Insert Strange yet Witty Title Here

Prologue

By: Kidate

A/N: Dear kami, I'm actually giving this thing another shot. This just goes to show how much reviews influence me! wink wink nudge nudge say no more

No matter. The plot is the same, except this time, there might actually be reason for stuff! gasp

The idea of a parallel universe is one that has been around since World War II. One might say that a parallel universe is where a person made a different choice- from something as mundane as what you had to lunch, or something much more life changing, such as marriage or getting in a car with a drunken driver.

However, in reality, the idea is both more complicated, and much simpler than that.

Alternate universes, in general, have little to do with our own world. They are completely separate, though they have their similarities and differences- one world may share similar people, another similar geography. These worlds barely react with one another, except in a few occasions.

The most common breach is the use of psychics. Not the ones that claim to levitate themselves or others, but ones who reach into an alternate universe and bring out a story of a person, or of an event. And, with their psychic talents, they normally have another to express these worlds.

The psychics go by many names, but most often they are referred to as writers.

That is why their story has so much depth- that is why their characters seem to real- that is why we all react to those words.

The other way alternate universes breach is by what is known as a 'merge'. It is where the two worlds collide, and it is usually caused by an imbalance in light and dark at extremely similar times. The merge originally results in gateways being formed between these worlds. And then the worlds slowly begin to combine. Once this combine is completed, there is only one result.

Catastrophic meltdown.

And now, this rare break in worlds is occurring between two worlds- one containing creatures with amazing powers, and the people who control them. The other, a world of magic, of a society hidden away, and of a school.

Each other these worlds have their chosen one. Now these chosen ones must work together, to defeat the evil that plagues their worlds. If they can, that is.

BREAK

There was no doubt that one Ashura Satoshi Ketchum was on edge. And, as odd as it sounded, Ashura, AKA Ash, didn't think it was just the upcoming tournament. Though, he was admittedly nervous about that- this particular tournament, held the city of Rustboro, was only held once every five years, and they only had a day to make it on time for the entry deadline. But there was a strange feeling pressing down on his chest. And, in all honesty, it was making it uncomfortable to breathe.

Ash looked around, brown eyes searching at his companions to see if they were feeling the pressure as well. Brock looked perfectly comfortable, nose stuck in the map as though super glued there (he had outright refused to let Ash handle the map, much to the younger boy's displeasure). Misty did seem nervous, but that could be attributed to the fact that they were walking through Petalburg Woods- a place quite famous for being overrun with Wurple. Which did not bode well for the bug-fearing redhead. Or any of the worm pokemon that got in her way.

The cap wearing youth twisted his head slightly, to be able to see the electric mouse purched happily on his shoulder. Pikachu's small black eyes were half-lidded, and the little guy slumped against the side of Ash's head. The pokemon looked about ready to fall asleep. Which did not indicate that he felt anything out of the ordinary. Ash frowned. Normally Pikachu sensed something wrong long before he trainer- the proof to that lay sleeping in the ocean in the Orange Islands.

When Ash tilted his head farther to the side (being careful not to unbalance the pokemon leaning against him), he could see the latest member to their group- his former neighbor, one Aurora.(1) The girl had been a good friend back in Pallet, and still retained the habit of calling him 'Nii-chan'. (2) She was currently twirling a minimized pokeball in between her fingers. Again, nothing.

A root catching his foot and nearly making him trip made Ash look forward once again, his eyebrows beginning to furrow. Maybe it was just nerves that had him all wound up. He released a great sigh. This was all too confusing to think about with an empty stomach.

As if reading his mind, Brock abruptly stopped, looking up dubiously at a break in the tree cover where the colors of sunset could be easily seen. "It's getting late- we're not going to make it to Rustboro on time. It's probably best that we make camp."

Misty frowned, "Are you sure?" She shivered, obviously thinking about spending the night in a forest of bug types.

Brock waved the map vaguely, and said "We've got about three-quarters of the way in- it will take us a good few hours to get out, and if we try it at night we'll only get lost. This way we'll be out before noon tomorrow, which leaves us a good amount of time to get to the Pokemon Center and sign up for the tournament."

