The memory around Goh finished forming, like the last pieces of a puzzle finding their way naturally to paint a bigger picture. Looking around, he truly only saw untouched nature; it was clear that no human had ever witnessed the forest before him, which made even more sense for why Mewtwo had chosen this place to take refuge from humanity.
"Shay!"
Goh looked behind him and saw a Pokémon with flowers and greenery growing upon its back running along a path riddled with Pokémon footprints. "Shay! Shay!" The Pokemon cried happily, disappearing into the bushes as another Pokemon of its kind chased after it, not too far behind. "Min!" The second one exclaimed, leaping into the same bush in playful pursuit of the other one.
Goh raised an eyebrow, instinctively reaching for his Rotom Phone to try to find out what Pokemon he had just seen. Of course, once he felt his empty pocket, the realization that this reality had already happened and was simply a projection hit him, causing him to shake his head.
I can't be getting distracted by anything, Goh thought to himself, placing his hands over his face and wiping it. I've got to find a way to destroy this memory. Whether that will get Mewtwo's attention or start the destruction of this shared consciousness is the real question. He placed his hands in his jacket's pockets and began following the path of footprints, hoping it would lead him somewhere.
As Goh followed the trail, he took note of a few things. As he encountered different Pokemon, he noticed they couldn't actually see him, or at least, they didn't care enough to form a reaction. This small consistency led his mind to wonder about the logistics of the place he was in. I guess it's like some sort of place where our minds are made up together. And since Mewtwo's a Psychic-type Pokemon, he's letting us be able to see what our minds are making up.
Goh continued walking in hope of finding something that could help him. The footprints began getting more and more frequent, giving him a suspicion that he was following a path that led to somewhere important. Along the ground, he could start to recognize the prints of each Pokemon with how recent they were.
This one looks like a Munchlax's! He thought to himself, gazing upon a small circular-shaped print. And this one's a Taillow's! He added, staring at a very odd-shaped line that split into three ends.
Goh continued doing this, finding himself distracted by trying to identify which Pokemon had taken the path. Eventually, however, he stumbled across a large paw-like print that seemed the most prominent. He raised an eyebrow and quickly realized the print belonged to the Pokemon whose memory he was currently invading.
Mewtwo must be close then! He told himself, snapping his mind back to the goal at hand and running further along the path. After a few seconds of sprinting as fast as he could, a faint light entered his vision through the branches. The light of a lit campfire.
Goh got on his knees and moved aside the branches, allowing himself to get a clearer look at what was happening. Before him was a large group of Pokemon, all huddled around the fire and dancing to music being made by a few Loudred near the center. The diversity of the Pokemon was unlike anything he had seen before; it was like all the regions had collided to create a huge Pokemon party.
A smile crept onto Goh's face. It seemed like the Pokemon were having a fantastic time, even without humans. Slowly, his smile formed into a frown as Mewtwo's agenda suddenly reached the forefront of his mind. The Pokemon here are thriving without humans, he said to himself. Is Mewtwo even wrong?
His mind began recalling back to the times when he interacted with Pokemon. Not only had they eventually warmed up to him, but they had also been able to celebrate and enjoy life just like the wild Pokemon he was watching now. Mewtwo is wrong. I'm sure of it, he stated to himself. Humans don't negatively affect Pokemon. Not one bit.
Creeping his neck out ever so slightly to get a better look, Goh was able to see the full picture of this event. To his left was a humongous pile of berries, surely the Pokémon's food for the next few weeks. Turning his head to the right, he saw Mewtwo himself with his eyes closed; he seemed to be meditating a few inches above the ground, unaware of the party before him.
I'm glad I found this place, Goh thought to himself, feeling a bit better now that he had found an origin to the memory. I guess this is a good memory that Mewtwo had while he was in the forest. He took another peek at the large meditating Pokemon, whose eyes were still closed. Even if he's not participating.
"Mag! By!"
Goh looked over and saw a small Magby shooting a few Embers over at the campfire, rekindling the fire and creating a larger flame. Looks like Magby is keeping the campfire alive for the night's festivities. He stared upon the growing flame, being reminded as the logs within it were being engulfed at how dangerous and destructive fire was.
Destructive.
The word spoke to Goh, causing him to swiftly understand what he could do to cause damage to the memory. I can use this fire to destroy this forest. This plan filled Goh with not only relief but also a slight hint of sadness. The very thought of him lighting the forest, which was home to all of the joyous Pokemon before him, in flames was overwhelming.
Goh gritted his teeth and turned away from the sight before him. He needed to quickly remind himself where he was at. This isn't real life! He stated to himself, trying to solidify this thought in his mind. This is only a memory, and whatever you do here won't matter. These Pokemon will be okay no matter what!
Goh took a deep breath and closed his eyes, feeling the wind against his skin. It certainly felt real, but he knew deep in his mind what needed to happen. He lifted his foot and kicked through the branches, causing them to tumble across the grass and towards the campfire. The Pokemon all stopped and looked over at the hole Goh just made. They couldn't necessarily see him, but they had just somehow seen the result of his kick.
He walked forward and past all of the Pokemon still staring at the hole that was made, unable to comprehend what was happening. Goh was, of course, extremely curious as to why things he did could be absorbed by the creatures witnessing it, even though he couldn't be. However, he had one job, and that was to try to hinder Mewtwo in any way possible.
