Sorry 'bout the delay for this to finally come out but I had prelims and now i have Standard Grades coming up.
I'll get the next chapter finished as quickly as possible. (hopefully this week.)
Talking about chapters, this one's kinda long, so beware if you're not a fast reader.
And if you have not read the other two parts then this would probably not make a lot of sense, so there's no point in skipping to this one and hoping to pick up what's going on.
Right all that babbling over now. Here's another boring part;
Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon, or the character Chrystal/Chrys, she belongs to Starkiller, i just borrowed her for this story.
Right on with the fic...
Misty's Dream
Part Three
"Thanks for letting me come along with you guys," Gary muttered sheepishly as he walked along trying to keep up with Brock and Duplica.
"Why did we let him come along anyway?" Duplica asked Brock, in an angry tone of voice.
"Because you made him cry, remember?" Brock said in just about the same tone of voice.
"So!" Duplica argued. "That doesn't mean he had to come along." She said as she folded her arms. "I don't understand why we couldn't have just left him there." She put her hands over her ears to prevent her from hearing Gary's thanks. Gary walked over beside her and she quickly went to the other side of Brock. He looked at her as if asking why she had done that. "What?" she said innocently, "I'm not walking next to him." She continued to walk a small smile on her face.
"Stop being so childish." Brock told her, but she ignored his words and continued down the road.
Before long they had walked around most of Pallet and still they had not found any trace of Ash.
"God! Where is he?" Duplica shouted at no one in particular.
"Be patient!" Brock shouted at her, getting annoyed at her restlessness. "We won't find them unless you stop moaning."
"How come?" She was arguing again. "My moaning doesn't hurt anyone."
"Well actually it gives me a headache." Gary said from behind her.
"And since when have I cared about what you do or think?" She yelled at him. He instantly looked at the ground and trudged along slowly and silently again.
"Look," Brock said with his hand on his forehead, "let's just calm down and try to find Ash." He looked at the two of them as they both mumbled apologies. Then they all walked along in silence.
Ash and Crystal had been walking for a couple of minutes when they saw three others walking in their direction. Ash instantly recognised them as his friends and ran up to them. He was taken aback when he realised Gary was walking beside them. He looked to Brock and Duplica for answers.
"Don't bother asking." Duplica said in a dangerous voice as he approached.
"Don't bother asking what?" Ash asked anyone.
"Why Gary's with us." Brock answered for him.
"So why is he here?" Ash asked him and then he looked around again. "Where's Misty?" he asked frantically.
"It's ok. Misty's back at your house, and we came across Gary on the way here." Brock paused. "Wherever here is." He looked around and didn't recognise anything he saw. Suddenly he looked over and saw Crystal standing with Duplica.
"Duh, heh, heh…hello. My name's Brock. Will you go out with me?" Crystal blinked in surprise, before backing away.
"Ehh, Earth to Brock! It's me, Crystal!" She shouted. Brock fell to one knee and took hold of her hand.
"And may I say your name describes your most beautiful crystal blue eyes. My one and only sweet lov, OWE!!" Brock rubbed the back of his head where Duplica had just punched him. He looked up with big innocent eyes.
"What did I do?" He whined. Duplica glared at him.
"Snap outta girl mode! We've gotta get back to Misty. If she's woken up, she'll want her friends." She ended in a softer tone, and looked purposely at Ash. Ash bowed his head to hide his blush.
"You're right. Sorry I ran off you guys…I just couldn't …take it." He choked out.
Now at this point, both Crystal and Gary were looking more than a little confused. The most either of them could gather was that something was wrong with Misty. But what?
"That's it! I come home after what, three months, only to find one big ruddy mess! What the hec is goin' on round here?" Ash felt a little guilty as he heard Crystal's words. He should have told her.
"Huh, maybe you shouldn't of come back." Gary snorted. Crystal glared at him.
"If I'd known you'd be here, maybe I wouldn't hav--" Duplica suddenly cut off Crystal,
"As I said before, Misty will need us now! So come on. We'll explain on the way." She finished, marching ahead of them. The group turned to each other, sighed and slowly followed on.
Misty woke. She couldn't tell where she was, but she knew it wasn't somewhere friendly. She tried to sit up, but pain shot through her leg, she let her breath out in an involuntarily hiss. Her head hit the ground with a soft thud. It felt like a stone floor, cold and hard. She heard a noise in the distance; maybe someone was coming to get her. A friend she hoped.
