LIVE-A-LIVE: Echoes of the Forgotten Clone

Mission Start

I'd been gone for quite some time, but after many years of travelling and taking on missions across the planet, I finally found myself back in the Kanto region. Specifically, the contaminated ruins of Cinnabar Island.

Mission codename: S, R, three eighty-eight. Contrary to its unmemorable code, the objective and its story were simple. Following a recent, unnatural eruption on the island, elite trainers who were all champions of the Kanto league had landed on the island to investigate what activity had caused the eruption. Very soon after they left to explore however, all contact with the trainers was lost.

Agents and emergency services were soon dispatched on a rescue operation with some advanced tracking technology, but they suffered the same fate just as quickly – they disappeared without a trace, their life signs vanishing entirely. It was then that I was contacted, a very desperate plea to help emphasized in the message.

"There is something there on that island, something beyond our imagination. You may not be a champion trainer, Chozu, but your vast experience in situations like these is exactly what we need to find out what is going on. Find out what happened to the people that went to the ruins of Cinnabar Island, scan the area for any activity, and if possible, rescue anyone still alive. We will provide you with all the aid we can."

That was the gist of the commands from the Kanto Federation. Truth to be told, I heavily dislike taking orders from government organizations, as well as stepping into the unknown. It is this disdain for blind exploration that caused me to abandon my aspirations of becoming a Pokémon champion and become a bounty hunter instead. I wanted stability and control in my life, to be able to live and earn as freely as a Pokémon trainer but without risking myself and my Pokémon in deadly battles. I had a creed in my missions, to only accept them when I had all the information that I requested.

But in this case, they had a bargaining chip over me. The Kanto Federation dislike working with me due to my rule of requiring so much information. They never cooperated or requested my help, and in turn, I never responded or cooperated when our objectives crossed. But something told me to respond this time, to learn everything I could about the situation. It was then that I learned just how grave this situation truly was.

Samuel Oak. The pinnacle professor of the Kanto region with an extensive list of discoveries and achievements. Once I saw his name amongst those who had disappeared on the missions, I felt a terrible foreboding in my heart. Why had he of all people gone to such a dangerous place? What happened to him? If he died, what would become of Kanto's delicate infrastructure when it came to sending children on their journeys?

I had to find out. I owed my life to him for lending me the power I now had. I couldn't turn my back knowing that someone who meant so much to people had disappeared. And so, I departed for Cinnabar Island at my earliest opportunity, accepting the Federation's suicidal mission.

...

The surface of Cinnabar was exactly as I remembered it, despite being so long ago. The island was once home to laboratories that researched Pokémon biology on a level that was highly illegal. A deadly Pokémon known as Mewtwo had been created there using the DNA of the mythical Pokémon Mew, but the Kanto Federation had silenced everyone involved in the experiments. The volcano erupting some years later destroyed the laboratory and made life on the island uninhabitable, killing the retired scientists in the process. Mewtwo had disappeared as well, much to the Federation's displeasure. A small price to pay for their decision to try to conceal the truth.

"Chozu, we've confirmed your arrival," Surge said, speaking through a communicator attached to my arm. Wireless headphones transferred all sound directly to my ears. "You have Varia, don't you? Take your time with this. We configured Varia's scanning function so that it can send data directly to our database, photos and all. Anything you scan, we get immediately."