Chapter 195: Mewtwo Makes Up His Mind
Differences in ecosystem distribution do not exist only on the horizontal axis; they also exist vertically. Therefore, the ecosystem atop high mountains is just as rich, and it is most suitable for the laboratory's situation—few in number, but many in kinds of Pokémon.
As the tallest mountain in the Lowview Conservancy, this snowy mountain area likewise hosts many species of wild Pokémon. Seeking benefit and avoiding harm is an instinct of living things. Because the number of Pokémon released here by Professor Oak's Laboratory is relatively small, most of them band together with other Pokémon. So long as they share the same ecosystem, they may join forces.
This is a wondrous phenomenon unique to the Pokémon populations near the laboratory. Out in the wild, different species living within the same ecosystem are mostly in competition. Cases that achieve this kind of cooperation are quite rare, let alone being widespread.
"Come to think of it, I haven't really gone up this mountain lately."
Natsume stood at the foot of the mountain, and his telekinesis flared outward. If Mewtwo wanted to, it should be easy for it to sense his location. Unfortunately, Mewtwo did not appear. But that was fine; Natsume could look for it himself.
The scenes upon the snowy mountain appeared in Natsume's mind like a giant 3D model. There were very distinct vertical changes here, which could be seen easily just from the differences in vegetation. The mountain's elevation approached 5,000 meters. At the very bottom—the foothills—the environment was similar to the subtropical zone where Pallet Town sat, with broadleaf vegetation. Beedrill, Caterpie, Nidoran♂, and many other Pokémon were distributed there.
As the elevation rose, the vegetation shifted upward through temperate, subarctic, and even arctic types. Deciduous broadleaf forest, grasslands, coniferous forest, and, at the very top, glacial tundra, formed a richly diverse mosaic. Doduo, Tauros, Pikachu, Swinub, Sneasel, and many other Pokémon were distributed there.
Most remarkable of all, the mountain's east face—toward Pallet Town's coast—was a windward slope with abundant precipitation. The opposite side, being leeward, had little rain, even to the point of having desert zones. Natsume had even found a few Beldum being fostered there. Professor Oak's Laboratory faced the mountain's southern side, splitting the mountain in two and encompassing nearly every ecosystem within.
Natsume planned to build on the other side of Professor Oak's Laboratory—still toward the mountain's south—so that his own backyard would achieve the same effect.
"Strange. Why can't I find them?" Natsume muttered to himself.
Judging from the kinds of Pokémon Mewtwo took away, the zones most suitable for them to live should be the areas below 1,000 meters of elevation, at most up to the grassland terrain. But Natsume had swept through again and again with telekinesis, and still hadn't found a single clone Pokémon.
Natsume's brows knit tight. He pulled out his Rotom Phone and checked the surveillance cameras. After combing through the footage from the last few days, apart from some traces in certain places proving that Mewtwo hadn't left, Natsume found no useful information. After tinkering for a while, Natsume gave up. Most likely Mewtwo had some way to block detection. Telekinesis didn't work, and technology didn't, either.
So Natsume decided to use the most primordial power in the world—
"Mewtwo! Mewtwo! Your mom! Your mom! Mew! Mew! Brought you! Brought you! Your favorite! Your favorite! Moomoo Milk! Moomoo Milk!"
"Mewtwo! Mewtwo! Your dad! Your dad! Mew! Mew! Brought you—"
At the base of the mountain, Natsume floated in midair with a giant megaphone in hand, broadcasting the sound very, very far. Hard work does not betray the sincere. On the fourth loop, a helpless voice rang in Natsume's mind:
"I'm on the mountaintop."
Hearing this, Natsume put his things away. A ghostly blue light flashed in his eyes, and—whoosh—he vaulted up to the top of the mountain. It was less a summit and more the mountain's spine. After a brief search, Natsume found Mewtwo sitting cross-legged on a great boulder with a superb view, staring keenly at everything below.
"You'd better actually have Moomoo Milk." Mewtwo glanced coldly at Natsume.
"Here, for you." Natsume produced a pack of milk from who-knows-where and set it down before Mewtwo with a thunk. Seeing the Miltank on the carton, Mewtwo's mouth twitched.
"What are you watching?"
After breaking through the inner world, Natsume's outward perception had become much keener. Originally, facing Mewtwo's telekinesis, Natsume shouldn't have been able to sense anything at all—they weren't on the same level. But now, Natsume could clearly sense Mewtwo's telekinesis extending outward. He could even trace along it. Noticing Natsume's little move, Mewtwo didn't mind, letting him follow its telekinesis.
