I still haven't given up on this world. Let's rise together.

Chapter 12: The Turning Point

Ash quickly ran down the stairs, in efforts to catch up with Pikachu who had darted ahead of him. When Ash reached the bottom, to much of his dismay, he found the basement floor of the museum completely empty. Only the dust on the floor remained, not a single speck or sign of Misty, except for the very faint presence of her aura. Ash looked around a bit as Pikachu hopped back on his shoulder.

"Dammit where is she?" Ash whispered aloud.

Ash closed his eyes, in an effort to focus in on her aura. He tried hard to focus his senses, and without the strength of sight, he could feel the coolness of the air. The cold draft seemed to be coming not from behind, but from above. Then could feel it, Misty's aura, surrounding him like a gentle breeze in an open plain field. It almost seemed like the aura was pushing him, guiding him towards a single star that was slowly beginning to fade. Before he could even realize it, he was running upstairs, pushing his legs as fast as he could, Pikachu barely hanging on to the rim of his shoulder. He could feel Misty's aura getting stronger with each step, almost to the point where was weighing him down and pressing up against him, but just gentle enough to keep pushing him forward.

Finally he reached the end of the steps and pushed his way through the door. As his eyes scanned the area of the first floor museum, he was stunned by what he saw.

"Misty!" Ash screamed out.

There she was, helplessly hanging, Misty seemed to be clinging on to a wall, without much help of escaping. Ash ran to her position, without much thought of hearing Pikachu's warning cries, and looked to her cautiously.

"Misty?" Ash called out for her. Misty was already unconscious, her feet dangling and swaying back and forth, and she seemed as if her entire body was being held up by the force of an unusual wind coming from an unknown position.

Then Ash heard a voice from his left saying, "It's so nice of you to join us, Mr. Ketchum."

Ash turned around swiftly, realizing that this was what Pikachu was yelling about. A lone man in black and blue stood on a platform, holding a staff with a crystal ball at the top of it. A Hypno was beside him, an unusually large Hypno, looking almost menacingly at him with its glowing red eyes.

He couldn't help but notice Pikachu getting increasingly angry, and then he looked back up at the man.

"What the heck have you done?! Let my wife go!" Ash yelled out. His demeanor was calm but his eyes flashed his increasing anger.

The man only smiled slightly, adjusting his black coat with his free hand. "I'm sorry Ash, but the process has already begun. I was hoping you wouldn't show up until the project was completed...but I guess it can't be helped." He held up his staff in front of him, which had been glowing a faint white since Ash had entered the room. "You see, your wife has decided to become a prime test subject for assistance in helping me gain control of Suicune, Raikou, and Entei. Her brave and powerful soul is perfect for controlling the elements! Right now, her very essence is merging with my staff, an ancient staff that has been carved from a very special tree, and once it is complete, I will have overwhelming control over the entire region! Then no one will be able to stop me, not even you, Ash Ketchum! Ahahahahahahahaha!" Lawrence began to laugh, almost manically, and sneer in delight as the crystal structure on his staff grew brighter from the power of Misty's aura.

"You bastard! I'll never forgive you for this Lawrence!" Ash shouted.

"Ah so you do remember me," Lawrence replied, "I am impressed."

"Hearing your sick gloating was enough to make me remember an asshole like you," Ash replied back.

"I have a right to gloat don't I? You took my whole world from me and now I am taking yours. This is what I call the sweet taste of revenge!" Lawrence said.

Ash gritted his teeth and said, "And this is what I call facing my fury! Pikachu, let's go!"

Pikachu's cheeks sparked even further, getting down on all fours and waiting for the Hypno to unleash an attack on it.

"You'll have to do better than that if you wish to defeat this Hypno. My beloved Hypno can hold the barrier over your wife and attack you at the same time! Go Hypno, attack!" Lawrence raised his arm up and pointed it towards the Pikachu, hoping that Hypno would be able to knock it out with one attack. However, when Pikachu dodged the Psychic energy, he knew this was going to be a long fight.


"Misty!"

"Huh?" Misty looked for the voice that called her name, only to come face to face with Ash standing behind her.