She looked around to see if she could identify the building she was in. She couldn't see anything but dark walls with red curtains dotted around the vast space.
Footsteps.
Someone was close. Impossible to tell how close, the emptiness made every sound echo. She tried desperately to get up and out of wherever she was. She wanted out, she wanted to be home. Most of all, she wanted her friends.
"What do you mean she's not here!?!" Ash screamed in the doctor's face.
"She's gone. I went to get you and when I got back she was gone. I checked the rest of the rooms, but she was nowhere in the house." The doctor stopped for a brief moment. "I thought maybe you had got her and took her…"
"Took her where!?!" Duplica shouted, joining in the argument willingly.
"Well I, I…I don't know." The doctor said worriedly.
"Hey, calm down guys." Brock said as he stood between the doctor and held back Ash and Duplica. They both looked ready to jump at him and beat the answers out of him. Professor Oak entered the room and stood behind Mrs. Ketchum, Crystal, and Gary.
"What's going on?" he asked anyone that would answer.
"Misty's gone missing." Crystal told him.
"One minute she was here, and the next she was gone." Gary told his grandfather, a small bit of sadness in his voice. The argument raged on until Mrs. Ketchum entered the room. She went over to stand by her son.
"You had better stop arguing Mr." She warned her son.
"But mom, he let Misty get out. After all she's had to cope with God knows what she'll do!" Ash was almost shouting at his mother, and everyone could see she was not happy with that.
"Don't use that tone of voice with me Mr.!" She took Ash by the ear and pulled him out of the room. Duplica was about to continue on with the argument when Brock stepped further in front of her.
"It doesn't really matter whose fault it was that Misty is gone. What matters now is that we find her and we find her fast." Once again Brock's words made everyone in the room stop and think. Duplica backed down, beaten by Brock's words.
"You're right," she said in defeat, "it is better to find her than to argue about who lost her." The doctor wiped his brow in relief. Crystal stepped forward.
"Well let's get going." She said, loud enough so that Ash could hear over his mother's lecture. "If we are going to search for her, we'd better start now." She walked out of the room and opened the front door. Everyone followed her and Ash tried to get past his mother.
"Not you Ash Ketchum." She said as she took hold of his arm.
"But mom…" he began.
"No but's Mr. You owe an apology to the doctor, and you're not going anywhere until he receives your words." Ash cringed; he had to catch up with the others before they vanished like Misty. He quickly ran over to the doctor and said sorry. Then he turned to his mother and she nodded. With that he ran out of the house and down the street. He could still catch the rest of the group before they went far.
"This is pointless!" Gary said as he sat down on a rock wall. He threw his arms down at his sides. "We are never going to find her, so let's just forget her." Duplica lunged forward at his words. Gary scrambled off the wall and stood behind the rest of the group.
"You take that back!" Duplica screamed at him. "We will find her and we're not going to forget about her! Not ever!"
"We just need to look a little bit longer!" Ash called out to everyone as he ran over to hold Duplica back. He got her tightly and pulled her arm behind her back. "This isn't helping us." He said in her right ear. "If we are going to find her, we need to act as a group. Ok?" Duplica tried to twist away, so Ash tightened his grip and pushed her arm further up her back. She let out a small noise of pain. "Ok?" Ash asked again.
"Fine!" she said unwillingly. Ash let go and walked over to Gary. Duplica rubbed her arm where Ash had held it. Even though he was younger than her, he still had a tight grip. She looked around to see if she recognised where they were. All she could see were trees and grass. "Where are we?" she asked the group. No one really heard her over the talking of others. She walked over to Crystal. "Hey," she said.
"Hey." She smiled. "So do you always let Ash boss you around?" she asked as she pointed to her arm.
"No. If he gets on my nerves I can just call him Ashy-Boy. He really hates that."
"Where'd he get that name?" Crystal laughed gently as she looked over at Ash, who was busy lecturing Gary.
"I gave it to him when we were kids." Duplica seemed to go into a daydream. "It seems like ages ago now." She shook her head. "But just now we have to find Misty." She looked around and remembered why she went over to Crystal in the first place. "Do you have any idea where we are?" Crystal looked around and took in the scene.
"I think I remember this place, but I can't think of where I've seen it." They both walked over to Ash and Gary, Crystal grabbed Ash's collar and pulled him away from Gary. "Ok Ketchum, where are we?" she asked, not bothering to apologise for almost flinging him into the wall that was next to them.
