assassinating Gray instead of fighting a war. None of those actions were dictated to Fitz–in fact, none of those choices were knightly in the slightest. He ripped a man’s hand off and intimidated him and the surrounding centaurs (who outnumbered him and his friends many times over, might I add) into seeing his point of view. If a knight did that, he would be called a bully and said to be abusing his powers. But his motivations were selfishly good–he intimidated the centaur leaders into sitting down and having a conversation to avoid war, while he got to keep the apple Higglemus asked for; he saw an opening to attack the BBEG while he wasn’t expecting it, thereby giving him the edge and a chance to, possibly, end the war before it even began; he defended and stood by his friends in the face of people who cared (in his view) more for their precious order than for the aforementioned BBEG and the brewing war; he saw an opportunity to fulfill Argo’s need for justice and took it, unexpectedly but with due process to the order’s laws; he suggested the underhanded approach to ending the war and fighting Gray because he doesn’t want innocent people to die in a war that isn’t theirs. All of these choices were chaotic, and not all of them made Chaos happy. But they were Fitzroy’s choices, made wholeheartedly and with gusto, and he made them because he wanted to. He doesn’t care what Chaos wants him to do, has specifically said he won’t let Chaos use him to be their instrument on Nua multiple times–and that choice is perhaps the most chaotic of them all. Most everything he did and does, he does because it serves either his purpose or his friends’ purposes–but he doesn’t harm innocent people in the process. Fitzroy is chaotically, selfishly good, despite Chaos.

Chaos specifically is interesting, both as an entity in their own right and as Fitz’s magic glucose guardian. They introduced themself by saying they have many names, but Chaos is the one they like the best. This specific wording makes me personally believe that the entity we know as Chaos isn���t actually chaos, but something often mistaken for chaos. My gut wants to say “discord” or “wanton self-interest”, but I’m interested to see what Travis has planned in that regard. Chaos is also the origin of both Fitzroy and Gray’s power, and the Godscar Chasm is their work and seems to be their base of operation. As much as they claim to want Fitz to let loose with his power and do whatever he wants, Chaos also tells him what they don’t want him to do. They “promised Gray a war”, and for a being called “Chaos” they don’t seem to appreciate Fitzroy’s chaotic actions very much. They’ve said before that they want Fitz to win the war, but that it has to be a spectacle–like a wildfire burning down the countryside, before new growth and chaotic peace can grow. Fitzroy, on the other hand, sees how unnecessarily destructive that would be, and prefers to sidestep that option in favor of something quietly chaotic and peacefully assertive.

If Chaos and Gray’s vision for the war is a wildfire, burning bright and brilliant and fast, then Fitzroy’s is a candle, fitting the symbolism of the most recent episode (25: Burden of Things). Fitz chose the candle key to represent himself because fire is chaotic by nature, leaving both destruction and room for growth in its wake. He also claimed candles are chaos contained and put to a good use, bringing light to the darkness and faint warmth. My own interpretation reads a candle as both instigator and instigated: a candle cannot light itself, nor can it control how it was ignited. Fitz had no choice in either the fact or the manner of his magic awakening, couldn’t control whether or not his metaphorical wick was lit or who got burned in the process. However, a lit candle can be used to light other things–paper, wood, plants, cloth, and so on. Fitzroy as the candle in this metaphor has two available options: he could light a hearth, a welcoming space for his loved ones and a respite from the cold, cruel world, or he could light an all-consuming blaze to destroy the flawed existing system and leave room for a new one–one of Chaos’s design–to grow in its wake.

So, to recap: Fitz is tangentially part of a very prestigious elven family, grew up with relatively little save for a loving family, worked and chanced his way into power, and is currently being groomed into using said power in a certain way. He is also adapting to the situation he’s found himself in, making his own decisions and doing so in the name of his benefactor (ie. chaos) as opposed to the spirit (ie. what Chaos actually wants him to do) such that the outcome benefits himself, his friends, and their goals while minimizing the damage to innocent bystanders. Along the way, his personal image has gone from grandiose knight (in absentia), pompous and proper and EliteTM, to a candle–simple, cheap, ordinary, utilitarian, and more importantly, a light source for people who literally cannot afford anything better. I look at this, and I have to wonder: what was his takeaway from Clyde Nite’s Night Knight School? What did he think of the 1%, of the order and class and propriety they hold so dear? As the son of a caravaner, I wouldn’t think he’d see much fancy shit at home, but he’d definitely see hardship. He’d definitely see needing to compromise, and needing to fight for anything you need, facing a world that isn’t serving you like it should. I would ask if he’s angry, but he literally said it this episode–he’s lost his goddamn patience. Everyone is so caught up in the order of things, in the letters and laws and rules-lawyering and arbitrary measures of “worthiness” that they’ve forgotten to turn the lights on and it’s getting dark. Thats not to say that Fitz doesn’t know when to abide by the laws, or use them to his advantage, as we saw in both the incident with the magma monster and the Unbroken Chain tribunal–but they need light, they need a fire under their asses, and Fitz is just a candle doing his best. But a candle can only do so much.