"C'mon, Mist, quit daydreaming! I gotta get you to the top of the tower. Today is your special day after all!" Ash said, while grabbing her hand and rushing her towards the white structure that towered before them.

Misty only had a split second to take a look at her surroundings. The smell of freshly cut grass, the mist that surrounds this area, the tall white tower, this is everything from the dream I had before! That's right...Lawrence put me in an never-ending dream... I'll be trapped here forever! Does this mean that I'm…

"C'mon Misty, use those long legs! We have to get up to the top, so let's hurry," Ash replied.

Misty had little left to lose as she climbed the steps. At least the walk gave her more of an opportunity to look around her. Turns out Ash wasn't the only human figure she saw in this dream. In every floor there seemed to be a monk or two, all dressed in white robes with yellow sashes around their waists. Some were cleaning, others were silently talking to each other, and others were praying next to a small alter, with handmade sculptures on the top that they were facing. The sculptures seemed awfully familiar, but she was too far away to make out with a clear distinction what they were.

"You must be nervous, Misty, as many times as we climbed these stairs you used to be a lot faster," Ash said.

It was at this Misty could notice what Ash was wearing.

He was wearing a light blue kimono, the same color as hers now that she realized it, with red markings adoring the fabric and a white sash belt wrapping around his hips. The pants that they were wearing was actually a hakama, covering about 60% of the kimono with its red color. The slightly gray himo straps that held up the hakama were swaying as he ran, a bit too long for him but at least they were tied on correctly.

Now that I think about it... this place does seem like an old temple...but it does seem awfully familiar, like I have been here before…

It was then that the sound of a bell, coming from the top of the tower could be heard, drowning away all of Misty's thought and clouding her ears.

"Oh shoot, now we really gotta hurry," Ash replied. "They wouldn't like it if you were late."

Ash gripped Misty's hand tighter as he hurried her along the stairs leading to the top floor.

"Wai-Wait a second Ash! I-"

"Don't be worried," Ash said, cutting her off, "You will be fine, just be yourself like you always are. Well, maybe not completely yourself, because you can be a bit snippy." Ash began to chuckle.

"Snippy?! Why you little-" Misty said, but stopped once they had reached the top floor, and all of the bells became silent.

Unlike the rest of the floors below, this floor was barren. Cleanly swept, but not a single sign or statue was available to the normal human eye. All that could be seen was a long hallway leading to a large wooden double door.

As they walked closer to the door Ash began to talk to Misty. "Don't be nervous," he said, "I know you will do fine. After all you're so smart and powerful, who wouldn't choose you?"

Misty felt that she was completely submerged in her never-ending dream, and had no choice but to play along.

"You really think I can do this?" she said.

"Of course! Don't worry, if they don't choose you, you can always watch me become the hero!" Ash said, triumphantly placing his hands on his hips, and then smiling. "I'm kidding! I'm cheering for you, I'm always by your side."

It was then that the doors opened slowly, faint light flickering through from the inside, and a large booming voice calling Misty's name filled the air with its presence.

"Go on," Ash whispered. "I'll be out here waiting for you. Good luck."

Misty gulped, and her body shivered as she had no choice but to walk towards the calm, warm, inviting light, wondering what would be waiting for her on the other side of the door.


Under the cover of the dark of night, a reddened crescent moon soared through the clouds. It would seem like a strange sight to see to the average person, but to a certain dragon type trainer, nothing could be more magnificent than to sail through the skies on top of a mega Salamence.

She couldn't help but remember the last few words that she said to her cousin, which had become a makeshift brother, as she headed towards her destination.

"I'm sorry to drag you into this, especially so soon and without any training, but on behalf of the G-men I appreciate your cooperation," he said.

"Oh please, dear brother, the last thing I need is training," she replied back.

"Careful," he scoffed, "That type of attitude is what gets you in trouble."

"Alright, alright," she reluctantly agreed, "So what's my situation?"