Ash looked around. "My God. It can't be." He started walking around looking at… well nothing but in a way everything. "Brock, do you remember this place?" he asked as he walked past his life long friend.
"Well, it does seem familiar." Brock said as he followed Ash over to the edge of the woods.
"Ok," Duplica said to Crystal, "they've both completely lost it."
"Yup." Crystal replied as she watched the two walk along the edge of the trees looking at every crack and space in the leaves. "Hey Clefairy's! Do you want to come back to this planet or what?" she shouted at them. They both turned but had a vacant look on their faces. They both raised their fingers to their mouths and motioned for her to be quiet, and then they went on searching again. "I give up." She said as she turned to Duplica and Gary.
"So what do you want to do while the dreamers are searching for a mystic cavern?" Duplica asked in a joking tone.
"We found it!" Ash and Brock called from behind the three. They casually walked over to see what the two of them had found, despite both Ash and Brock urging them to quicken their pace. When they got there Ash was half way into a small opening in the bushes.
"Ash Ketchum, what are you doing!?!" Crystal asked, looking completely confused.
"We might know where Misty is." Brock said excitedly. He then quickly followed Ash down the small gap. When they were all down Ash explained to them.
"I found this place when I was a kid. I had got lost and it was starting to rain, so I found shelter in the trees. It wasn't very big, to start off with, and was pretty horrible. But I had found it, and it kept me dry."
"Then, he went on his Pokémon journey and found me and Misty." Brock continued the story as Ash tried to open another area. "We came back to Pallet and Ash brought us here. It was in quite a mess, so Ash, Misty and I fixed it up and made it bigger."
"When we finished it was like a hiding place and somewhere for us all to relax." Ash went on once he had found the small handhold he was looking for. "We made it water proof by putting up pieces of corrugated iron and other materials, then we cleaned it up. No one else knows about this area as we all promised to keep it a secret. We haven't been here in years." Ash went down a smaller tunnel and then a large area appeared in front of the group. They went in and started looking around for Misty. They spent about ten minutes and then they all met back in the middle of the area next to the small stream.
"Anyone find anything?" Brock asked as he looked round the group. There was a series of 'no's' until Gary spoke up.
"Well I did find this." He said as he held out a piece of a cloak and a Pokéball. Ash took them and studied them with Brock. The rest of the group didn't hear much of there conferring because they were talking so fast and so quietly. Finally they stood up.
"Well this looks like one of Misty's Pokéballs, and this could be ripped off of someone's cloak, but we're not quite sure." Suddenly the Pokéball opened and a red light emitted from it. The light began to take shape and a small pink blob took shape.
"Ditto!" it cried happily.
"Ditto?" Duplica spoke up. "Since when did Misty have a di…" she took a sharp breath and ran towards the Pokémon. "Ditto!" she cried as she picked up the small blob and held it close to her. "Ditto. Where on Earth did you go?" she asked, tears almost falling from her eyes with joy.
"Dits, Ditto, dit dit Ditto." It told her, Duplica nodded at every word. Gary leaned over to speak to Crystal.
"What did it say?" he asked her.
"I'm not quite sure. You'd need to ask her, she's its master." Ash bent down next to Duplica and Ditto. Duplica was frantically checking to see if Ditto had been hurt.
"Duplica," Ash said, "why was Ditto here?" Duplica looked up suddenly puzzled.
"What?" she said. "Oh yeah, sorry. I was just so worried when I couldn't find it I guess I forgot. It said it came here after following Misty. It took shape of one of the leaves and watched over her for a while, but there was someone else here."
"Who?" Ash asked he looked at Brock. None of them had told anyone where this hidden place was, and it wasn't easy to find until Ash knew it was there. "Ask it." Duplica nodded and turned back to the small Pokémon on her lap.
"Do you know who it was that was with Misty?" she asked it. It lay silent for a few moments as if thinking hard before answering. Then its face turned serious, and instead of the big smile and bright eyes it had a small frown and an upside down smile on its face.
"Ditto." It sad sadly, then it began again. "Dit Ditto dit dit dits. Dits Ditto Ditto di di to Ditto." Duplica rubbed her head. "Ditto dits?" it asked quietly. Duplica picked it up.
"No I'm not mad at you. It's not your fault." She held it close to comfort it.