And it doesn’t take much to put a candle out.

[gatortavern]

The Jang and the Snowball Spectacle

Yo @godhatesverizon, I was your @pnatsecretsanta this year! You said you liked some good ol’ fashioned Jang and some snow, and who doesn’t love some seasonally appropriate shenanigans from the Mayview bullies? Apologies that this is so late, but I hope you enjoy the lunacy these goofballs get up to!

For all its quirks and oddities, one would expect the weather itself to be one of the last things to distinguish a town such as Mayview from its neighboring areas. This would, of course, be incorrect for freak hurricane-related reasons, but also for the small fact that in its geographical niche, the temperature can jump from pleasantly middling weather to negative five degrees in the span of half a night. So it was that when the people of Mayview awoke from their slumber that they were greeted with so much snow it buried their feet, when mere days before it was only cool enough to warrant a jacket.

The whoops and hollers of children and children-at-heart alike echoed in RJ’s ears as they set off for Johnny’s place, bundled in their warmest snowflake-patterned hoodie and steel blue gloves. The rest of their friends greeted them with a wave as they approached his house, and the group pulled into a huddle to discuss the day’s proceedings. “So what’s the plan for dealin’ with the mutant nerds today?” Stephen asked as the group turned their eyes to their crimson haired leader.

Johnny took a deep breath.

“Nothin’.” “WHAT?!” Ollie and Stephen cried in unison.

“We’ve been goin’ over this for too long and we’re clearly gettin’ a little burned out. I had ta force ya to sleep yesterday, Stephen, and the rest of us weren’t much better. So this is gonna be our day off. No thinkin’ about weirdo flyin’ people, or shootin’ lightning, or purple gunk. It’s just gonna be us an’ the snow. Tomorra’ we’ll look over everythin’ with fresh faces an’ we’ll get all the info we need outta the nerds. Today…” He threw his arms out, inviting the rest to take in the white wonderment surrounding them.

“Today we make the biggest ball of death this town has ever seen!” If the fire in the group’s eyes could leave their ocular prisons, there would be no snow left.

“YEAH!” Stephen whooped. “We setting it loose on Wicker Road again?” “Can we please not push the whole thing uphill like last year?” Ollie said through his smile, knowing his plea would be futile.

Purple gunk? came the message from RJ’s phone. Their leader’s eyes flicked to it for a second, before sliding to the side, as if unsure. Within an instant the phone was put away and the message forgotten, his wide grin returning and the flare in his eyes reigniting.

“Trust me, it’s gonna be the biggest and best ball we’ve done yet! NOW LET’S GET TO IT!” “YEAH!!” the others shouted, and the four took off to mold doom from the innocent fluff.

---

After ten minutes, the Jang regrouped to see the fruits of their labor and to pick a starting ball. Stephen’s ball, barely bigger than the palm of his hand, was the smallest of the lot. He attributed this to thinking he had found Mothman prints, but closer inspection had just revealed them to be raccoon tracks. Johnny tried to move his ball a little more and groaned when it fell apart in his hands. Ollie’s was bigger than the rest, but rebelled against its circular bretheren by taking the shape of a football. RJ’s ball was the roundest of the four, if a little on the smaller side. The group set RJ’s ball off to the side, and held somber eulogies for the other failed balls.

The subsequent pummeling back into the powder they were born from was markedly less somber.

The beginnings of the Deadly Doom Ball of Ultimate Destruction (named by Stephen) were humble, as the small orb graciously munched the snow laying neatly behind Johnny’s house. Its appetite grew with its size; by the time it devoured the last white flakes daring to exist in Johnny’s backyard, it reached RJ’s torso. The desecration of snow spread as the ball, now guided by two pairs of hands, absorbed the fallen flakes lying beside the sidewalk, making its way up the street.

“So,” Ollie said, turning to stare at Johnny, who was eyeing the path ahead for obstacles, “we taking it to the Usual Spot, or somewhere new?” “Can we not do the steepest hill again? That was so disappointing,” Stephen said, remembering how the previous year’s ball went only a few feet before cracking in half.

“Yeah, pushing that thing up there was a nightmare,” Ollie added, reminiscing on the four of them desperately digging into the snow with their backs to the ball, taking victory in inches.

“Nah, we’re gonna go partways up t’ the school and run it down the road!” Johnny cried out.

“Ngh..I really hope it doesn’t break this time,” Stephen huffed.

The four continued up the street, the ball greedily adding to its mass as they huffed and chatted about things such as potential fort designs and seeing how many snowballs they could throw into Jeff’s hair.

