Death Battle: What are you fighting for?

Hydro Frez: The boosters have been charged and generators are juiced! I can see the ending!

Tempest: It's time for, a DEATH BATTLE!

---
Ruins of Empire City

The once prosperous American city, previously a heavily populated metropolis, lay as nothing more then a barren husk, filled with empty streets and the skeletons of buildings. Not even crows circled the dead city, devastated by a weapon of unknown origin.

Above the city, a single figure wrapped in a brown cloak could be seen flying through the air, as if scanning the area for survivors. His presence went unnoticed, for there was no living soul to witness the lone figure against the starry sky.

Except for one.

Down below, in the ruins of an old high school building, an aged man wearing a trench coat spotted the figure soaring through the sky. Muttering to himself, the figure stepped outside. Immediately, his body was whisked away in a flash of blue light, travelling through the broken streets as if he knew it like the back of his hand.

Up above, the flying figure caught notice of the bright flash of light moving through what he thought was a dead city. Curious, he followed the light trail to a large crater surrounded by long destroyed buildings.

Spotting the moving light stop aboard an elevated platform in the middle of the crater, the cloaked figure floated down, where the source of the light revealed itself to be an elderly man in a trench coat. Cybernetic machinery poked out from his coat, revealing a mechanical chest and arm that glowed with energy.

The figure in the trench coat nodded and gestured with his arm. "Welcome stranger. Long have I searched and waited for someone of your power to pass by here. Here me, and join in my fight to save the world."

The cloaked figure touched down and pulled his cloak off, revealing a feline head with slender limbs and a long purple tail. "That all seems a bit much to ask of someone you just met without even giving your name."

Giving a wry grin as the creatures voice echoed in his head, the old man bowed his head. "My apologies. Where are my manners? I am known by many titles, but you may call me Kessler."

The Pokemon nodded. "Very well. You may call me Mewtwo." Crossing his arms, Mewtwo tilted his head. "Now tell me, wouldn't it be more productive for you to have gone out and found your champion instead of waiting for him?"

Grimacing, Kessler gave a slight nod in agreement. "Aye, you're correct. Truth be told, there was one I had groomed to be the perfect hero I could never be. Alas, there were some, ah... difficulties in getting him to cooperate, and he decided to head to New York instead. Which is why I'm asking you now. There is a great danger coming. Together with our power combined, we can save the world."

After staring into the man's eyes, Mewtwo sadly shook his head. "I apologize, but there is too little you're not revealing to me. And from your eyes, I can see the bloody path you have carved to get this far. I do not wish to participate in anymore bloodshed." Turning around, Mewtwo began to float away. "I'm sorry, but the answer is no."

Not a second after his toes had left the ground, a small bolt of electricity shot over Mewtwo's head. Pausing, Mewtwo turned to face at the Conduit, who's arm was outstretched, small electric sparks dancing around his finger tips.

"I won't take no for an answer." Kessler lowered his hand and hopped off the platform, landing with a soft thump on the broken ground. "That was a warning shot. Now, try giving me your answer again."

Mewtwo glared at Kessler, contemplating his options, before raising one arm into the air.

"Very well. Here is my answer."

FIGHT!



With a single wave of his hand, several dozen star like projectiles were formed and sent flying at the Conduit. Kessler stayed still, silently watching as the Swift attack honed in on him, then stuck one of his hands into the pockets of his trench coat, and sighed.

Before the Swift attack made contact, all of them bounced off a barrier of translucent energy, keeping Kessler unharmed. Mewtwo raised an eyebrow as Kessler lifted his free hand, little arcs of electricity dancing in-between his fingers.

"I really hoped you'd see things my way." Kessler muttered, a hint of bitterness in his voice. "We would've made a fine team. Together, we could've saved the world." 

Raising his arm above his head, a bolt of lightning shot out, aimed straight for Mewtwo's skull, signifying Kessler's intent to kill. But a blue sphere of psychic energy quickly surrounded Mewtwo, dispersing the electricity, mirroring what Kessler had done to Mewtwo's earlier attack.

The Genetic Pokemon's eyes began to glow with psychic power as he levitated off the ground and into the air. "You speak of saving the world, but I can see in your eyes what lengths you are willing to go to. Thousands, no, millions will die to meet your end goal."