"Well, what did it say?" Ash asked impatiently.
"It didn't recognise the person. But they spoke and it knew they were male. He wore a long dark cloak and black gloves and boats. His face was hidden by shadow. Ditto said that they snuck up behind Misty and then she fell. Ditto didn't know what to do, so it kept still. Misty fell asleep, either that or she was unconscious."
"Dit Ditto dits." It said sadly as it looked in Ash's direction.
"Ditto says its sorry it couldn't do anything to help her." Ash leaned over and patted Ditto's head.
"It's alright Ditto. There was nothing you could do." Ditto smiled once again. Ash laughed slightly when he seen Ditto's happy little face. "Right, well we had better start looking for Misty somewhere else. We know someone has taken her, and we have a piece of his clothing. Gary, could you help us?" everyone gasped at the same time. Ash asking for Gary's help. Was this the real Ash?
"Huh?" Gary said confused.
"Well you do have an Arcanine." Ash told him.
"It could follow the scent of the cloak and lead us to Misty." Crystal said. Then she realized Ash was asking Gary for help. "Wait a minute, are you the real Ash? You never get on with Gary. Why are you suddenly asking for his help now?" Ash blushed.
"Ah, well, I…" Ash desperately searched for words. Brock leaned over and whispered something in Crystal's ear.
"Ah. That's so sweet." She said. "Not caring how your enemies are as long as you find the one you…"
"La la la la la!" Ash called out at the top of his lungs. "Let's go. Gary get out your Arcanine." He walked over to Brock and hit him on the back of the head.
"Oww!" Brock cried as the sharp sound of it struck through the air. "What'd you do that for?"
"Let's go." Was all he said, as he went over to the Arcanine that now stood in front of Gary he gave the material to him. "I hope your Arcanine is better trained than your Vaporeon." He said as Gary let the dog-like Pokémon sniff the ripped cloak.
"Arcanine. Follow that scent." Gary ordered the firedog. It barked sharply to let Gary know that it understood. Then it started sniffing the ground. It followed the scent into a corner and then retraced its steps. It got into the middle of the room and then it barked excitedly before running off in another direction. It headed towards a tall wall of bushes and thorns.
"I think your Arcanine's broken." Duplica said as the large red dog began scratching at the blur of green and brown.
"What do you know?" he shouted at her. "You're about as big a loser as Ash!" Duplica began to walk forward but Ash and Brock grabbed one of her arms each and held her back. Suddenly the Arcanine let out a long howl. Gary turned back to his Pokémon. "What is it Arcanine? Did you find something?" he went over and bent down to see what was the matter. He felt around in the bushes and soon came across a small black stone. "What's this?" he said to himself. He tried to lift it, but the stone wouldn't budge. Crystal came over to look at it.
"Have you ever tried to move it a different way?" she pushed Gary out of the way and fiddle with the stone. She spent a couple of minutes and then she pushed down on it. A small buzzing noise was heard and then a click. Suddenly the wall began to vibrate and then it slowly slid out of its place. Everyone stood back, and watched as it moved and revealed another path, long metal sheets filed along as a makeshift walkway.
"Well," Crystal said, "it looks like we're not the only ones that know about this place." She began to walk slowly down the seemingly small path the others followed along. They were walking for about ten minutes until they finally came to a large door. Brock pulled on the handle.
"Locked."
"Great!" Duplica said as she slumped down on the floor. "All this way for a locked door. That was pointless." Ditto slowly made its way over to her feet.
"Ditto." It said as it laid a small jelly like hand on her shin.
"Hey, Duplica." Crystal called over to her. Duplica lifted her head out of her palms. "Couldn't you're Ditto transform into a key and open the door for us."
"Yeah. I think it could." she said as she picked up the small amoeba body. "Do you think you could help us now Ditto?"
"Dit dit Ditto!" it said as its body glowed. The light slowly changed shape and shrunk. When the light was gone a small key lay on the floor. Duplica picked it up and handed it to Brock. He put the small key into the lock and tried to turn it, but the key was the wrong shape.
"It doesn't fit." He said to Duplica. "Get your Ditto to change shape until it does." Duplica nodded.
"Ditto, transform." The Ditto changed shape again and moulded itself until it fit the lock. It hardened again and Brock turned the, now key shaped, Ditto. There was a small click and the door began to open. Brock quickly took the key out of the lock and handed it to Duplica, it quickly dissolved and formed into a Ditto again. The door swung right open and the group started through into the darkness that lay ahead.
