Chapter XIV

Few modern Gerudos have ever dared explore too far into the East. Not many reasons are given but a universal fear of the Empire keeps any and all questions unasked. Only a few ever dared venture past the Blue Village, and they never found anything but empty dunes and a few sparse ruins. One of these ruins is particularly noteworthy however: A massive stone temple stands in the middle of the desert several miles East of the Blue Village. It is built in the shape of the ancient desert Goddess that the ancestral unified Gerudo tribe once worshipped.. Only the oldest and wisest of the Elders remember its secrets. According to the legends it was one of six temples erected in honor to the gods of the elements. It was called the ‘Desert Colossus’, and was told to be the hideout of the original Gerudo queen, Nabooru. The aforementioned explorers did not find anything of value in the ruin, but it was noted how the temple seemed to be ageless, still standing almost completely undamaged as if protected by the very Desert Goddess it depicts.

Once again the caravan left early in the morning. Kalana and Ruru were walking through the village helping to wake everyone just as the sun pinched up over the horizon when they found Mewtwo asleep on the desert sand. Kalana scolded him lightly about how careless he had been but it was impossible for her to be grouchy to him for very long. He walked alongside them and watched as the Gerudos converted the tents back into canvases for the wagons. He offered to help them load but they refused. They proved to be incredibly efficient without him; the wagons were prepared and loaded in a handful of minutes. He, Kalana, and Ruru all jumped into the headmost wagon again, this time sitting closer up front to be nearer to the Elder.

The wagons set off and soon regained their amazing pace. They sped across the morning twilight sand flats like a flock of bizarre missiles that had been hybridized from wood, plastic and steel. Mewtwo rubbed his eyes and yawned; he was still incredibly sleepy and wanted to lay back and return to the relaxing void. He was rudely interrupted by Kalana’s hands grabbing him by his shoulders and shaking him.

“Don't go to sleep now!” She whispered. “Early mornings are when the sandworms come out to hunt for food! We all need to stay awake in case we’re attacked!”

Mewtwo moaned and shook his head back and forth, trying to wake himself up a bit more but to no avail. Half of the sky was still a deep violet and the sunrise wasn’t yet bright enough to help.

“Sis says you used to be nocturnal!” Ruru said, leaning around Kalana. “Boy that changed quickly!”

Mewtwo smiled. “Oh yes, I was. It only took me a week to make the actual adjustment, but it took the rest of the month to get used to it!”

Ruru laughed and sat back. She apparently had no problem being up this early, but this was probably because of all the extra sleep she and the other Gerudos had gotten over the course of the previous day. Mewtwo sat back as well and nearly drifted off a second time. He pinched himself to stay awake but the cool wind and soft dawn were very relaxing. He was about to give up and doze off when a voice saved him.

“I just realized that your eyes are amazing.” Said a middle aged Gerudo woman from the middle of the wagon. “They’re the deepest purple I’ve seen in years..”

Mewtwo unconsciously looked the other direction. Despite his bond with the Gerudos, he still felt uneasy about his appearance and tended to shy away when one tried to examine him.

“I see no evil in them either.” The woman continued. “I understand your appearance is frightening, but it’s easy to tell your heart is not evil by a simple glance in your eyes. It's too bad my foolish sisters are too scared of your outer appearance to look closer, or their delusions about you being evil would be abolished. There’s just something about you that is kind and gentle.” She said.

The thought struck Mewtwo that she only said that because they hadn’t really seen his brutal and violent side. His only episode here so far had been in the Imperial tower and none of them had been there to see it happen, they had only seen the results. His train of thought was quickly interrupted by the conversation as it continued though.

“You raise a very good point Madiri.” The Elder called back to her without turning her gaze from the sands ahead.

“What are your sister’s names?” Mewtwo burst out, an inner thought breaking through.

“Why they're Quidiri and W’diri, why do you ask?” Madiri asked.

“Just curious.” Mewtwo muttered. All Gerudo eyes in the wagon focused on him, and he felt awfully awkward. He felt like he could slap himself, and almost did for a second.

“Goin’ to talk some sense into them?” Ruru asked, poking her head out again.

Mewtwo laughed weakly and a few mild chuckles rolled around the wagon. The eyes lifted off of Mewtwo and returned to their own business. Mewtwo felt like he could kiss Ruru for the relief. The wagon was silent for awhile, and once again he began drifting off. He was interrupted a third time by Kalana.