Scowling, Kessler's glowing eye brimmed with anger. "A necessary sacrifice!" Gathering energy into both arms, Kessler roared and sent multiple bolts of lightning at Mewtwo, who swiftly flew around each one. "What I do is to ensure that no-one will have to witness the future I've seen!"

Lightning lanced through the barren sky and struck the husks of several ruined buildings as Mewtwo aptly dodged them. "And what future might this be? Just what is it that pushes you to commit such atrocities?" With a burst of telekinesis, Kessler suddenly found his arms pinned at his side. Flying down in front of Kessler and activating his psychic abilities, Mewtwo stared into the eyes of the Conduit, peering into his mind to sneak a glance at the memories hidden within...

Only to be forcefully ejected right out of Kessler's mind. Stunned, Mewtwo's guard dropped ever so slightly, allowing Kessler to break free of the Pokemon's telekinesis and shove his hands outwards with a snarl, launching Mewtwo backwards across the landscape with a powerful pulse of kinetic energy. 

Keeping an eagle like eye on his opponent, Kessler took a single step forward. The moment his foot touched the ground, his entire body vanished, only to reappear right in front of Mewtwo.

"That is mine alone to know."

Swinging his cybernetic arm upwards, a shockwave of energy ripped at Mewtwo's shield. For just a moment, the blue energy field vanished, but it was long enough for Kessler to channel electricity through his arms and blast it point-blank into Mewtwo's unguarded front, sending the Genetic Pokemon careening through the air and through a stone building. The wall that Mewtwo went through began to collapse, large cement chunks breaking off the building.

To Kessler's eye, the Pokemon was buried and most likely dead underneath the pile of rubble. 

For Mewtwo however, the battle had barely even started.

Chunks of cement and rubble were suddenly coated in a bluish glow. Slightly startled as the cement chunks were lifted into the air, Kessler quickly teleported a good distance away as Mewtwo floated out, the broken pieces of stone orbiting his body like asteroids around a planetary body.

Scowling, Kessler clenched his fists and shot bolt after bolt of lightning at Mewtwo. Each blast reduced a stone chunk to pieces, but those pieces were immediately surround by the bluish glow of psychic power before they even began to fall.

Tucking both elbows in, Mewtwo closed his eyes for a split second, causing the rocks and stone circling his body to spin faster, ignoring Kessler's electric blasts as they exploded against the stone like machine-gun fire.

Suddenly, Mewtwo's eyes snapped open. Throwing an arm out, every bit of rock and stone was sent hurtling at Kessler, whistling through the air with a high pitched frequency.

His eyes widening, Kessler immediately began teleporting in a desperate attempt to avoid being shredded to pieces. Every so often, a bolt of electricity would shoot out when he had the chance, but all Mewtwo had to do was shift over to the side, the bolt fizzling out in the sky.

A small pebble grazed Kessler's cheek, causing him to grit his teeth in irritation. Eventually, Mewtwo's relentless assault slowly ceased as the stone ammunition was used up. Crossing his arms, Mewtwo slowly floated to the ground while Kessler teleported in front of him, breathing heavily. While he had managed to escape the brunt of the attack, several small cuts dotted his clothes, a thin red line slowly oozing blood down his cheek.

"Now this is a surprise..." Kessler muttered as he rubbed his cheek. "Such immense power... far more then I had anticipated." Gathering static in his arms, Kessler's eyes began to glow a blinding white.

Mewtwo said nothing, choosing instead to clench his fists, an arc of star projectiles forming around him. With a simple mental flex, the Swift attack honed in on Kessler, just as the Conduit fired a few bolts of electricity at the Pokemon.

The result was the same as before: Both Pokemon and Conduit had their attacks rebounded off their opponents shields, the stars and electricity falling harmlessly against the sides of the crater. During the attack however, Kessler quickly released several glowing orange balls of energy that fell to the ground. Before Mewtwo could react, Kessler teleported away, leaving the Genetic Pokemon surrounded by orange energy grenades.

Instantly realizing what was going on, Mewtwo released a pulse of psychic energy, the energy grenades flying into the air and exploding in a shower of brilliant orange and yellow sparks.