Misty lay in a corner. She had managed to drag herself across the floor. It wasn't rough stone, well not that rough. She had a few grazes on her knees and up her legs, nothing that wouldn't heal. But, still she couldn't feel one leg. Her arms were tired and her muscles ached. She tried to take in breath slowly and quietly, but she needed the air quicker than her lungs would allow.
She heard the footsteps again. For a minute she had thought whoever it was had left, but they must have been tracking her. She tried to remember how all this had started. She remembered the dreams, and falling unconscious, then running away from Ash's house. Then where had she gone? She thought for a few seconds.
The secret area.
She had gone there to find Ash. But he wasn't there. Then someone had snuck up on her, a man. But he was no ordinary human. He had used a very powerful psychic attack on her.
"Just like in my dreams." Misty said quietly as she realised the truth. "No." she was beginning to think that she could see the future in her dreams. After all, what she had seen in her dreams had almost all came true.
"Yes," a low voice said from in front of her, "you have a very powerful gift." Gift? What gift? "You know what I'm talking about." The voice said, quietly and in some strange way, dangerously. "The ability to see things before they happen. Like the so-called power cut at Ash Ketchums house." Ash.
"How do you know his name?" Misty demanded.
"I know more than that." The tall man sneered.
"And what of this gift?" Misty called out. "I don't want it. Why was I given it? Why?" Questions were burning on the tip of Misty's brain. She had to find out more about this so-called gift and this dark mysterious figure that had watched her ever so closely, just to kidnap her. "And why do you want me? What good can I possible do for you?" The tall man laughed. But, it was not a laugh of joy; it had a more mocking tone in it.
"You'll soon see." He said. "You'll soon see." He raised his hand and bars seemed to rise out of the ground. Misty tried to run forward, but her leg was still numb. The bars were ten maybe fifteen feet high, and surrounded her.
"Why are you keeping me prisoner? What have I done?" tears were about ready to fall from her eyes. She tried not to think of them. The man didn't answer; instead a large black cloak suddenly became visible around him, covering his entire body.
"I have no time to answer your puny questions." He slowly began to walk off in the other direction and a large door appeared out of nowhere. "I need to go and banish some intruders. You might want to try and say goodbye to them in your own mind, I think you might know them." Ash's, Brock's, Crystal's, and Duplica's faces suddenly rose out of nowhere.
"No!" Misty cried. "Please don't hurt them, please." But it was no use. The man was gone. Misty let the tears fall now, even if she hadn't let them she had no choice, they fell freely.
She thought for a couple of seconds. 'What are you doing!?!' her mind voice demanded. 'Why aren't you trying to get out? He hasn't done anything yet. There still might be a way to stop him!' Misty looked up. The tears had stopped falling, but her eyes still glistened.
"Yes, there is still time." She said. The words brought confidence to her. She closed her eyes, and focused on her leg. She imagined it healing, and seen herself walking and running again. A small sensation of pain rose in her leg, almost causing her to lose focus. 'No! Don't quit now! Think of your friends, they need your help!' she held back the urge to scream and thought of how good it was to walk. The pain increased, but Misty hardly felt anything. She knew her friends depended on her, and she knew she was going to help them no matter what.
"Where are we going?" Gary moaned. He had tripped over various objects as they walked down the dark tunnel. "And doesn't any body have a light?" Crystal scowled. He had been moaning all day. She had forgotten how much she hated him.
"Will you ever shut up?" She asked in an angry tone. Brock sighed, not another fight. That's all the group had done since they all met up. He put a hand to his forehead.
"I'll shut up when we get out of here!" Gary snapped back at her.
"Yeah right. All you've done is moan about something for the past hour. 'I stubbed my toe, I hurt my finger. Oh boohoo won't somebody help me before I fall over and die from the pain.' Why did you even bother to come along anyway?" Crystal walked around the group impersonating Gary as she did so. Gary was getting real mad. He hated it when people done impressions of him.
"Oh well you're one to talk." He sneered at her. "Where were you when Misty disappeared?" he demanded.
"How can you blame me for not being there, when you weren't there yourself!?!" they continued to fling insults at each other. Pikachu couldn't take it anymore, and began to work up electricity in his cheeks.