“Oh all right you can sleep but we’re going to consider your act of drifting off as giving us license to use any method to wake you up in the event of an attack!”

Mewtwo chuckled. He wasn’t sure what kind of methods they had at their disposal but he was so incredibly sleepy that he didn't care if he found out the hard way. He laid back and fell asleep quickly and without disturbance.

Mewtwo was awoken an hour or two later slowly but surely by the sun. The heat of the desert and the burning sunlight filtered down through the wagon’s canvas and cut through his eyelids. He yawned, stretched, and sat up. The sun was now above the horizon but it was still early morning. The Gerudos were all asleep again, except the Elder, who was driving the wagon.

“Well, you’re awake again.” She said.

Mewtwo turned his head curiously. The Elder had a serious tone to her voice. “Yes, is something bothering you?”

“Well, you were sleeping out in the open! What were you thinking?” The Elder asked sternly. She hadn't raised her voice but was obviously upset.

“It was a nightmare that shocked me awake. I wandered out of my tent to get some fresh air for awhile and must have fallen asleep while I sat and took in the stars.” Mewtwo said, omitting his vision of Ai. He was still not sure if it was real or a dream. Sometimes sleep blended with reality in eerie ways.

“Ah, I see. I know how you feel; I’ve had nightmares all my life. I've never let it get to me though.” The elder said before suddenly pausing. She was silent for a few moments and then spoke again in a hushed tone, “Do you see a pair of burning crimson eyes etching into your very soul?”

Mewtwo suppressed his urge to gasp at the coincidence. He could practically see those eyes eating away at his body again. “Yes.”

“Every Elder has always been plagued by these images. From the very first day we are capable of remembering our dreams all the way up to our deaths. We’ve all seen the eyes.” The Elder said.

Mewtwo shuddered vigorously. The Elder looked back at him, breaking her concentration on the dunes ahead for the first time in their entire trip.

“Never once has an ordinary Gerudo had these dreams… But I must take into consideration that you’re not an ordinary Gerudo.” The Elder said, squelching her face up in thought. “You do have those powers after all.”

Mewtwo scoffed. “We’ve already come into the range of another tower. I couldn't use my powers again if I wanted to.” Just to make sure, Mewtwo tried to pick up a box in the back of the wagon. He was greeted with the familiar lack of energy; he felt dry like he hadn’t drunk any water in days.

“Your senses must be more attuned to the energies of the world than ours.” The Elder said with a quizzical look on her face.

“No explanation has ever been given to the eyes, but over time they have been given the name ‘The Eyes of the Empire’ because you can tell that they come from the Far East where they say the Empire’s heart is located.” The Elder said.

Suddenly, a connection snapped into place in Mewtwo’s brain. “Wait! Remember when we were attacked by the Evil copy of me in the station?” He burst out. “He had red eyes too! He must be the one haunting the Gerudo dreams!”

“It could be. But I know about the demons of old and they could shift shapes with ease. What attacked us was a demon who took your shape in order to frighten the villagers out of their trust in you! So it’s not necessarily true that the crimson eyes are linked to your physical shape specifically. I knew something about you was special, but now that a demon has tried to undermine our trust in you I know you hold some significance!” The Elder said, now in a lighter tone.

Mewtwo feigned a chuckle. “I guess they accomplished the opposite of what they intended then?”

“Absolutely. But still, the red eye correlation is very disturbing.” The Elder replied.

“So is the name that the Gerudos have given them. Now I feel like the Empire is watching me.” Mewtwo said with another shudder.

The conversation between them seemed to die right then and there. Mewtwo sat eagerly awaiting more talk to get those eyes off of his mind but the Elder sat silent. The hum of the engines was no longer soothing but rather intrusive as his mind boiled in thought. It seemed to take on a higher pitch which pierced his thoughts as he tried to prod into the mystery of the Empire. He now knew there was a connection between it and the Black Mewtwo as well as the nightmare he had, but the noise jumbled his thoughts and he couldn't think straight.

Hours passed and the sun moved across the sky as the wagons rocketed over the mysteriously flat sands. Noon came and went. Mewtwo couldn't sleep like the Gerudos, who were accustomed to it. His mind wandered by itself and it seemed to him that whenever it drifted back to the subject of the Empire his head began to pound. He shrugged it off as stress and thought about something else. Soon the sun was closing on the opposite horizon and Mewtwo felt like he was going to melt into the wagon. He was incredibly hot and uncomfortable and his tail was cramping up. The Elder still held on to her iron silence. At one point Mewtwo was sure she had fallen asleep, but this illusion was broken whenever she adjusted the controls on the vehicle. Time itself seemed to stop and the wagon was now unbearably uncomfortable.