"I'm afraid you are going straight into the lion's mouth on this one. Your goal is to assist in rescuing one of the members of the Elite Four. She was captured two weeks ago, but apparently has managed to keep her GPS tracking device hidden from her captors. She is probably surrounded by a large number of Team Aqua members, so you will be assisted by a total of 785 G-men, which have encompassed the hideout and are waiting on my signal. On my mark you shall storm in from the Southwestern entrance, which had been marked out on your map that you're carrying. There should be around 60 of the G-men with you, and all you have to do is go through that entrance, down the back hallway and to the left you shall see a door. Go through that door and you will find a row of cells. Lorelei should be on the fifth one from the end on your right. Grab her and get out of there, you understand me?" Lance explained.

"It's as crystal clear as a whistle," Clair replied back.

"I hope by the time you have made it there you will at least read part of the G-men manual I have given you," he said.

"Nobody has time for that!" Clair shot back. "We have an Elite Four member to save!"

Clair could see Lance rolling his eyes on her pokegear video phone as he chuckled and replied, "Just be safe out there, Clair."

That was the one thing she could remember as she sailed against the wind on her Salamence, casually flipping the pages of the G-men manual. As they broke though another cloud, she saw a silhouette image of a small island on the horizon. Clair smiled as she snapped the book back together, hearing the pages clash as she closed the book with one hand very quickly.

"Well then, let's get this party started."


Misty peeked inside the room, instantly noticing how large it was. Unlike the hallway behind her, there was no special decoration or emblem showing where she was. It was eerie and quiet, but yet she wasn't afraid. Finally after taking a few steps and looking to the right and left of her she faced forward, only to see a bright and strange ball of light. The round form of illumination was on top of a tall platform, and it did not move as Misty inched closer to it. She reached out with her right hand and tried to touch it, but just as the tips of her fingers touched the glowing ball, it grew into a pillar of light, shining its aura around the entire room.

Misty became afraid, backing up a few steps as the pillar of light grew a bit brighter before finally dissipating, leaving a white figure in its place. Then the white figure erupted apart, scattering the little beams of light as if it was falling snow. Finally Misty realized the bird presence that was before her.

"Y-You're-"

"Greetings guardian," the bird spoke. "I hope I didn't frighten you."

Misty couldn't control her body at that point, her body fell to the ground, allowing her to fall on one knee. She looked up at the majestic bird pokemon, gazing upon its enlarged wingspan as it hovered above her. The wings was a dead giveaway, but she couldn't help but notice something different about its color.

"You sure have a way of making an appearance, Ho-Oh," Misty quietly replied.

She instantly regretted saying that, thinking that the powerful bird would take offense. Instead she was relieved to hear the bird laugh looking at her seemingly thoughtfully.

"I was hoping to be intimidating, but perhaps I must take a difference approach when it comes to addressing my Guardians."

She smiled slightly, but then popped her head back up in shock. "G-Guardian?!" she said.

"I have been watching you for a long time," Ho-Oh said, "I believe you are a perfect candidate for ushering in a new age of peace. You are chosen to work with other Guardians that I have chosen to have courage, strength, wisdom, and integrity, tools that are necessary in order to create a world of peace from the forces of evil."

"A world of peace...me?" Misty replied.

"You still believe you are inferior? After all that you have gone through, do you really think you are no better than the average person? Misty, you are far beyond average, you are a Guardian, my Guardian! You have been in a prophecy from the moment you were born, to join with the Chosen One and spread the word of peace and prosperity throughout the land. Do you still lack faith in yourself? Do you really think that this is something you cannot do?"

She could feel Ho-Oh's anger rising. She figured the best thing she could do was not piss off a high level legendary Pokemon.

"If you truly believe that I am destined to be this way, who am I to argue?" Misty replied again.

There was a moment of silence, and for an instant Misty literally feared for her life, until she realized that she was already dead to begin with.

She looked up at Ho-Oh, upon its red, white, green and blue color wings that made it seemed so resplendent, and finally gazed at its brown fierce eyes. It didn't seem angry, in fact quite the contrary. It was then the Ho-Oh bellowed, and the large double doors opened once again.

All that could be seen was Ash, still standing curiously by the opening, a bit hesitant on what he should do.