Misty nodded her consent with a reluctant sigh, and plopped down on a nearby log, muttering quietly about icky bugs and her infamous mallet. Ash just smiled, sitting down next to her and gently placing the sleeping Pikachu on a soft patch of grass nearby. It was nice to see Misty acting a bit girly, even if it was over her fear of bugs. Brock immediately got to work making dinner, as was his custom. Aurora went to help the pokemon breeder, and immediately began chattering away with the oldest of the group. For his part, Brock was happy enough to get some help with the cooking to put up with Aurora's many and often overly personal questions.

All the while, the pressure within Ash's chest had only increased as they got further in the forest, and it was getting really uncomfortable. The sixteen-year-old covered his eyes with the brim of his hat and laid back, trying to get some sleep. But the pressure simply wasn't going away.

It took about twenty minutes before the ebony haired boy gave up, pushing his hat up, frustrated scowl planted firmly on his face. He stood up, feeling restless with his frustration. Ash turned towards the forest, taking a few steps forward before saying, "I'm gonna take a look around."

Aurora perked up from where she'd been looking tiredly at the now simmering pot of stew that would soon be their dinner. "Can I come to?" She asked excitedly, green eyes glinting.

Ash thought about it for a moment. While he was not in the mood to play the inevitable twenty questions with his old friend, he admittedly didn't quite feel like being alone. And, considering his first two choices were both unavailable (one who was sleeping, the other who most likely didn't want to leave the relative safety of the fire to go face to face with bugs), he figured Aurora was the next best thing. So he gave a light nod and began walking, hearing the younger girl's light footsteps behind him.

The direction he had picked was supposedly random- but as he walked the pressure seemed to increase at an alarming rate. Ashura tensed up. No, this was certainly not nerves. He breathing began to increase, though he didn't stop. His admittedly small amount of common sense screamed at him to turn around and just leave, but he somehow didn't want to. Ash was a curious person, if nothing else, and now this pressure had caught his full attention.

"Nii-chan, what's wrong." Aurora's voice rang out, surprising Ash from his musings. The boy started slightly, having forgotten the girl was even there.

"Nothings wrong." Said 'Nii-chan' answered automatically. Aurora snorted as she passed him, turning to walk past him.

"Yes there is." She said with finality. "You've been quiet all afternoon."

"No, there isn't. You're wrong." Ash stated, frustration making him touchier, along with Aurora's self-assured tone.

The girl's eyes flashed at being called wrong, and she probably would have started yelling at him had he not stumbled at that moment, the pressure increasing tenfold. "Nii-chan!?" Aurora's voice was filled with worry, and she reached for him to try to break his fall. Unfortunately, the smaller girl was only carried with him on the decent, which looked like it would make them both go slamming onto a particularly large tree. But, instead of the expected impact, they went through the bark, and Ash suddenly felt the familiar, sickening feeling of falling.

The world narrowed itself down to the pinprick of light below him, and the flops his stomach turned as he reached what he could only assume was terminal velocity. The once pinprick was no expanding to a large circle, to the whole 'floor' below him, and then it completely surrounded him.

There was a loud crack, and the smell of ozone infected his senses, before he felt the jarring shock he should have upon hitting the tree. He felt the wind get knocked out of him once, then twice as a large object- later to be identified as Aurora- slammed into him.

Ash blearily opened his eyes to see the forest gone, to be replaced with a large field- like area, with a lake of to once side, and a gigantic and ugly tree to the other. Above him, framed by the wide blue sky, was the face of a woman, her hair pulled back into a tight bun, and lips pressed firmly together in a fearsome manner.

Ash closed his eyes again, sighed once, and let the waves of fatigue pass over him, and bring him into a dreamless sleep.

BREAK

1 Yes, the dastardly OC, of whom is actually quite necessary, if only because no one I could use from the series has the right personality for what I need her for. But, her character has changed a good deal to make her more of an OC than a Mary-Sue. And, yes, her name has remained 'Aurora', if only for the fact that it fits the trend of Pokemon character names.

2 'Nii-chan', from 'Onii-chan'. It's a fond way of referring to an older brother. And, considering I've seen 'Nee-chan' (or older sister) being used to refer to a respected older girl, I figure 'Nii-chan' can be used in a similar way.

Gasp! Five pages! That's actually a record for one of my pre-Elements Joined fics! dies

Okay, this is a test chapter- we'll see how it goes, eh? If I get some positive reviews on it, then I'll continue it. If not, wellllll….ergo, no go.

And, as a side note: Ash will not be the only pokemon character- the others will be showing up quite often- and yes, that means more often than the OC.

Kida