What finally broke the monotony was not exactly a welcoming and friendly sound. A low rumbling noise climbed up into the air, becoming more and more distinct over the hum of the engines as time passed. Mewtwo snapped back into reality; he recognized that rumble as the same one made by the sandworm that he and Kalana had encountered. The Elder looked back at him with a face dominated by shock.

“By the gods!” She whispered, and then whipped around and pulled out her warning horn.

The resulting blast dominated the sound of the engines and the worm. Mewtwo heard a rumbling boom and looked back to see the sandworm erupt out of the ground about a mile behind them. It turned to face their formation of wagons and bared its multiple rows of grisly teeth.. Another horn blast sounded from the wagon on the left behind them, and soon every wagon followed suit. The sandworm smashed into the sand still far behind the hindmost wagon, but it was obviously gaining.

Kalana and the other Gerudos in the lead wagon with Mewtwo burst awake. Without saying a single word they rummaged through a nearby box and pulled out four bows and a couple quivers of arrows. Kalana, Madiri, and two other Gerudos strung the bows and each knocked an arrow. They stood at the back of the wagon and held their bows to the sky, ready for the worm to emerge.

The worm was eager to oblige. It burst out of the sands only a few hundred feet away from the rear wagon. Mewtwo was shocked at how fast it was moving. Immediately the four let fly and the arrows flew up and struck the worm all over the inside of its gaping mouth. Arrows arced up from all of the wagons, giving the worm a spiky mouthful. The sandworm didn't utter a sound but continued on its course until gravity caught it and pulled it down. It struck the sands with tremendous force a few dozen feet behind the rear wagon. The impact knocked the wagon forward, causing it to tumble like a gymnast and shatter into a cataclysm of wooden splinters. Luckily, the formation was spread wide enough to prevent a domino effect, but the sight of the driver being thrown and crushed was horrible.

The rumble passed underneath their wagon and Mewtwo imagined the worm bursting up underneath them, swallowing them all. But it was moving almost ten times faster than them and it passed quickly. Kalana, Madiri, and the third Gerudo ran up and stood at the front, arrows at the ready.

A few seconds later the worm exploded out of the dunes nearly fifty feet ahead. It turned and closed distance with the wagons, opening its bleeding mouth hungrily.

“Make this shot count!” Kalana shouted.

The arrows flew with laser-like accuracy and burrowed into each of the sandworm’s eyes. This time it made a terrible screaming sound and whipped it’s head around to face away. The momentum of its jump carried it forward however, and arrows from the other wagons continued to embed themselves in its hide. It sailed effortlessly over all of the wagons and flopped to the ground behind them, helpless and blind.

The wagons slowed and circled the worm from an ample safe distance. After it was still for nearly ten minutes they were able to leave it behind, now sure it was dead. They then turned around headed back to the remnants of the rear wagon that had been destroyed. They parked in a circle around the remains and climbed out in silence to inspect the scene.

Fortunately it had been one of the cargo wagons; the driver was the only one aboard. She had been crushed underneath the maelstrom of wreckage. She had died instantly when a wooden beam smashed her in the back of the neck, breaking her spine. Mewtwo stood over her solemnly. He knew that it would be impossible to resurrect her, even if he still had his powers. He turned and saw that the other Gerudos were moving quickly, salvaging all of the cargo without stopping to pay respects. Soon, everything that was of use was packed up, and Mewtwo was whisked off onto the wagon with Kalana and the others. No one spoke as the remains shrank into the horizon.

Mewtwo felt sickened. Nobody had even paused to look at the dead Gerudo. Kalana, Ruru, Madiri, the Elder, or any other Gerudo in the wagon with him showed any sign of emotion on their faces. Mewtwo wanted to scream at them. Didn't they care that one of them had just died? His tail twitched involuntarily and he had to sit directly on it to keep it still. He blocked out the ensuing pain and tried to shift his thoughts. Unfortunately, he was running out of pleasant things to think about. His memories of the tower incident came surging back and he felt a sickening sense of sorrow about the predicted dates of death for Kalana and the Elder. He felt as though his life was souring again and the thought of leaving via dimensional portal surged up strong. It danced around his head, taunting him.