---

As the Corner Store came into view, a sniffle caught Johnny’s attention, and he turned to examine his pals. With his red nose and cheeks, Ollie looked like he had just walked out of a Christmas card, his face as puffy as his jacket. Stephen wasn’t much better, trying to hide his shuddering beneath his grape scarf and Jersey Devil jersey, and RJ kept rubbing their face with their sleeve. The small sneeze from RJ cinched it. “A’right, detour time. We get this ball to the store and then we get ourselves some goodies. Stephen, you still got that ten dollar bill in your pocket?” “Yep.” “Cool. You three go in and get yerselves some’n warm, an’ I’ll guard the ball.” The bully bunch made it to the edge of the store’s door in due time. Stephen, Ollie, and RJ dashed into the store, eager for something warm to slide down their gullets.

“Ho ho, little elves!” cried the wiry shopkeeper as he slid onto the countertop, decked in green and jingling bells. “What can I do you for, on your fine detour from Santa’s Shop?”

“Got anything warm?” Ollie asked as he tried and marginally succeeded at preventing Stephen from ransacking the isles.

The spark in the man’s eyes immediately threw this decision into question. As the green elf declared that he had just the thing and dashed up the stairs, the boy wondered what he just got them all into.

He barely had time to ponder calling for Johnny when the man returned, arms full of small packets, the lid of a small pan, and a coffee pot filled with piping hot...water? Before Ollie could say anything, the man had already ripped the small packets into pieces with his teeth, scattering the dust-colored powder into the pot. He then leapt onto the counter with a flourish, slammed the pan lid onto the pot with a clank!, and began to twirl. The pot quickly frothed with a chocolate swirl as he spun and spun, giggling manically all the while.

Ollie couldn’t figure out when the snowman-adored styrofoam cups had manifested onto the counter, or when exactly the other two had joined him, and at this point he was almost afraid to question it.

The three stared in a mix of bewilderment and awe as the shopkeeper slid backwards, filling each cup to the brim with small dips and pivots. He then threw himself backwards, his face underneath Ollie’s chin. “That’s three for five dollars, or four for seven,” he said without skipping a beat.

“Four, please,” Ollie said, at a loss for anything else to say.

Money changed hands, another batch was poured for Johnny, conversations about agents of Krampus were held, and the three turned to head out the door with the warmth in their gut once again matching the fire in their hearts. Their eyes caught glimpse of the new kid, his jaw set tight and his face as red as theirs were upon entering, although perhaps for different reasons.

Their gazes met. Seconds went by as the group and the nerd stared each other down, Max’s bewilderment fading back into his usual snarky look as he entertained their glares.

Wordlessly, the three turned and headed out the door, finding their fourth member with his back to them, staring at their not-so-little orb of doom.

“Yo bro, you’re not gonna believe what just happened in there!” Stephen called out to Johnny. The bully swirled around, and for a second the three glimpsed his mouth hanging askew, eyes wide with pinpoint pupils, face a touch paler than when they went in. Then his gaze darted from their faces to the cups in their hands, and he relaxed, his hand reaching for his share. With flailing arms and just a tad exaggeration, Stephen shared the details of the shopkeeper as the rest sipped their cocoa.

“And as we left, we fell upon the mutant new kid! I think that store guy did some kinda psychic damage to him ‘cuz he looked totally freaked out.” As if on cue, Max groan from inside the store fell upon their ears.

“We let him off though, ‘cuz of the pact.” “Mmm.” “Then he talked to Stephen for like ten minutes about Krampus and Santa’s secret ninja squad. Had to practically pry him out of the store,” Ollie added.

RJ pulled out their phone and showed them the image they got of the clerk, caught in a perfect backslide, the delicious liquid forever frozen halfway into its destination. The group oohed and aahed at their friend’s impeccable ability to take super clear shots with a little flip phone camera.

With a few more gulps of their cocoa and a desire to finish the rest on the way up, the bullies repositioned themselves and resumed their slow ascent to the top of the hill. RJ spared a glance at Johnny, who was staring daggers at the ball.

Johnny, in the meantime, put all of his focus on the conversations of his friends and on making sure the ball didn’t go off course.

He was not gonna mention the weird hissing that started when they got near that store.

He wasn’t gonna mention the purple thing that had taken an interest in the ball.

He wasn’t gonna think about how the purple thing had a human face and a child’s voice.

He definitely wasn’t gonna think about how all of that just disappeared right as the purple thing looked at him, as if it was never there, right in front of him.

He had made a pact with his buds and he was gonna keep it.

No weird mutant stuff today.