"Pika!" he said quietly but in a very angry and dangerous tone. Duplica was walking next to the small mouse type Pokémon.
"Eh, Ash?" she said carefully.
"Not now Duplica." he said as he clutched at his ears to try and block out the argument between the other two.
"Ash?" she repeated, more insistent. She looked at Pikachu. More electricity was sparking from his cheeks. "Ash? You might want to calm Pikachu down a bit."
"Not now!" he said again.
"Pika!" Pikachu said again.
"ASH!" Duplica screamed at him.
"WHAT?" he yelled just as loud as she had. She pointed at Pikachu before calling for Ditto.
"Ditto transform." The small Ditto transformed into a shield that surrounded Duplica's body. Pikachu's eyes began to glow with all the electricity in its small body.
"Pikachu?" Ash asked quietly before he took cover behind a rock, he pulled Brock back as he went to the ground.
"PIKACHU!!!!!!" the small pokemon yelled as electricity sprung out of its cheeks, heading straight for Gary and Crystal. They had time to look at it coming before it hit them. Both of them fell down to the ground with the charge. A few seconds later the tunnel plunged into darkness once again.
"That's enough light now." Gary mumbled, then his head fell to the ground. Crystal lay a couple of meters away shaking her head to try and clear it.
"Wow Pikachu. You'd make a good car battery." She slowly stood up and held onto a rock in the wall for support. She looked over and seen Gary, her breath escaped her lungs in a quick gasp. "Will he be al…I mean at least he won't be able to annoy anyone now." She laughed quietly and then slowly went to the back of the small group. Brock took a Pokéball from his belt and threw it into the air.
"Geodude! I choose you!" he called as the Pokéball turned and twisted through the fall. It hit the ground and a red light emitted from it, it changed into a large rock with two stony arms coming from either side of it. "Geodude, pick up Gary and bring him with us." He ordered it.
"Geo." The Pokémon said before taking Gary in its strong arms and carrying him beside the group. For the longest time since the group had started down the tunnel there was silence. They continued into the tunnel and as they did it seemed to get darker, if that was possible. It got so dark that they couldn't even see there own hands in front of their faces.
"Pikachu!" Ash called out to his Pokémon.
"Pi?" it answered.
"Use flash to light the way." Pikachu nodded and ran slightly in front of the group. It began to gather more electricity and then emitted a bright light. It took a few seconds for everyone eyes to get used to the light, but once their eyes had adjusted, they were fine. The group continued on their way.
Ahead of them they could see a large building. Ash knew Misty was there. He didn't know how he knew but he did.
"Come on. She's in there." He said as he pointed at the building. He began to run towards it but before he could get there a large dark shape appeared out of nowhere and knocked him backwards. He felt his breath leave him as he hit a boulder and he gasped for air. Brock, Duplica, Gary and Crystal ran over to help him. While Pikachu searched for what had hurt his master and friend.
"Hey Ash!" Brock called as he knelt down beside him. "You ok man?" Brock helped Ash sit up as Ash began to breathe more easily. He coughed a few times.
"Yeah." He said as he motioned with his hands. "Where's Pikachu?" he asked. "Find him." Duplica and Crystal nodded before running off in the direction that Pikachu's voice was coming from. Brock and Gary helped Ash to his feet and supported him as he walked. "WE need to catch up with them." Ash said weakly. "Pikachu and Misty are there." Ash closed his eyes for a few seconds. When he opened them it was dark again, Pikachu had long since gone. The three of them walked on blindly.
Misty stood up. "It worked!" she called out happily. Then she rethought about what she had just done. "How did it work?" she asked herself. She had completely healed her leg, or at least healed it enough to get up. She tried walking, and it felt fine. 'Right!' she thought. "Now all I have to do is get out of these bars." She walked up to them and closed her eyes again. She saw the bars bending and twisting, then eventually breaking. She focused her energy on them and she felt them begin to heat up underneath her hands. She was tempted to pull her hands away, but forced them to get used to the heat. Then there was a loud snapping noise and Misty fell backwards. She opened her eyes and looked at the bits of bars in her hands. "I done it!" she called out. Her voice echoed around the room.
"Misty?" a female voice called out. She knew that voice, she hadn't heard it in a while, but she knew it.
"Crystal?" she called out happily as she looked around. "Crystal is that you?"
"Pikachu!" Pikachu screamed as he let out an electrifying jolt of electricity, lighting up the room once more. Misty looked over and recognised two of her friends.