Grabbing a large stick on the ground, Goh extended his arm forward, lighting the end of it on fire. The flame reflected in his eyes, which stared back at the crackling heat in a mixture of fear and worry. Another deep breath was taken right before he hurled the flaming stick deep into the forest, watching as it came into contact with a tree and setting it ablaze.
It wasn't long before the fire began spreading at an uncontrollable pace and the Pokemon started noticing. Goh turned around and saw the Pokemon running over the fire; Water-types were unleashing large amounts of water streams, Flying-types were trying to blow the fire out, Grass-types were trying to revive the dying plants; every Pokemon was working together.
Goh took a few steps back and sighed with a frown. Again, he knew this had to be done, but to see the Pokemon working so diligently to save their home filled him with extreme guilt. Not only for the Pokemon in this memory but also Ash; this is also how he had lost his home weeks ago, unable to stop a fire from engulfing a forest.
Looking over to his right again, Mewtwo was still meditating, completely unaware as the Pokemon continued to fight the fire to no avail. Goh walked over and sat next to him with his legs crossed and leaned on his arm as the scene unveiled.
"Well. That's that," he said to himself, staring up at the unbothered Mewtwo. "Hopefully this can stop you in reality." No response; Mewtwo continued floating in place. Goh tilted his head and crossed his arms. "You know, I've been searching for your clone," he said out loud as the Pokemon started giving up on the fire as it engulfed the area around the campfire.
"Or, aren't you the clone?" He corrected himself, not entirely sure of the right answer. "Whatever. I've been searching for Mew ever since I was a little boy, and if he's anything like you," he stood up and furrowed his brows at Mewtwo. "Then I'm not sure I wanna meet him. You're evil, even after you've been given so many chances to be anything else."
Mewtwo's eyes opened.
Goh jumped back as his heart began beating rapidly. He had to hurry and remind himself of the truth about this place. It's only a memory. It's only a memory. It's only a memory. Mewtwo rose higher in the sky and looked around, seeing the flames as they overtook the entire forest amidst the Pokemon trembling in the middle of the campfire site.
"It's only a memory," he repeated to himself out loud. "It's only a memory. Nothing more. Mewtwo can't see you." His words echoed in his head as a tether; he was slightly worried that Mewtwo was going to try to stop the fire, but he couldn't have been more wrong.
Mewtwo looked down directly at Goh.
In what felt like a million years, Mewtwo locked eyes with Goh and flew right toward him, grabbing him by the neck. "ARE YOU MESSING WITH MY MEMORIES?" Mewtwo roared at Goh, carrying him above the blazing forest as they shot through the sky, going faster than Goh had ever gone before.
"How can you see me right now!?" Goh yelled above the wind rushing through his ears. "This is a memory! You shouldn't be able to see me!" In response, Mewtwo grunted and slapped Goh across the face, sending him flying through the air. His face throbbing with pain, Goh watched with fear as he plummeted toward the ground.
Right before he touched the flames of the forest, he felt himself being rescued by Mewtwo himself, who dangled him above the fire for a few more seconds. "Fortunately for you," Mewtwo said with a calmer and more put-together tone. "I can't have you die, or else we'll both likely be brain-dead in the real world, so consider this your lucky omen."
Feeling himself being carried over to the original campfire site, Goh's eyes fell upon the wild Pokemon, all huddled together and being protected by constant Water moves from the Water-type Pokemon. Mewtwo slowly descended towards them, dropping Goh on the ground with disdain. "Fear not. I am here to relocate everyone to a safer location." Mewtwo stated, his voice being absorbed by all of the wild Pokemon.
What is he doing? Goh asked himself as he tried to stand up, but found his ankle had given out completely. "But first, feast your eyes upon the being that has caused this disaster!" Mewtwo roared, waving his paw with psychic powers and somehow revealing Goh to the Pokemon. Immediately, all of the Pokemon grew faces of anger and grief, seeing the person that had caused their forest to be caught ablaze.
All at once, the Pokemon leaped forward towards Goh, intent on hurting him. Goh screamed and raised his arms defensively, but Mewtwo had already saved him by placing him behind a barrier that stopped the Pokemon in their tracks. "I know you want to claim vengeance upon this human, but worry not," Mewtwo stated with a hint of seeming excitement. "There are millions of these creatures to hurt, and they're right over there!"
Mewtwo pointed towards the sky, which suddenly began forming another portal-like structure. Goh's eyes opened wide as he realized what Mewtwo was intending on doing. First, he brought in the wild Pokémon from the real world, he said, realizing what Mewtwo was planning on doing. And now, he's going to somehow bring in another copy of those Pokemon from the memory.
Goh wasn't sure how exactly this was even possible, but he knew one thing for sure: There were too many wild Pokemon for Ash and the others to handle. As the portal structure finished forming, a slight view of the real world could be seen. It was Ash and Hawlucha, and it seemed Ash was being held by Mewtwo miles above the ground. "Ash! Ash! Look out!" Goh screamed, trying to catch his attention; instead Hawlucha looked over, confused at the source of the sound.
Goh watched as the wild Pokemon from the memory cried out in unison; they began hopping onto the backs of the flying Pokemon and departed towards the portal. Mewtwo turned around and stared at Goh. "This is what happens when you mess with elements beyond your understanding, Goh," he stated menacingly.
Goh looked on in worry and helplessness as Mewtwo's words echoed in his head. What have I done? He asked himself, tears forming in his eyes. Ash. Please. Please stop this madness for good.