A clear voice of reason rose in his mind. “Cowardly! The Gerudos saved your life, took you in and healed you, and you want to leave them like this? You are indebted to them! You cannot leave them without repaying them!”

“And what am I supposed to do?” Mewtwo countered to himself. “It's not like I can just hand them a few thousand yen! Money has never meant anything to me, and it's useless to the Gerudos! Once again, what exactly am I supposed to do?”

“You're being a moron!” the voice answered. “Money? Ha! You're right in saying it's worthless to them. Your actions speak louder than words.  You need to do something for them.” It said.

Mewtwo wondered if this was even him thinking. It sounded unlike him, but he could sense when someone intruded on his mind even when he was without his powers, and he was sure that he was absolutely alone with his thoughts.  The elder was right, his senses were very acute.

The rest of the drive that day was uneventful. They rode quietly for as long as daylight permitted and stopped to camp at sunset. Mewtwo slept soundly that night without having any dreams whatsoever.

The third day into the journey was mind-numbingly boring. Mewtwo sat in the wagon doing nothing the entire day. He envied the Gerudos to the extreme; they slept through almost the whole day, spared from the torturous boredom and heat. Being stuck in the wagon for that long was almost like being trapped inside a Pokéball, only with the sun beating overhead and emitting horrible heat. Mewtwo was able to sleep well after such a torturous day.

The fourth day followed the same suit. The boredom and the heat wore at Mewtwo's mind, he tried to make conversation with the Elder but neither of them could think of much to say. There was no lack of food and water though, thankfully the cargo car that had been destroyed was carrying the trading goods instead of their food and water supply. But Mewtwo could not waste the water by pouring it over himself, as much as he desperately wanted to. The day seemed to take pleasure in creeping by as slowly as possible just to spite him. When it finally did end the cool of the night was the sweetest thing Mewtwo ever felt in his life. His cool cloth bedstrip was more welcoming than ever when he fell into it.

The fifth day seemed to be a light at the end of the tunnel for Mewtwo. Only two more days were left and he would enjoy the cool comfortable interior of a hut and some decent grilled meat. For the first time Mewtwo's mind drifted toward the upcoming instead of the past. He wondered what was going to happen at the Blue Gerudo Village. What kind of ceremonies would occur? What food would they eat? How would the Elder introduce him to them? These thoughts kept Mewtwo's mind mostly occupied for the entire day. The heat and tedium were a little more tolerable because of it. Still, the bedstrip was a welcome sight.

The sixth day was a polar opposite of the fifth. Mewtwo was now becoming insanely impatient. He knew they would arrive tomorrow night, but the anticipation was driving him mad. It didn’t seem possible, but it was even hotter that day than any of the others. Mewtwo panted and gasped in the heat. The flimsy cloth canvas seemed powerless against the merciless sun. Mewtwo longed for water, but they were starting to run low and were rationing. That night, the chill and the bedstrip were more welcoming than they had ever been.

Chapter XV

The Gerudos have always been skilled in the arts of the staff and the blade. When a young Gerudo comes of age, she first receives training in the ways lf the staff. Then, after mastering the staff, the Gerudo would train with the sword. If she makes it this far, she then receives her own scimitar. It is vital for all Village Elders to have these skills, because the Elders aren’t only wise leaders, but powerful warriors that lead the Gerudos into battle.

Mewtwo awoke to the sound of a Gerudo warning horn. He sprung up from his bed strip and ran out of his tent without thinking. The camp was enflamed with activity. Gerudos with scimitars were buzzing around everywhere in confused patterns, looking for the threat. The horn sounded again, twice in quick succession, and the bustle reversed direction towards the sound. Mewtwo followed with the crowd, his adrenaline quickly bringing him into a state of full awareness. A few wooden staffs were lying on the ground, one of which Mewtwo grabbed as he passed. He didn’t have any special training with it but he didn’t want to go unarmed.

The crowd of Gerudos congealed around the Elder who was holding a warning horn in one hand. Mewtwo pushed his way to the front to get a good look at what was going on. The Elder and Kalana were restraining an unfamiliar, wild looking Gerudo who had a large scar across her forehead like a tiara. She was struggling to escape and growling something in Hylian.

“What we have here is a lone thief.” The Elder proclaimed loudly. “Kalana caught her stealing a red silk slip from one of our remaining cargo wagons.”