"Come in, Ash," Ho-Oh said.

Ash quickly walked in, stopped beside me, and took a knee down next to me. He looked from me to the large bird up above us, in wonder and confusion.

"I have called you both here for a reason," Ho-Oh continued, "I wish for you both to become the Guardians that I have called upon. You are both in charge of protecting this land, and its people. Although the task seems daunting, I know that both of you together shall overcome all. You two have been destined to always fight alongside each other, and therefore I have the utmost faith in you both. What one cannot do, the other shall do it. That is the power of teamwork. Do you both understand?"

Ash looked from Ho-Oh to Misty and smiled brightly. "Of course! We shall do our best to make you proud!"

Without much warning, Ash pulled Misty to her feet as he was rising. As Ash began to pull her out of the room, Misty turned back to face Ho-Oh. "Th-Thank you…" she murmured out.

Once they were outside the room the doors closed once again, and the warm light that had surrounded them had faded.

Misty turned to face Ash. "Do you really think we can do this?" she asked.

Ash held both of her hands in his as he turned to look in her eyes. "We have been assured to do this," he said, "Even if we do fail, at least we would have given it our best shot and that's all that truly matters right? Besides, whatever you can't do, I'll always be here to pick up the slack for you."

Because that's what being a team is all about, Misty thought, To depend on others instead of yourself. To know that you are just as important as the next person, and that's good, right?

She couldn't help but remember one of the last times Ash held her hands and smiled at her so gently and brightly. It was the day of their wedding. She had never seen him so happy, and all she ever wanted to do was make sure he always held that same smile.

Oh Ash, no matter where I am you are always the same to me. I miss you so much, and I want to see you, the real you. I want to hold you and go home with you, so don't leave me okay? I want to come back, I want to come back home.


"Go Ninetales, Dark Pulse!"

After summoning Ninetales to help out Pikachu, and allowing Ninetales to power itself up with a Nasty Plot move while Pikachu distracted Hypno with its tail, Ninetales was able to unleash a full powerful super effective move on the unsuspecting Psychic type. It attacked from all sides, and after Pikachu used a paralyzing move, Hypno was a lot slower than usual, allowing it to be unable to dodge the attack.

"Ah, Hypno!" Lawrence shouted.

Hypno spiraled backwards and to the right, slamming back first into a nearby wall. Hypno cried out in agony before dropping its pendulum to the ground.

Once Ash had heard the metallic ping of the ground, he knew it was over. "Ninetales, Pikachu, you did it!" He shouted.

Pikachu cried out in happiness, while Ninetales only nodded slightly while smiling.

"You cheating bastard! You think using two pokemon could have saved you? You're wrong!" Lawrence said loudly.

"You were the one who said I could use two pokemon against your almighty Hypno, although now that I think about it, I think Pikachu would have done just as well even if I wasn't allowed to use anymore than just one pokemon. Either way, your Hypno is done for, and so are you! Now let my wife go!" Ash shouted back.

Lawrence began to laugh broadly, almost manically, as he held up his staff, showing off the bright hue of the crystal ball on top.

"You are too late, however!" Lawrence said. My crystal lattice is almost at its capacity meaning that even though you have Misty's body, I still have her soul!"

Ash's eyes went wide as he heard those words. "You-You can't mean-?!" Before he could wonder any further he heard a cracking noise beside him. He turned to his right to still see Misty in the air, but the barrier around her was breaking, and she was still unconscious. Then all of a sudden, the barrier had broken completely, and Misty's lifeless body began to fall down to the ground.

"Misty no!" Ash yelled, running towards Misty's falling body, catching her in his arms right before she would have hit the ground. Ash staggered backwards a bit before falling to his knees still holding her. He shook her body slightly and whispered out her name.

'It's too late…' He could remembering hearing Lawrence say, causing Ash's eyes to fill with tears. His heart grew heavy, almost as if it was threatening to weigh down his entire body. He closed his eyes, he tried but could no longer sense any aura coming from Misty.

"Please no," he murmured, "Please don't take her away from me! Misty is my world, she's my light, she's my everything! I just want to take her back home...I can't go home without her...please, please give her back to me!"