---

Pushing an ever-growing snowball up one of Mayview’s hills with only one hand quickly proved more difficult than expected. Ollie found it easier to lean into the mound with his shoulders providing leverage. RJ and Stephen followed suit, guzzling down the last of their now nearly lukewarm beverage and jamming the empty cups into their jacket pockets. Johnny, having chugged down his cocoa at the urging of his friends, merely rammed his entire frame into the ball. The slow rate of movement up the hill was matched by its growth, though by this point it had begun to dwarf its creators. By the time Johnny mentioned that he could see the school, it had overgrown Ollie by half a foot. Muscles strained and groans and grunts abounded as their fight against gravity reached its zenith. With one last shout from the children, the damned, doomed sphere nestled itself peacefully on the level footing of the school pavement.

The Jang locked eyes on each other, whooped, raised their fists triumphantly in the air, and promptly leaned on each other for support. As breath was sucked down their lungs and muscles left to rest for the first time in hours, the bullies gazed at their creation.

“She’s beautiful, guys.” Stephen said.

“She’s bigger than last years for sure,” Johnny beamed.

“...I don’t think what we just did is reasonably possible.” Ollie said, “and I don’t care.” “YEAH, physics is for WIMPS and NERDS and she doesn’t even have any lunch money!” “Physics is why pushing this thing back down is satisfying at all, Stephen.” “OI!” Johnny called out. “Getchur butts round Deathknell Mk. II! RJ wants a pic!” “Aww, that wasn’t what I called it earlier!” Stephen called out as he ran into position. So it was that a snapshot became immortalized (using Ollie’s phone, as it had a wider screen and a timer) of the four youths, burning cheeks accentuating beaming grins around their carefully cultivated sphere of chaos, Ollie’s one hand slung as high up on the ball as it could go. This was soon followed by pictures of each of them perched atop the ball mid-manic cackle, of Stephen splayed across the top frozen in triumphant shouting, of the group split into stacked pairs on both sides miming a struggle, and many more.

At last, after each photo was evaluated and deemed acceptable, the moment arrived. With more grunts and heaves, Deathknell Mk. II took position in the center of the road, adopting bits of gravel as it went.

“THREE!” came the cry as the ball inched forward.

“TWO!” came the shouts as the slope drew nearer.

“ONE!” came the call as the ball perched on the last few bits of level ground its front end had.

“GOOOOO!!!” With one last running shove and a cry, the obliteration orb teetered..

and tilted…

and slowly slid forward.

As momentum took hold, all caution was thrown to the wind as the deadly orb rocketed down the slope. Trees and buildings flew by as it claimed the hill as its own, tiny smushed white packets on the pavement the only sign it was there. The boys and RJ, with cold-kissed hands desperately clutching onto hoods and hats in the wake of the creation’s tailwind, could scarcely hope to keep up with its joyride as it spun down the hill with the pitter-patter of an army of spiders. It whizzed past the Corner Store in seconds, blew the soft covering of snow off the nearby oak and elm branches, turned slightly to the side as it neared the lower residential areas and chose what would be the bearer of its wrath.

A godawful scrunching brought the ball to a stop, and as the Jang neared it, their jaws fell open and their whoops died in their throat as they drank in the scene.

There at the curbside sat a jet-black SUV, toppled onto its side, buried on all fronts by piles of stone-colored, gravel-filled, leaf accented snow. Its side could hardly be called that now, crumpled and twisted into a metallic sinkhole and probably what Ms. Baxter would call “concave”; one would think an elephant had T-boned it. The lamppost behind it lurched forward with a broken spine, its light shining over the body in fits and spurts over the fresh body, as close to wincing as it could get. A wheel, badly misshapen and hissing something awful, fell into the mound with a plunk.

“I-is that…” Ollie started. “Principal Pleezdo’s car!” Stephen cried in shock, his mittens at the sides of his head.

The house beside them began to wail, a spine-tingling siren that wouldn’t be half-bad as an air raid warning.

“RUN!!!” Johnny screamed, and the bullies hurriedly scrambled as fast as their legs would carry them away from the crime scene, through slush and streets and powdered panic, eager to relive their revelry in the safety of Stephen’s living room.

[umbrahighpriestofgiratina]

Greenhorn Prometheus Chapter 3 - FINALE

HAPPY HALLOWEEN! Here's the final installment of these mad science shenanigans. Hope you enjoy. Chapter 3: Breakaway