The thief struggled to no avail and looked over the crowd with wild insane eyes. She saw Mewtwo and let out a shrill scream, shattering the calm.

“Demon! Demon!” She cried. A few Gerudos in the crowd murmured, and suddenly Mewtwo was no longer being crowded. The Gerudos around him stepped away.

“Silence!” The Elder yelled. “Mewtwo is of no concern to you! He has proven himself to us and there is no need for you to interfere with our matters! Now, name your tribe!”

“I don’t belong to any of your so-called ‘tribes’!” The thief sneered. “I don’t follow the Empire!”

“Neither do we!” The Elder blasted, fire in her wise eyes.

“Liar! There’s proof of it right there!” The thief bellowed, pointing at the bewildered Mewtwo.

“ENOUGH!” The Elder exploded, holding her scimitar to the thief’s neck. The word echoed across the sands, and Mewtwo winced. “Another word and I will personally see your head rolling on the sands!”

“Another word!” the thief whispered spitefully.

Moving quicker than the Elder could stop, the thief kicked her left leg with her right leg. A hidden sword suddenly pierced through her right pant leg and embedded in Kalana’s leg above her knee. Kalana cried out and reflexively let go of the thief’s arm, and all in the same second, the crowd gasped, the Elder lost her grip, and the thief broke free. She pulled the bloody sword out of the secret pocket in her pants and charged at Mewtwo.

“Let my sisters free!” The thief cried zealously and swung her sword.

Mewtwo blocked with the staff he was now happy he had picked up. The blade cut two thirds through the wood before stopping. The crowd drew away with frightened shouts and murmurs, and after a few seconds the wood of the staff started to bend, threatening to snap. Mewtwo looked into the thief’s eyes and saw the same intense, black hatred he had felt when he went into a rage. He immediately knew what he was up against and felt a pit of fear growing in his stomach. Then, without any warning, the thief’s head jerked forward from an impact, her eyes went glassy and she fell limp on the ground. Standing behind her was Ruru holding a staff of her own.

The wagons left late the morning of that seventh day. The thief was left alone, tied up with only enough food and water for one day.  This was purely ceremonial though, a way of softening up a death sentence. Being left alone this far out in the desert meant the thief was essentially doomed to a slow death of dehydration. Mewtwo felt sorry for her, even after she had nearly stabbed him with a scimitar. He related to her simply because she too was a misfit in her own world, and felt the same rage as he did. After a while he doubted why he had even let them leave her like that.

This little incident also shook Mewtwo’s sense of security; he knew that his appearance was frightening to the Gerudos and not all of them trusted him, but this little brush with the rogue was a shocking reminder. Her accusations of him being an Imperial lord were like a bucket of cold water after acclimating to the heat.

After the wagon had reached its cruising speed, Fara climbed forward and sat next to Kalana and unwrapped her bandage. The wound underneath was deep; it pierced several layers of muscle but thankfully didn’t hit the bone. Kalana groaned and clenched her eyes shut, preferring not to see the damage. Fara shook her head woefully and produced a bottle of red liquid. Mewtwo recognized it right away as the same red potion she had given him almost two months ago when he had first arrived. Kalana gulped it down greedily, knowing it would stop her pain, and a few minutes later the wound completely vanished.

As the wagons rolled on over the course of the day Mewtwo became more and more restless. The lone thief’s raid hadn’t delayed them too much, but it would still be nightfall by the time they arrived at the Blue Village. The day passed slowly but thankfully it wasn’t as hot as it had been yesterday. Instead of sleeping, the Gerudos meditated all day.

When Mewtwo asked about this, Kalana replied “It’s for the festival games.”

“Festival games?” Mewtwo repeated ignorantly.

“Yes, in celebration of the union of the two tribes to share resources and fight the Empire.” Kalana answered.

“Are we actually going to war with the Empire?” Mewtwo asked, suddenly looking quite unnerved.

“Well, yes and no. We’re not going to all get up in arms and storm the heart of the Empire in hopes of taking them down, that would be suicide. But at the end of the Two Week’s Festival, both tribes go on a joint raid against the nearest tower.” Kalana said.

Mewtwo tilted his head to the side slightly as a thought struck him. If one tribe of 40 Gerudos could take a tower, then imagine what 80 could do! Suddenly, a new set of questions leapt into Mewtwo’s mind. How can the Gerudos keep defeating such an advanced force? He remembered the bullet-proof armor they had, but even that couldn’t make them invincible? It was at that moment that the wagon hit a bump, jolting Mewtwo back into the real world. He looked back and saw a rock in the sand trailing behind them. “How odd” He thought to himself.