While his back was turned, several bolts of electricity were shot at Mewtwo, all bouncing off his bubble shield. Narrowing his eyes, Mewtwo brought his palms together, dark purple energy swirling around his palms, forming a ghostly blob. Turning around, Mewtwo blasted the Shadow Ball attack at Kessler. Scowling, the Conduit flash-stepped away, the Shadow Ball zipping off into the distance. Quickly reappearing, Kessler continued to bombard Mewtwo with bolts while continuously flash-stepping.

Crossing his arms as the bolts of electricity washed over his psychic shield, Mewtwo began to focus his mind. Watching with a careful eye as Kessler continued to teleport around the battlefield, Mewtwo reached out with his psychic powers, his eyes glowing bright blue with energy. The moment Kessler appeared, the Conduit found himself caught in Mewtwo's mental hold, a blue glow surrounding his body and restricting his movements.

Before Kessler could attempt to break free, his entire stomach lurched as he was sent hurtling into the air at blistering speeds. Struggling to regain his disorientating vision, Mewtwo brought his hand down and with a simple mental flex, Kessler was sent plummeting towards the ground, slamming into the remains of the road so hard, a small tremor shook the entire area. 

Mewtwo wasn't finished yet. With another pulse of psychic energy, Kessler was tossed in an arc, slamming into the ground again before being lifted into the air and dragged towards Mewtwo. Just before the Conduit got too close, Mewtwo clenched his fist and thrust his palm out, a wave of psychic power pulsing out and sending Kessler shooting through the air and into the side of the crater with a loud crunch. 



Slowly, the Conduit slid down the slope of the crater, only the sound of crumbling pebbles echoing in the silence. Quietly, Mewtwo floated down a respectable distance away as Kessler propped himself up on his elbows, a trickle of blood running down his forehead.

"You're pretty good..." Kessler wheezed as he made it to one knee. Coughing as he pushed himself up to both legs, Mewtwo simply tilted his head.

"This is a meaningless battle. You should've realized it by now." The Genetic Pokemon's voice spoke in Kessler's mind. "You will never convince me to join you, nor will you be able to win this fight. I'm giving you one last chance to turn around now and keep your life."

Scowling, Kessler spat on the ground and glowered at Mewtwo. "I died a long time ago. The only reason I still live is to stop the future from coming through."

Raising his arms into the air, massive amounts of static flickered and arched across his body as Kessler channeled his Conduit powers to the limit. "NO MATTER THE LOSSES! I WILL SUCCEED! AT ANY PRICE! AT ANY COST!"

The wind began to pick up, whipping Kessler's cloak around him as several ghostly phantasms formed around his body and then grew to unimaginable heights. As one, these phantasms lurched forward, as if they were gliding on ice towards Mewtwo. The psychic type narrowed his eyes, channeling his psychic power.

The first phantasm reached out with a ghostly hand, aiming to grab onto its victim. Just as its fingers were about to wrap around Mewtwo, a pulse of psychic power shredded the ethereal energy. The phantasm didn't even react as several holes opened up in its ghostly body, ripping it to nothingness.

Without so much as looking, Mewtwo flicked his hand towards the second and third phantasms, unleashing a burst of psychic energy that tore open several holes in their body causing them to collapse and dissipate back into the ether.

Just as the last one reached Mewtwo, it was suddenly halted in its tracks as Mewtwo calmly held both arms out and then pushed them to the side, ripping the phantasm clean in half with his telekinesis.

Snarling as he watched his last phantasm fall over, Kessler summoned electricity through his body and shot forth a powerful beam from his palms, punching right through his own defeated phantasm and scoring a direct hit on Mewtwo, forcing the Genetic Pokemon to take a step back. Acting quickly before Mewtwo could retaliate, Kessler flash stepped out of the way and launched another beam of electricity, striking Mewtwo's back and eliciting a pained grunt as static coursed through the Pokemon's muscles. Using his telekinesis, Mewtwo fought through the numbing sensation and ripped a chunk of the ground out and proceeded to hurl it at Kessler, who quickly flash stepped again. Immediately after reappearing, yet another energy beam was blasted at Mewtwo, who had just put up an energy field to block it.