The next morning, in a quiet backyard, a young girl was picking flowers, singing quietly to herself. Suddenly a tall shadow loomed over her. ~Mmmmmmm.~ --------------- Within the house the backyard belonged to, a man was boarding up the windows. "If a monster is loose, the boards have to be tight," he said. He turned to his wife. "Good thing you put Sadie to bed." "But I was ironing clothes!" said the wife. "I asked you to put her to bed!" The two just kind of. Stared at each other. As people are wont to do when they make a mutual huge mistake. ------ The Mewtwo was now gently picking flowers with the girl, albeit with her psychic powers rather than her fingers. The two started picking petals off and dropping them in a well. "Now blow a kiss and say bye-bye!" said the girl. The Mewtwo pantomimed a kiss and dropped a flower stem down the well. "All gone!" said the girl. "Now what do we throw in?" The Mewtwo looked at the girl. Then at the well. Then presumably somehow in the direction of this very narrator. -------------- The wife and husband were now panicking. "She must have been in the bathroom," said the husband. "But I didn't look upstairs!" said the wife. "I thought you did!" "You didn't... look... upstairs..." The two immediately rushed up. -------------- The little girl and the Mewtwo were now at a seesaw. "Sit down!" said the girl, on one end of the seesaw. The Mewtwo pawed at the seesaw. "Sit. Down!" said the girl again. The Mewtwo plonked down onto the seesaw with tremendous force, flinging the girl upward, through an open window, and onto her bed. Her parents entered the room and gave a mutual sigh of relief. ----------------- In a small house on Kanto Route 16, a certain Mr. Dazzling was alone, in a corner, pondering. "A visitor is all I ask... A temporary companion to help me pass a few short hours in my lonely life." The door was promptly bust down by a certain Mewtwo. ~Aaagh!~ "Oh! Thank you, Mew, thank you!" He wandered over to the door to greet the Mewtwo. "What sort of Pokemon are you?" he said. "...I forget. I'm Mr. Dazzling, what's your name?" ~Mmmmmm.~ "I didn't get that." ~Mmmmmmm.~ "Forgive me, I didn't realize you were mute... But how does a nice bowl of soup sound to you?" ~Mmmmmmmmm.~ Mr. Dazzling led the Mewtwo over to a table. "I know how it feels to be cold and lonely and in need of a helping hand. Here's your soup!" He poured a ladle of hot soup straight into the Mewtwo's lap, causing her to let out a psychic yell. "...Whoops," said Mr. Dazzling, "forgot the bowl." He quickly fetches a bottle of wine, which the Mewtwo was careful to pour herself. As she was about to drink it, however, Mr. Dazzling interrupted her. "Wait! A toast... To friendship." The metal cup he was holding instantly shattered the Mewtwo's wine glass upon a forceful toast, causing the Mewtwo to stare in shock. "Whoopsie. I'll clean that up..." As he bent over however, he knocked over several candles on the table, causing them to fall right onto Mewtwo. This sent the Mewtwo into a panic, causing her to let out a psychic yell, bust another door down, and flee. "Wait!" said Mr. Dazzling. "Don't go! I was gonna make espresso!" ---------------- Alone, the Mewtwo wandered the dark streets, letting out psychic moans of discontent. Suddenly, however, she heard music. Familiar music. Sweet, sweet music. She followed it, drifted toward it, until she reached a man in baggy clothing and a hat playing a violin. She drifted idly in front of him, pawing the air, until the man yelled. "The sedative! Now!" The Mewtwo was suddenly hit by a psychically-propelled dart. Before she could react, she slumped down with a thud... landing directly on Colress. "She's out!" said the man, revealing himself to be Silver. "Oog... Believe me, I can tell," said Colress. ------- Back in the lab, the Mewtwo was fast asleep in a room. Waiting outside were Silver, Sabrina, Colress, and Agatha. "What are we going to do?" said Colress. Silver sighed.  "I've got to go in there." ~And get yourself killed?~ said Sabrina. "Don't you understand?" said Silver with a scowl. "She's afraid. If I can make her less afraid maybe we can get somewhere." He turned to the others. "No matter how much I beg and scream, don't let me out of there." ~You mean the old movie cliche that never works?~ said Sabrina, "...Yes but I mean it." said Silver. "Good luck dear," said Agatha. "Nice working with you," said Colress. Silver entered the room. Agatha locked the door. Silver approached the sleeping Mewtwo, shaking. He stopped as the Mewtwo's eyes snapped open. He bolted for the door as the Mewtwo's eyes glowed and she sat up with a psychic scream. "Let me out let me out pretty please with a Cheri Berry on top." The Mewtwo began floating over her bed, glowing eyes locked on Silver. Silver rattled the doorknob. "What the hell guys I was being sarcastic earlier of course I don't buy into that cliche now let me the fuck out." The Mewtwo floated closer. On the other side of the door Colress moved to open it only to be blocked by Agatha. Sabrina had somehow procured a bucket of popcorn. "Open the motherfucking door or I'll let this Mewtwo