Ash cried out in despair, the tears in his eyes falling softly onto Misty's still body. He held her tightly in his arms, and shut his eyes tightly, as if afraid that if he opened them Misty would really be dead, and all of his hard work was actually in vain.

Amidst his sobbing he heard a familiar voice calling out to him.

Ash...I'm not ready…

"Huh?" Ash choked out.

Please...take me home with you…

"Misty?!" Ash cried out, letting his eyes snap open.

At that moment a number of things happened at once: from out of seemingly nowhere, a well placed string of electricity jolted forth, striking the colorful crystal cube and shattering it into a hundred million pieces. Which in turn caused the spiritual energy that was trapped inside to become released, and after floating around Ash's body for a moment, found its way back to its proper place. Then as Lawrence's cries of shock were heard, footsteps echoed through the room, and Pikachu's cheeks sparked, as if waiting for another challenger.

Ash looked back down at Misty's body, only to see her eyes open slowly, looking up at him.

"Ash…"

"Misty? You're-oh my gosh, you're alive! Thank goodness I thought I lost you!" Ash replied, hugging Misty's body with a sigh of relief.

"Ash...it's hard to breathe…" Misty whispered out.

"Ah," Ash chuckled a little before releasing her gently. "Are you...okay?" He asked next.

"I think so," Misty whispered again, taking in a look of her surroundings. "What's going on?"

Ash finally took his eyes off Misty and looked to his left. He saw Lawrence screaming at a man with a Gyarados.

"It's Blake," Ash said.

Misty nearly bolted straight up, almost bumping her head into Ash's. "Blake?!" She yelled out.

"You traitor! You senseless bastard! How dare you destroy the crystal, do you have any idea what you have done?!" Lawrence yelled out.

"I was helping to save my wife," Blake replied. "Now where is she?"

Ash could see Blake clenching his fists, and saw that his eyes were filled with fiery determination.

"He's really serious," Ash said. Then looked over to Misty, who was still sitting on his lap and said, "You should get out of here, sweetie."

"What?! Ash you can't just send me away!" Misty snapped back.

Ash stood up, carrying her along and finally sitting her back on the ground. "You take Charizard and Pikachu, and here are the rest of your pokemon," Ash said, handing her the blue pokemon belt he had been carrying.

"Wait a second, Ash I-"

Ash interrupted her with calls of Pikachu and Ninetales, telling them to come back over to him. "Pikachu, you go with Misty and Charizard, and get her far away from here because I think something crazy is about to happen," Ash said to Pikachu, still noticing the electricity sparking from his cheeks.

"Pikachu!" Pikachu agreed.

"Ninetales, you stay here with me, and go Charizard and protect Misty!" At those final words, Ash released Charizard from its pokeball, watching it soar in the air before finally hovering down to Ash and Misty's level.

Before Misty could even protest, Ash picked her up and placed her on Charizard's back, while Pikachu jumped on her shoulder.

"Misty, I will follow you soon okay?" Ash said.

"Wait, Ash! There's something you must know!" Misty said, feeling the fatigue starting to melt away.

"Don't worry," Ash said frantically, "I will be right behind you as soon as I can okay? I just need to stay here for a moment longer."

"Ash please listen to me! It's about Blake...and Dahlia. She's-"

Misty was interrupted once again, this time by Gyarados's frantic thrashing, causing Ash to panic and slap Charizard's back, which in turn caused Charizard to fly off, using its Flamethrower to crash through the front doors of the entry level of the museum.

Misty turned around, still trying to hold on to the impulsive Charizard. "Ash! No!" She yelled.

Misty could do nothing but hold on tighter to Charizard as it soared higher in the air. She began to have that overwhelming sadness feeling, burying her head into Charizard's shoulder blades.

"It doesn't even matter," she said sorrowfully, "No matter how hard they fight, Blake is fighting for someone who isn't even alive anymore."


Writer's block is the worst! But it's wonderful when it all connects together like pieces of a destructive puzzle that you smashed together with a hammer.

Until Next Time...