Feeling the drain on his energy reserves, Kessler summoned every bit of power he could muster and fired at Mewtwo, fully intent on breaking that shield. To his surprise however, Mewtwo dropped the energy shield and held out his hand. Then to Kessler's shock and outrage, the energy beam stopped in its tracks.

Gritting his teeth as Mewtwo used his psychic power to condense the energy into a crackling ball of electricity, fatigue suddenly rushed through Kessler's body, forcing him to drop to one knee to catch his breath. Exhausted, Kessler wheezed with heavy breaths as Mewtwo flung the Conduit's own attack right back at him, scoring a direct hit and blasting Kessler through a pile of rubble. 

Without waiting for the Conduit to get back up, Mewtwo cupped his palms together, gathering dark swirling energy and hurled the Shadow Ball at Kessler. Wincing from his injuries, Kessler quickly teleported away, the Shadow Ball creating a small crater in the ground.

Reappearing on an elevated platform, Kessler scowled and snapped his fingers. Ripples of energy began to pulse out from the space around his body as several small drones came flying out and trained their launchers on Mewtwo. With a silent command, all the drones began launching small grenade like explosives at the psychic type while Kessler began to lob orange energy grenades as support.

Though they were all on target, Mewtwo kept gliding forward, the grenades exploding on contact with his energy shield but completely failing to so much as faze him. Growing frustrated, Kessler commanded the drones to keep firing. Grabbing the drone closest to him with his mechanical arm and draining the energy running through it, Kessler tossed the metal husk to the ground and slammed his metal knuckles into the ground.

A powerful quake ran through the entire area, collapsing the remaining skeletal buildings and sending large chunks of cement into the air towards Mewtwo as the drones continued firing grenades at him.

But still, Mewtwo remained undeterred as the cement and grenades bounced off his shield. Glaring at the drones, Mewtwo sent a pulse of psychic energy with a simple mental twitch. The effect was instantaneous as each drone was destroyed from the inside out, turning into little more then piles of scrap as their inner circuitry were fried. 

"Stop it! You cannot hope to best me!" Mewtwo's telepathic voice echoed in Kessler's head as he dispersed his shield and continued to float closer. Sneering, Kessler charged up electricity in his palm and stepped took a step forward, giving him the appearance that he would launch a powerful lightning strike.

"Nothing is invincible, so long as you know their weakness!" 

Screaming angrily, Kessler ran towards Mewtwo, static crackling around his arms. The Genetic Pokemon frowned and reached out with his psychic powers to grab Kessler and binding his movement. With his free hand, Mewtwo began to form another Shadow Ball to finish Kessler and put him out of commission for good.

Before he could though, Kessler suddenly disappeared from Mewtwo's grasp, just as Mewtwo flung the Shadow Ball. Confusion turned to surprise as Kessler reappeared right in front of Mewtwo and lunged forward.

"Let's see what you're hiding in that head of yours!" Kessler cackled as he used his mechanical arm to grab Mewtwo's forehead. Instantly, Mewtwo buckled as he felt his mind being forcefully probed. Thinking quickly, Mewtwo gritted his teeth and decided to make a gamble, clasping his own hand on Kessler's as well.

"Two can play that game!"

All fell silent as both Pokemon and Conduit stood still.

But while their bodies were motionless, their minds raged on. Clashing their mental strength together, both dug deep into their opponent's memories, forcing memories, both normal and hidden to bubble up to the surface.

**stop music**

---
For Mewtwo, he saw images of Kessler in what must've been his youth. He saw the man's wedding day, he felt the joys of happiness when he was blessed with two daughters. Despite his Conduit powers in a world where they were feared, Kessler was at peace.


Then, Mewtwo felt fear as a massive behemoth made out of what appeared to be molten rock ravaged Kessler's life, destroying everything in sight.


He saw Kessler weigh the risk of fighting. He had the power to stop it. To save everyone.


Instead, he saw Kessler take his family and run, run from his choices, from his destiny.


And he felt the despair, pain and grief that went through Kessler when he cradled the lifeless bodies of everyone he had ever known and loved in his arms.