explode your brains too!" The Mewtwo was almost upon him. "...Damn it." The Mewtwo loomed above him, eyes like tiny purple suns. "...Wait." said Silver. "I know why you're mad. I'm sorry." The Mewtwo's eyes stopped glowing. She gave an inquisitive headtilt. "We... We didn't treat you right. And... And that's not right because... Because we're like your parents. And I'm like your dad. And I had a shitty dad and I don't want to perpetuate the cycle, you know? So... Yeah. I'm sorry. Sorry for everything." He sat down and put his head in his hands. The Mewtwo paused, eyed Silver inquisitively, before letting out a psychic purr and resting her head in Silver's lap. Silver uncovered his face and looked at her in awe. "I... I did it. I got through to her!" A strange look crossed his face. "Heh... I really did show up my old man... I created a beast that can do good!" ~Silver? Silver Altimira are you OK in there?~ said Sabrina. "It's not Altimira!" said Silver. "It's Altamura!" ------------- The night after, in a Viridian theatre, a show was about to start. Looker was in the audience, watching, waiting. Eventually a man with slicked-back hair and a red suit walked up on the stage, to much applause. "Ladies and gentlemen, nonbinary pals, tonight it is my, Mr. Contesta's, great privilege of introducing to you... A man whose family name was once both famous and infamous! I give you... Dr. Silver Altamura!" Silver walked onstage. There was no applause. "My fellow scientists!" There was a hiss. "I used to believe in stern scientific rules, much like the rest of you... But I found a way to go further beyond. Me and some associates rediscovered a particular way to reconfigure a Mew's genome." The crowd gave some hushed gasps and mutters. "Ladies and gentlemen and nonbinary pals may I present, for your intellectual and philosophical pleasure... Mewtwo TWO!" The curtains opened and the Mewtwo floated onto the stage. The crowd started panicking. "Wait, wait!" said Silver. "I've got her under control." He turned to the Mewtwo. "Walk!" The Mewtwo landed on the ground and walked forward with her feet. The crowd gasped. "Now backward!" The Mewtwo complied. "As you can see," said Silver. "She's still learning the basics. But once she does..." Colress came on stage and opened a device that projected a holographic image of the Mewtwo doing various tasks. "Her phenomenal psychic powers will allow her to do a variety of beneficial tasks." The hologram switched to the Mewtwo scanning a person's brain. "Detecting Alzheimer's and tumors..." The hologram switched to the Mewtwo levitating steel beams as people and Pokemon watched. "Helping with major construction projects..." The hologram switched to the Mewtwo evacuating a burning building. "And search and rescue! And there's doubtlessly countless mo-" It was then the Mewtwo noticed the fire in the hologram. She let out a psychic scream and threw an Aura Sphere at the hologram, which sailed onward as it crashed into the back of the theatre. Colress ducked as the crowd started screaming. "W-wait!" said Silver. "She just needs to be restabilized is a-" He was knocked down by a Psystrike as the Mewtwo roared telekinetically, hurling blasts of Psychic energy everywhere until a tranq dart hit her and caused her to slump over to the ground, unconscious. ---------- When the Mewtwo came to, she was locked in an Interpol containment unit. She could see people outside, watching warily. She did nothing. She could do nothing. ----------- Back at the lab, Silver was moping, as he is wont to do, Sabrina by his side. "I failed her... Lugia damn it I failed her." ~Maybe you shouldn't have shown her off while she was still unstable.~ "I thought she was stable! But it seems there's only one way to make her so..." ~And that would be?~ "DNA transfusion. If I can transfer the right genes to cope for the damaged Mew DNA... It'd take a dangerous amount of body fluids but it could work." ~But... If I'm reading this right that could kill you. I don't think that's necessary.~ "It's worth the risk." ~Alright, it's just...~ she sighed. "What is it?" "You know how I mentioned the Black Fog incident?" ~Yeah?~ ~The Black Fog is a notorious killer Haunter. Attacked me when I was a child. Killed some of my Pokemon. I was withdrawn and hostile for years since. Took meeting a much kinder Haunter to snap me out of it. But even since... I don't like losing people. I don't think you're that bad that I'd want to be rid of you forever.~ "I... I see. Thank you. I guess." ~Be careful OK?