Hours passed and soon Mewtwo’s attention turned to surveying his dismal little pseudo-family. Everyone was meditating except the Elder at the wheel and Ruru. Mewtwo’s heart felt a little lighter when he thought about her, so he decided to strike up a conversation.

“So, thanks for saving me.” He said softly so as not to disturb the meditators.

“We’re even now!” The smiling Ruru said with a wink. Her face was beaming, ever excited about the festival.

A small pause ensued, and Mewtwo tried again. “You’re skilled with the staff eh?” he asked.

“Mom is training me with it. I’m not really good with it though.” Ruru said, her smile fading a bit.

“That’s silly! Look how badly I did and you pulled my tail out of the fire!” Mewtwo replied, patting her on the shoulder.

Ruru smiled and blushed a deep shade of red, taking a split second to dart a look at Mewtwo’s tail. “You’re so nice!”. After another short pause, she then broke into a question. “Hey, why aren’t you preparing for the games?”

Mewtwo sighed heavily. “Looking the way I do? I would scare the other tribe away! I’ll probably need to spend most of the visit hidden.” He said forlornly.

Ruru frowned and rested her chin in her hands with a somewhat cute little pout. “I wish people wouldn’t judge other people by how they looked.”

“No matter how hard you try to get away from it, there’s always some amount of prejudice and hatred wherever you go.” Mewtwo said longingly.

For several more moments there was silence. When Mewtwo finally realized the depth of what he had just said he felt a warm feeling of acceptance in his heart. All his worries from what the thief had said earlier seemed to melt away and he felt a new readiness to take on any Gerudos who might still think little of him. His conversation with Ruru ended, but it was alright. They smiled warmly at each other and then Mewtwo settled down and relaxed a little, feeling much better mentally than he had in a long time. Before he knew it he was dozing again, and this time he actually fell into a full deep sleep as he rode the wagon.

In his dream, swirling galaxies spun through space and Mewtwo gazed at them, reaching out and touching them with his paw. They felt oddly warm and soft to the touch, almost like poking warm muffins still cooling from the oven. Suddenly they fell away and he felt himself being shaken awake. The inside of the wagon and Kalana’s face slowly re-emerged from the black mist of sleep. Mewtwo rubbed his eyes and yawned, sitting up with an uneasy wobble. He saw that the sun was nearly gone on the horizon behind them; he had slept the whole day! He was amazed; he had never slept so soundly and long, especially without disturbing dreams. He took a deep breath, held it, and let go slowly. He felt renewed, purified almost, and his head was clear for the first time in days.

“Feeling bet-” Kalana began, but she was suddenly cut off by an overeager Ruru.

“I guess it was your turn to sleep in today huh?” Ruru said, not meaning to be rude to her sister but too excited about making her joke.

“Would you please remember to speak in turn?” Kalana asked sharply.

“Sorry.” Ruru said, a hurt look on her face as she sat back.

Kalana shook her head and spoke. “We’re almost there, about half an hour left. Feeling better Mewtwo?”

“Yeah, and that’s good,” Mewtwo said, “But weren’t you a bit harsh on Ruru?”

“I guess you’re right.” Kalana said with a guilty look on her face. “She went through three months of living hell as an Imperial slave and here I am snapping at her for interrupting me.”

Kalana turned around and gave her sister a crushing hug as she finished her sentence. Ruru made fake choking noises in her grip and then they both laughed. The other Gerudos in the wagon, not meditating anymore, smiled at this heartwarming sight, and even the Elder looked back and smiled. Mewtwo felt like he was a part of the family again, and even Madiri smiled.

After thirty minutes the sun finally finished its decent and complete darkness surrounded them. Just a few miles in the distance Mewtwo could see the glow of several huge bonfires. Mewtwo theorized that they were signal fires, designed to guide the wagons in since knew that they were now close enough to see the Blue Village. The Elder downshifted the engine, which whined and coughed painfully. The same sounds issued from the wagons behind them.

Suspiciously, the noises from some of the wagons behind them began to fade into  silence. Before anyone in Mewtwo’s wagon could look back, a whizzing noise and a thump were heard from in front of them and the engine sputtered out, dead.