---
For Kessler, he witnessed the anger that quietly seethed within Mewtwo, how he had been used by scientists and how one man nearly forced the Pokemon's destiny to be that of a weapon.


He saw the shine that a single young boy brought to Mewtwo's world and opened a path to a brighter future. For Mewtwo, this was the peace he had been seeking.


But then, Kessler dug deeper. 

Deep, deep within Mewtwo's mind, Kessler saw a small girl surrounded by a lizard, a turtle, a plant frog, and a young Mewtwo.


He saw the joy the girl and her animal friends brought Mewtwo. The happiness that flowed through the young Pokemon.


And he felt the confusion, the pain, and the helplessness Mewtwo experienced as one by one, each of his friends faded from the plane of the living, leaving a young Mewtwo truly alone.


---
Slowly, both Pokemon and Conduit dropped their hands to their sides and took a step back. What one side had seen, the other had relived. Breathing heavily, Mewtwo stared blankly at the ground and was somewhat startled to feel warm moist trails run down his cheeks.

"I... I remember..." Mewtwo's telepathic voice echoed into Kessler's mind. The memory that had been unlocked was one that was supposedly erased by the scientist known as Dr. Fuji, and all the emotion, all the feelings that had been locked away came rushing back, weighing heavily in Mewtwo's mind as he remembered his past. His friends that were long gone. "Amber..."

"I see that was a memory you wanted to forget." Kessler softly spoke as tears dripped down Mewtwo's chin. "Whether it was one somebody had erased or one you had buried out of guilt, it must be a painful memory for someone who has not experienced such loss before."

Mewtwo kept silent, still struggling with the sudden onslaught of memories. "...And you. Why do you not weep for your loved ones? No matter how long you live, each time you push it away, it must still be painful every time you recall it."

Kessler shook his head. "I've never forgotten..." He muttered. "Because I live with my sin everyday. Every waking moment is a reminder that I failed them."

Lifting his head, Mewtwo took a good long look at his opponent. An outward glance could tell that the bitterness and anger Kessler bore. But beneath all that, his eyes were not full of tears...

They were full of regret.

Regret for not standing up to The Beast that claimed his family and home. Regret for failing to save them.

"That is why I came back to the past." Kessler whispered. "To redeem my sins. No matter the cost. No matter the sacrifice. I will prevent my future from ever coming true."

"...It wasn't a mistake."

The sudden telepathic voice made Kessler pause. Mewtwo shook his head as he recalled the visions he saw of Kessler's past. "There was no mistake. You gave yourself a choice when there shouldn't have been one."

Tightening his hands, Kessler took a step forward, a flash of anger crossing his eyes. "And just what do you mean by that?"

Staring straight into Kessler's eyes, Mewtwo spoke his words directly into Kessler's, where they would burn into his mind's eye.

"You ran away."



No sooner had Mewtwo spoken, Kessler roared and unleashed a powerful wave of kinetic energy, slamming into the psychic Pokemon and sending Mewtwo flying through the air.

"How dare you! HOW DARE YOU!" Charging up energy through his arms, Kessler bombarded Mewtwo with bolt after bolt of electricity. Mewtwo crossed his arms to form his shield as Kessler shouted. "YOU DO NOT KNOW WHAT I HAVE LOST! THE CLOSEST THING YOU HAD TO A FAMILY, YOU FORGOT!"

Every word that was spat out of Kessler's mouth was laced with bitter venom. A sudden flash of the young girl from his memory, Amber, shot through Mewtwo's mind, causing his shield to falter and the electric bolts to nail him dead-on.

Screaming, Kessler teleported into the air alongside Mewtwo and blasted him with several lightning bolts shot out of his arm like machine-gun fire. Still struggling with the effects of remembering his forgotten past, Mewtwo's psychic energy was quickly dispersed as the lightning bolts hit, sending him crashing to the ground.

Gasping for breath, Mewtwo spun around and unleashed a Swift attack. The star like projectiles honed in on the Conduit, but all it took was a wave of his mechanical arm to send a powerful shockwave out and knock the stars off course.

Clutching his head as he tried to focus on the battle, Mewtwo levitated into the air, ripping out chunks of cement and hurling them at Kessler. Scowling, Kessler unleashed a cluster of energy grenades, blasting the cement to pebbles on contact.