~ It was then that Agatha entered the room. "Silver! Your phone is buzzing!" Silver checked the phone once Agatha handed it to him. "...Oh shit. Kris is coming any minute!" ------------- At the door to the estate, Silver, Sabrina, and Colress stood as Kris walked up to them. "Kris!" said Silver. "You found us!" "Are you surprised?" said Kris, smirking. "And I see you've made some friends. I recognise Sabrina but who's the other guy?" "Colress, Pokemon power researcher, at your service!" "Charmed," said Kris. "What exactly are you guys doing here?" "Science!" said Colress. "Like we-" "Yes, science, but only mundane stuff," said Silver. "Can we take your bags?" ~On it,~ said Sabrina. The bags hovered in. Kris raised an eyebrow and followed them in. ---------------- The Mewtwo was still alone in her containment unit. Quiet. Seething. Until she heard a voice. "Humans are awful, aren't they?" The Mewtwo's head cocked, her psychic powers trying to scan for the source of the voice. "Oh don't worry about me. I'm here to help!" The containment pod started to open up. The Mewtwo looked around in confusion until the pod fully opened and she could see a strange, lanky human in skimpy clothing with long hair and glowing green eyes. "Don't mind the disguise, I needed it to get in here. Rest assured I'm not one of them. But hey you're free now!" The Mewtwo stared at the new visitor oddly. "In return for me freeing you... Get some revenge on those humans for me, okay? Benefits both me and you." The Mewtwo clenched her fists. "Good girl! Now let them have it." The Mewtwo flew up and busted through the ceiling as her visitor looked on and grinned. --------------- In Viridian City, a mob was forming. Crowds of people with torches and pitchforks and knives and cattle prods and all that had gathered in front of the town hall, yelling and chanting. Eventually Looker came out to address them. "Now hold on," said Looker. "Are you all sure this is a good idea?" Unfortunately he still had a cold. "What did he say?" said a townsperson. "I think he said this was a good idea!" said another. "Alright chums then let's do this!" said a third. They all stormed off. Looker sighed and headed after. -------------- Kris and Silver were busy unpacking her bags when Kris checked her phone. "Oh dear... Apparently there's a second Mewtwo on the loose." Silver froze. "Hold on, I'm trying to see who created the thi-" Silver grabbed the phone. "I already know, it was a Rocket remnant group." "...Really?" "Yeah! One that's really good with genetics!" Kris rolled her eyes. "Those assholes don't know when to quit." "Yeah, they sure don't," said Silver, sweating. "Have you noticed it's unusually hot in here?" "I kinda have actually," said Kris. "I think I'm gonna go on a walk." "Have fun!" said Silver. Once Kris left Silver slumped onto a chair and groaned. --------- Outside the estate, off in the woods, Kris wandered down a path, her Typhlosion at her side. Suddenly the Typhlosion's ears perked up and his back stiffened. "What is it, Jet?" she said. Suddenly a chill ran down her own spine as the Mewtwo emerged from the trees. "Jet! Flamethrower now!" Jet launched a Flamethrower in the direction of the Mewtwo. It barely phased her as she launched a Psystrike back, slamming Jet into a tree. Jet growled. "Thunderpunch!" said Kris. Jet roared and lunged at the Mewtwo with an electrified paw, only to be stopped by a barrier and sent sprawling by an Aura Sphere, unconscious. Kris quickly recalled her. "Okay, new plan... Raphael, it's on you!" She sent out a Togekiss, who chirped in shock at the sight of the Mewtwo. "Hit it into submission! Air Slash!" Raphael launched a blade of air at the Mewtwo, causing her to flinch and not move. "Again!" Raphael did it again, but this time the Mewtwo's eyes glowed and a powerful Psychic blast knocked the Togetic down to earth, unconscious. "G-Go Slice!" A Scizor was sent out, who looked at the Mewtwo, then back at Kris, then back at the Mewtwo before giving Kris a "really" look. Kris sighed. "Only one thing to do... Tactical retreat!" Kris and Slice ran. The Mewtwo zoomed after... And promptly stopped when music echoed through the air. "What..." Slice shrugged. The Mewtwo drifted in a trance toward the source of the noise. Kris and Slice followed. ------------------- At the estate, on the rooftop, Silver was playing an electric violin hooked up to some very large loudspeakers, maintained by Colress and watched by Sabrina. ~Are we sure this will work?~ said Sabrina. "It's worth a shot," said Silver, still playing. "Look!" said Colress. "She's coming back!" Indeed the Mewtwo was drifting out of the woods toward them, pawing the air and mewling psychically. "Yes, that's a girl... Come back, come back..." The Mewtwo floated over to Silver, looking at him with big wide eyes. "Yes... Relax..." The Mewtwo rested her head in her lap and purred. "We've done i-" He looked over the balcony to see Kris looking up at him in utter bewilderment. "...Oh." -------------- Back in the lab, the Mewtwo was strapped to a table. Colress and Sabrina were making preparations while Kris and Silver were arguing. "You made this thing?!" said Kris. "I wanted to use this old science for good! I didn't know it'd turn out like... Like this!" "You should have!" "I know!" "And now what are you doing?" "Using my body to do a DNA transfer." "When it could kill you both?" "Yes." "Fuck... Silver, what am I going to do with you?" ~I wonder the same thing,~ said Sabrina. "It's... It's the only way I can save her," said Silver. "All... Alright," said Kris. "Just... take care." "I will," said Silver. "Everything's ready!" said Colress. Silver sighed and strapped himself into a table next to the Mewtwo, a device connecting both their heads. Colress flipped a switch and electricity started crackling. Silver drifted into unconsciousness. "Okay, we'll need exactly fifteen minutes," said Colress. "No more, no less." The trio waited. "Two minutes." More waiting. "30 secon-" It was then the angry mob burst in the room, yelling and smashing everything they could. "Wait! No!" said Kris. ~All of you shut up we still need time!