Soon, Natsume saw what Mewtwo was watching. There was a grassland there, with two groups of Pokémon confronting one another. On one side were Doduo, Sandshrew, Tauros, and a Venusaur covered in intricate markings. On the other side were also a Venusaur, Sandshrew, Tauros, and a Doduo covered in intricate markings. They faced off, vying for a Pokémon feeding station.
Natsume raised a brow. Professor Oak's Laboratory had considered that wild Pokémon might fight to take food from the fostered ones. So they had placed more feeding stations; along with the wild Berries, there was definitely enough for all the Pokémon to survive. But as things stood, if there was something tastier and more convenient, who would go eat Berries?
"Facts prove that Pokémon joining forces has nothing to do with identity recognition," Mewtwo's telepathy suddenly sounded. It realized its own prior shallowness. "Food, water, living space—these are what make living things unite. Humans are the same."
Mewtwo's voice continued. "No. It's just that the base number of the same species here is small, so different small groups are composed of different Pokémon. When the number of groups reaches a limit, they won't take in new members, even if they meet their own kind who happen to be in other small groups."
Natsume waved his hand as he spoke. "Right. Cut the numbers in half—"
"You want to snap your fingers?" Natsume cut in before Mewtwo finished.
"What snap my fingers?" Mewtwo looked at Natsume, puzzled. "What I mean is that many things are decreasing. From the moment I was born, from when I observed New Island and then the whole world, I discovered that many things were decreasing. But that was until I ran into you lot."
As Mewtwo spoke, it glanced at the Poké Balls on Natsume's belt. In a flash, two red lights flared, and Rotom No. 1 and the Zapdos egg were released.
"Roto?" Rotom No. 1 looked puzzled.
"Gaa-naa?" The Zapdos egg stood quizzically in the snow.
Mewtwo's gaze moved back and forth between the two, and finally settled on Rotom. Pointing at Rotom, Mewtwo spoke slowly: "You changed my mind. This Rotom, that Pikachu, and that kid named Ash Ketchum. New things are being born in you, and new things are being added into the world."
Authority? Natsume frowned slightly. Having split off half of Mew's Gene Authority, Mewtwo was connected, in a sense, to all life on the planet. That it could sense things unknown to ordinary people did not surprise Natsume in the least.
"I will help you," Mewtwo's voice suddenly grew sincere. "Rather than seeing decreases, I would rather see resources increase."
It was as if Mewtwo had made up its mind, and it stared steadily at Natsume. Originally it had still been hesitating, but since Natsume had come knocking, it might as well say it outright. Natsume suddenly connected the dots. The "resources" in Mewtwo's mouth might refer to the level of the entire world.
"That's wonderful. Science and technology are the primary productive forces. Mewtwo, come be a researcher!" Moved to the core by Mewtwo's awareness, Natsume resolutely decided to swap the contract in his hand for a set of overbearing terms.
"Why do I also have to help you build the institute?" Mewtwo looked at the very first clause of the contract, completely baffled. So it had everything ready to go, only to discover that the first step under the boss was laying bricks and raising walls to build the company?
"The League will send people, actually. This would just be faster," Natsume spoke earnestly.
Hearing this, Mewtwo nodded. After all, the research facility on New Island at least had a framework to work from—it was merely rebuilding. Natsume, on the other hand, was raising a tower from flat ground. If the whole thing were left to Mewtwo, that would be going too far.
Natsume truly hadn't expected Mewtwo would even read the contract.
"What does 'no vacation' mean?"
"It means my institute is flexible. You can take time off whenever."
"What does 'no salary' mean?"
"It means my institute covers room and board. If you need anything, just tell me directly."
"Then what does this 'fifty-year term of employment' mean?" Mewtwo looked up at Natsume, curious.
"It means that for fifty years you'll have Natsume Research Institute at your back. When you go out on business, you'll get Pokémon League priority all the way—green lights everywhere."
"Is that so? Then add another fifty years." Mewtwo thought it over. That seemed much more convenient.
Natsume: "..."
Damn it. He was still too green.
At the end, light flashed in Mewtwo's eyes. In an instant, a telekinetic contract appeared in Natsume's mind. Its contents were identical to those on the paper. At the same time, Natsume felt that a portion of his telekinetic power had entered Mewtwo's mind as well.
"If either of us violates the contract, the telekinetic energy in our minds will be detonated." Mewtwo looked at Natsume, dead serious.
Seeing this, Natsume tipped his head back and stared at the sky. He certainly wasn't going to go back on his word.
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