Around the two, the winds began to pick up, swirling around Kessler as he shot static out of his hands to keep himself in the air. Mewtwo tried shooting a Shadow Ball at his airborne opponent, Kessler spun around the clumsy projectile, his rage acting as a focal point, and pointed his mechanical arm into the air. Lightning streaked through the sky, sending a massive bolt of electricity down to meet Kessler's extended fist. Screaming as the electricity surged through him, Kessler drained every ion of energy from the lightning bolt.

His chest heaving, Mewtwo tried to summon his psychic power when another painful memory, where he witnessed the lives of his friends fade away, went through his mind, causing his power to fizzle out.

Cackling, Kessler dropped down onto Mewtwo, his knuckles crackling with lightning and slammed his electrified fist into the Pokemon's chest with every bit of strength he could muster, grinding the Pokemon into the ground with an ear-splitting explosion.

When the dust cleared, Kessler stood tall over the bruised and broken Pokemon, who lay stock still in a massive crater formed by the impact, a trickle of blood flowing out from his mouth.

Spitting on the ground, Kessler growled. "If I had your power, the world could be saved. Instead, you squandered it." Sweeping the remains of his coat around, Kessler turned and began to walk away.



However, he had only made it to the top of the crater when a wave of psychic energy washed over Kessler, causing him to stumble forward. Whipping around sharply, Kessler could only stare in utter shock as Mewtwo hovered above the crater, looking a little worse for wear, but still alive, a green healing glow covering his body.

Flexing his fingers, Mewtwo's eyes glowed blue with psychic energy as his injuries faded away and his muscles were soothed. Dispersing his Recover ability, Mewtwo sent a powerful pulse of psychic energy at Kessler with a wave of his hand. The Conduit quickly tried to put up a barrier, but only ended up getting knocked flat on his back.

Floating into the air, Mewtwo frowned as Kessler scrambled back to his feet, electricity already charging through his arms. "The strength I possess and the strength you wield, the nature of the power we use is irrelevant. It is what you do with that gift that determines your destiny."

Putting up an energy shield to block a charged beam of electricity, Mewtwo made a circular motion with his hand. "Since you continue to persist, let me show you the difference between what we are fighting for and what we have accomplished."

With just that simple motion, the clouds in the sky began to darken and swirl around, forming a large wind funnel. Shocked, Kessler looked up into the sky as the winds began to pick up, spinning around the epicentre of the storm faster and faster. Within seconds, a massive column of the swirling clouds stretched out, slamming down on all sides of the arena, locking the two fighters in and sending a massive tremor through the abandoned city.

By now, the roaring winds had deafened Kessler's screams as he was picked up by the walls of the storm. In desperately, he tried to flash step back to the ground, only to be dragged right back into the hurricane as lightning flashed throughout the sky.

In the centre of it all, Mewtwo calmly watched as Kessler was sent spinning around the vortex. The Conduit angrily shrieked as he attempted to fight the storm, the winds drowning out his voice. Shooting static out of his palms and feet to slightly control his unwanted airborne flight, Kessler unleashed a burst of kinetic energy from the soles of his feet and rocketed out from the walls into the eye of the storm where Mewtwo was waiting.

"WHAT DIFFERENCE DOES IT MAKE?" Kessler's voice was deafened by the roar of the storm, but Mewtwo could see his thoughts loud and clear. Slamming his palms into Mewtwo's energy shield, Kessler gathered static into his hands and attempted to pry it open, sparks scattering to the wind. "IN THE END, WE BOTH FAILED! WE BOTH LOST EVERYTHING WE HELD DEAR TO US!"

Annoyed, Mewtwo flexed his mental powers and sent Kessler flying away with a wave of psychic energy. Snarling, the Conduit shot forward, several ghostly phantasms forming around him. Each one landed on Mewtwo's shield and began to punch their ethereal fists against the barrier as Kessler blasted the shield with lightning.

Ignoring the attacks, Mewtwo closed his eyes. Slowly, he tucked his limbs in, drawing upon his psychic power as his shield was hammered upon.

"The difference? You could've saved them. I couldn't."