~ said Sabrina. Too late. They had unplugged Silver. They were getting ready to carry him off. ~Put that human down!~ said a feminine voice. The crowd turned. The Mewtwo rose from her table. ~I said, put that human down.~ The mob did. The Mewtwo floated to her feet, looking down at the crowd. Looker pushed his way through the others. "What is going on here?" said Looker. ~I am Mewtwo Two. I seek a more befitting name but that is what you can call me for now.~ "I see that," said Looker. Agatha peeked in the lab to look on. ~As long as I can remember, humans have hated me,~ said Mewtwo Two. ~They looked at my face and body and ran away in horror. In my loneliness I decided that if I could not inspire love, which was my dearest hope, I would instead cause fear.~ She looked at the unconscious Silver affectionately. ~And yet I live because this poor half-crazed genius has given me life. He alone held an image of me as something beautiful. And then when it would have been easy enough to stay out of danger he used his own body as a sacrifice to give me more stable DNA and a more stable mind.~ "Well then!" said Looker. "It seems like you won't be a problem for these folks. Good to know you're a friendly sort." Looker offered a handshake. Mewtwo Two returned it in kind. The crowd cheered. Agatha wiped away tears. "Oh Mary Louise..." ~Thank you,~ said Mewtwo Two. "You are entirely welcome," said Looker. He looked to Silver. "What about him?" It was that moment that Silver started opening his eyes. "Trashy... Man... Huh?" he opened his eyes fully. "...Did... Did we do it?" ~Yes,~ said Sabrina. ~We did.~ Silver staggered to his feet, having to be supported by Colress, and looked up at Mewtwo Two. "How are you doing?" Mewtwo Two smiled. ~Very well. Thanks dad.~ Silver smiled back. *** Epilogue Kris gazed over the bow of the cruise ship she was on, her Typhlosion looking out with her over the waves. Soon Sabrina, and Colress joined her. "Glad you guys could join me for this vacation." ~Trust me we needed it after all that,~ said Sabrina. "The fun doesn't stop for me!" said Colress. "After this I'm heading to Alola! Designed a labcoat for the hot weather even. I've got a big client there too..." "Sounds like fun. I know Red and his buddy Blue started a thing in Alola." She frowned. "Too bad Silver couldn't come... He said he had something to take care of." -------------- Blaine and Mewtwo One were standing together on the beach south of Fuschia, waiting. It was then Silver and Mewtwo Two arrived and Mewtwo One's eyes widened in shock. "Uh, hey! Mewtwo One, I know you're just back from Rhyme City and Ferrum and all that but... you have a sister! Or niece. I dunno." The two Mewtwo looked at each other, touched hands, sized each other up, then locked eyes and stared at each other in complete silence. "...What are they doing?" said Silver. "Having a mental conversation!" said Blaine. "It's a common Psychic-type thing." "Er yeah, right." said Silver. "But I thought it'd be good for them to meet." "You thought right kid," said Blane. He raised an eyebrow at Silver. "Say, you said you did a DNA transfer to stabilize her. Any side effects? "Well. aside from the empathic connection," said Silver, "a weird draw to certain types of music and also... Pyrophobia." It was at that point Blaine's Rapidash popped out of one of Blaine's Pokeballs and gave a neigh of greeting at Silver. At the sight of the Rapidash's fiery mane Silver screamed and ran off. Blaine just laughed. ------------- In a dark cave - though not THE Dark Cave, something squirmed. "Me damn it! It didn't work! But I have plans, other plans... I just need to pull all the right strings... Those two Mewtwo can still be of use." ----------------------- Agatha was relaxing with a cup of tea when there was a knock at the door. She got up to open it and gasped at the person on the other side. "Mary Lou!" "Please, call me Madame Boss, we're professionals. I heard my brat grandson finally did it." "He did! And I helped." "That's my girl." Madame Boss leaned over and kissed Agatha. Agatha swooned. The End Whew! This whole shebang has been a long time in the making. I originally conceived of this story a few years ago brainstorming how I could justify the existence of the infamous "femtwo" from the 16th Pokemon movie and some way, somehow, Young Frankenstein got thrown into the mix. I knew I had to do it on Halloween, but it took a while because I needed Splice Of Life to happen first and after that I needed a good block of time to just... write this ahead of time. But I did, and now it's all out in the wild. ...Which means I get to move on to another project. It's a bit of a silly symphony with a bit of mystery to it if I do say so myself. You'll see it tomorrow.