"Hey." She called. "Over here!" they looked around and then ran over to the make shift cage.
"How'd you get in there?" Duplica asked as she walked round inspecting it. She came to the bits that were missing. "Where'd the rest of it go?" she looked at Misty, and realised she was holding bits of the bars. "Wow! How'd you break it?"
"Hey, too many questions at once." Misty said. "One, a weird man put me in this cage, two, the rest of it is in here, and three, I don't know how I broke it." She threw the pieces down and they hit the ground with a clang. "You need to get me out of here guys. Before he comes back." Misty looked around.
"Before who comes back?" Crystal asked her, a bit confused.
"That weird man. He wore just a long black cloak and had a low mysterious voice. He said something about me having a gift. Then he left. He was coming to get you. Oh my God, are Ash and Brock ok?" her voice was thick with concern.
"Yeah, well Brock's fine. But Ash got knocked pretty bad." Crystal told her.
"What? What hit him?" Misty was almost screaming.
"Woah calm down. Lover boy's fine." Duplica joked from behind, as she used the small saw in her hands to cut through the bar.
"What do you mean by that?" Misty demanded, then she looked at Duplica. "Where'd you get that from?" Misty asked. Duplica didn't need to answer, as a small voice came out of nowhere.
"Ditto!" it said and then Duplica got back to work.
"Shh. Ditto. If you ever want me to finish you have to keep still." The saw was silent as it cut through the bars. "Anyway, Brock and Gary will look after him. He'll be fine. They'll be here soon."
"GARY!?!" Misty screamed. "What is Gary doing here?"
"Oh, he tagged along when we were looking for Ash." Duplica told her. "Me and Brock met up with him, and I kinda made him uh cry a little." Misty laughed as quietly as she could.
"You made Gary cry! How'd you manage that?" Misty could hardly control her laughter.
"Oh, I just said some things, got him angry, made him sad and then left him alone. He caught up with us a few minutes later and begged to come along." The room plunged into darkness again.
"Pikachu, use flash to light up the room." Misty commanded him, he nodded and then let out more electricity. The three of them could feel the force of it in the air, but Pikachu didn't notice. There was a small clanging noise as the Ditto/saw broke through the metal.
"Ha, no metal can stop Ditto and me!" Duplica called out triumphantly. She put Ditto on the floor and it dissolved back into a small pink blob and bounced its way over to Pikachu. They started talking, but no one really paid any attention to them, they were too busy helping Misty out of the hole Duplica and Ditto had cut. They got Misty out and she brushed herself off.
"Let's get out of here," she said as she began to walk in the direction Crystal and Duplica had come from. They got into the tunnel just as Gary and Brock were coming round the corner. "Where's Ash?" Misty asked as soon as she had seen them.
"Right here," Ash's familiar voice called out from round the corner. He was limping slightly and he had a large purple bruise above his right temple. Misty ran forward and tried to help him.
"Why aren't you guys helping him?" Crystal shouted at them.
"He didn't want our help." Brock told her as he stepped back. Even though she was smaller than him, he knew she could still pack a powerful punch.
"So. You still should have helped." She argued.
"Well if he doesn't want help, who are we to give it to him?" Gary said, in his usual obnoxious tone. He shrugged and walked off. Crystal stalked after him; she stood in front of him and wouldn't let him past. "Will you move?" he said to her, trying to side step around her. She moved to block his path again.
"Why are you always so self-centred?" she shouted at him. He shrugged once again and smiled slightly.
"I dunno. Must be in my genes." Pichuu burst out of its Pokeball and ran over to him and pulled on the bottom of his jeans leg.
"Pi?" it asked.
"Not them jeans, 'genes' you stupid Pokémon." He laughed quietly and bent down to pat the small Pokémon on the head, Crystal glared at him.
"Leave him alone!" she shouted at him, the small Pokémon smiled as Gary scratched behind its ear.
"Ha," Gary snarled, "even your Pokémon don't want to be with you! See no body likes you!" Crystal started forward; she picked up her Pokémon and held it close to her.
"Well…I…ah…" she tried to think of a good enough thing to shout at him.
"Ha! You can't beat me! Na na na na na!" Gary taunted. The small Pichuu cried quietly and clutched its small head from all the shouting. Crystal kicked Gary's leg and went to walk off. He grabbed her arm and threw her out of the way. She gained her balance and handed Pichuu to Brock.