Snapping his eyes open, Mewtwo unleashed a massive pulse of energy, obliterating the phantasms back to the ether and blasting Kessler back into the walls of the storm. Enraged, Kessler reached out with his arms, letting several lightning bolts strike his arms in order to gather their power. Right when his brain felt like it was about to explode from the overload, Kessler fought his way out of the wind and flew above Mewtwo, his eyes glowing a ghastly white.

With a single roar, Kessler brought his arms down, discharging all the energy he had gathered, all he had fought for, straight down onto Mewtwo. The Genetic Pokemon stared into the massive thunderbolt as it came closer as Kessler's scream, one full of rage and despair passed by his ears.

Raising one hand up, Mewtwo's eyes lit up with blue energy. Just a second before the thunderbolt made contact, it halted, gathering and condensing into a sphere of pure energy. With his other hand, Mewtwo reached out and grabbed Kessler in a telekinetic grasp to prevent him from fleeing.

He didn't need to. Kessler's strength and stamina waned on the border of exhaustion and unconsciousness. Both his physical body and mental state had taken a heavy toll.

The only thing he could do now, was watch as Mewtwo channeled his own psychic energy into the sphere, changing it into a light purple. The Genetic Pokemon tucked an elbow in as he took aim at the fatigued Conduit. As he prepared to fire, he recalled a lost memory, the last moments he had spent with his first friend, Amber.

"Don't cry Mewtwo. You're alive, and life is wonderful."

Inhaling deeply, Mewtwo threw his palm out.

"Forgive me."

A single beam of psychic and electric energy blasted towards Kessler, who remained suspended, unable to move as his impending death got closer. The Conduit's could only stare helplessly as the energy consumed him, with only the roar of blood in his ears signifying his life coming to a close. There was no pain, only the sensation of his body becoming lighter, as if his soul was leaving his body, not a single scream escaping his mouth.

And then he was falling, falling all the way back to the earth. His vision dimmed as the ground closed in, blackening around the edges as he plummeted straight down into the pits of hell.

Then, a soft blue glow surrounded his body, slowing his descent. Below him, Mewtwo flew up and caught Kessler in his arms. Floating back down, Mewtwo landed on the ruined ground, the storm dispersing, and gently lay the defeated Conduit on his back.

"Well... done..." Kessler croaked through raspy breaths. His tattered cloak was gone, revealing the mechanical parts that composed his body. Various lights on his chest and arms were flashing as they slowly shutdown, his life quietly fading away. "You beat... me. You won..."

The Genetic Pokemon kneeled beside Kessler. "I am sorry it had to end this way." Placing a hand on the Conduit's forehead, Mewtwo spoke into Kessler's mind. "If you like, I can erase your painful memories, and give you peace in your last moments."

Mewtwo's eyes began to glow, but before he could seal away Kessler's memories of losing his family, Kessler placed his human hand on Mewtwo's arm and gently pushed it away.

"I appreciate the offer... but this is the sin... I must... embrace and... remember." Kessler wheezed. "I won't run away... anymore."

The glow in his eyes going out, Mewtwo nodded and lowered his hand. Kessler coughed and with great effort, turned his head to Mewtwo. "Hey... do me a favour."

Making eye contact with Kessler, Mewtwo bowed his head closer to the dying man. "I'm listening."

"Please... don't let the world fall to ruin..." Kessler murmured. "Don't let my past... become your future..."

Mewtwo was silent as he contemplated Kessler's request. All the lights on the Conduit's arm went out, only leaving a single white light on Kessler's chest that was powering down.

"...I cannot promise that I will encounter the monster in your memories." Pausing, Mewtwo stood up as Kessler watched with weary eyes. "But if it crosses my path, I ensure you that I will do everything in my power to vanquish it."

Kessler chuckled upon hearing the Pokemon's response. "Heh, works for me... Thank you." Turning his head slightly to the side, the smallest sliver of orange peeked out from the edge of the world. "One last sunrise... for one broken man..."

Satisfied with the Pokemon's answer, Kessler closed his eyes, the last light on his chest going out, his breathing slowing to a stop.

Standing still as the sun's rays reached Kessler's body, Mewtwo closed his eyes as well, feeling the warmth of the sun as it bathed the remains of the empty city in its embrace.

Then, he levitated into the air and flew off into the horizon. Preparations would have to be made.

He would be ready to fight the monster when it appeared.

Ready to win.



---
Hydro Frez: Game. Set. And MATCH!

Tempest: While Kessler's conduit powers were powerful, and his mental guards gave protection from Mewtwo's mind wipe abilities, Mewtwo's psychic power had him outclassed. Even if we assume Kessler can achieve the same feats as Cole at the end of inFamous, it still pales in comparison to Mewtwo's power, who was not only able to create a massive island sized storm with just a few waves of his hand, he was able to maintain it while fighting Mew along with simultaneously monitoring and preventing the Clone Pokemon from using their special powers.

Hydro Frez: Mewtwo's power was also able to counter many, if not all of Kessler's moves, while the same could not be said for Kessler. It's been shown that Mewtwo can redirect energy attacks, as seen when he deflected a Magneton's Thunderbolt and a Gyrados' Hyper Beam, meaning he should have no problem reflecting Kessler's electrokinesis. On the other hand, while Kessler can potentially use electromagnetism to redirect bullets and rockets like Cole does, Mewtwo doesn't use bullets and rockets. Psychic and Shadow Ball are likely made out of ethereal energy, meaning it is highly unlikely Kessler would be able to counter them.

Tempest: And while Kessler is older and more experienced, he does have the body of an old man, and it shows. Mewtwo's stamina was more then enough to overtake and capitalize on Kessler's old age and stamina.

Hydro Frez: Of course, there's that whole deal with Kessler's ability to travel through time.

Tempest: Ah yes, the big elephant in the room. With time travel, Kessler could potentially go back in time, gather up resources, and use his previous knowledge on Mewtwo to beat him, but...

Hydro Frez: For one thing, his time travel ability is vague as hell. All we know is that "he can travel backwards through time". There's also the problem that Kessler won't know where Mewtwo would be afterwards since he only travels through time, not space. Besides, he's already an old man, what's to say he won't croak before he's able to find Mewtwo after time travelling again?

Tempest: The big problem with time travel is that, in the context of the inFamous universe, we don't know if Kessler overwrote his future or created a new timeline. It's more likely that he created a new timeline, which means there's are a multitude of possibilities and timelines that can occur.

Timeline 1: Kessler travels back in time, abandoning the current fight and leaving Mewtwo alone
Winner: Mewtwo

Timeline 2: Kessler travels back in time, gathers resources, and uses his prior knowledge of Mewtwo to beat him
Winner: Kessler

Timeline 3: Kessler travels back in time, uses his knowledge on Mewtwo to prepare and fight him, but still loses
Winner: Mewtwo

Timeline 4: Kessler travels several minutes in time and teams up with himself to fight Mewtwo and beat him
Winner: Kessler

Timeline 5: Kessler travels back in time, prepares resources and ends up dying of old age before meeting Mewtwo again
Winner: Mewtwo

etc...

Hydro Frez: Though there are other possible timelines that can occur... well, you can see that all this time travel nonsense is extremely confusing right?



Tempest: Regardless, at the end of the day, Mewtwo's vast psychic powers can counter nearly everything Kessler can throw at him. Add that in with Kessler's stamina and limited energy supply, and he was fighting an uphill battle from the start.

Hydro Frez: Time to flip the switch cause it's lights out for Kessler!

Tempest: The winner, is Mewtwo!


Mewtwo
+Much greater scale of power with Psychic abilities
+Can redirect and counter Kessler's electrokinesis
+More efficient and practical method of healing
+Superior stamina and defences
+Far better long and mid range attacks
=Kessler's mental guards would make mind attacks more difficult


Kessler
+Older and thus more experienced
+Wide and varied Conduit powers
-Conduit powers run on a finite supply of energy
-Gets tired more easily
-Cannot counter Mewtwo's psychic attacks
=Would have a harder time attacking Mewtwo's mind due to Psychic abilities

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NEXT TIME ON DEATH BATTLE!



For those of you who already know what the next match is, I ask that you please keep it a secret until I officially announce it.

Thank you in advance ~