"Watch over him please." She said as she put the rest of her Pokéballs down beside him. She took a deep breath and literally flung herself at Gary. She caught him off guard and he turned round just in time to meet her fist coming flying at his left shoulder. He didn't have time to bring out a Pokémon so he tried to move. Her fist hit him square on the top of his shoulder. He moved out of the way and threw a Pokéball into the air.
"Pokéball, go!" he cried as a bright red light lit up the tunnel for a second. Misty watched from the sidelines. She sighed,
"Will they ever stop fighting?" she asked no one. Brock came over to her and Ash with Crystal's Pokémon and Pokéballs.
"Kinda reminds me of you two." He said as he sat down on a nearby rock. Misty looked at Ash. "You know always fighting but deep down a loving bond connects both of you to the other being."
"What' d ya mean?" she demanded as she stood up. Ash let his breath out in a low hiss as Misty kicked his leg as she headed off towards Brock.
"Whoa! Calm it Misty!" Brock tried to calm her down as she stormed over in his direction. Suddenly a large electric shock filled the room. Everybody stopped fighting and Ash turned to Pikachu.
"Pi," it said innocently, it tilted its head in the direction of Pichuu.
"Pichuu?" Crystal asked as she walked over to him.
"Chu!" he said. "Pi, pi, pi Pichuu!" it jumped out of her arms and ran over to a Jolteon. It hissed loudly at the small Pokémon, and the spikes on its back crackled with electricity.
"Wow, a Jolteon!" Gary said as he grabbed a pokeball. "Eevee attack!" he called out to the small Eevee he had brought out earlier. It nodded and ran in front of its trainer. The Jolteon and Eevee both growled quietly at each other. Then, both of them refused to fight and the Jolteon started to glow and shimmer. It grew smaller and soon was no more than just a small pink glob. "A Ditto?" Gary asked confused, then he remembered who else was travelling with them. "Duplica." He said quietly.
"Hey, you finally guessed!" she jumped out from behind a rock. "Well, I would have expected Misty or Brock to guess as they are the smartest out of you lot, but, at least somebody worked it out." She sat on the rock and held out her arms, the small blobish Pokémon leaped into the air and landed safely in her arms.
"Ditto dits!" it cried happily. It bounced over towards the rock, which Duplica sat on, it raised its small arms and Duplica picked it up. It sat happily on her knee and waited for her to move. She got up and walked over to Ash and Brock, her Ditto holding gently onto her shoulder.
"So how's Ashy-Boy?" she asked Ash as she almost stood on his leg.
"I'm fine," he answered quietly as he nursed his ankle where Misty had kicked him, "and don't call me Ashy-Boy!" Duplica laughed.
"Aw come on, lighten up!" she walked over to Crystal and petted her Pichuu. "He's just so sweet!" she said as Pichuu tilted his head as Duplica scratched his neck. Crystal picked up the rest of her Pokéballs and clipped them onto her belt. Misty stood in the middle of the group.
"Hey guys, let's get outta here!" she said as she looked around the large cave. "I don't like being this close to that…place…that weird guy has made." She shivered slightly and walked in the direction Ash, Brock and Gary had come from. The rest were soon to follow, they got further down the tunnel when a strong gust of wind blew. Crystal shivered,
"What is that?" she asked as she held Pichuu closer as he began to shiver. "How can you get wind in such a closed off area?" She walked faster to keep up with the group.
"I really don't like this." Duplica said as she walked up to the front of the group where Misty was jogging faster and faster with every step. "Woah. Misty calm down. We'll get out without that guy catching up with us." She stepped over a small rock that lay on the bumpy ground. "And when we do, he'll never be able to find us. I promise you." Duplica grabbed Misty's elbow and stopped her.
"And how will we lose him?" Misty almost shouted at her. Duplica took a step back. "He managed to find me when I didn't even know I had this power. So how can I hide from him now?" Ash came half jogging, half limping up beside them.
"What power?" he asked but they ignored him. he slowed down again as the pain in his ankle began to worsen. Brock took his arm and helped him along. "What power is she talking about Brock?" he asked, Brock shook his head.
"I don't know, why don't you ask Crystal?" he suggested. "After all she went with Pikachu and Duplica to finds Misty." They slowed down and waited for Crystal to catch up with them.
"Hey Crystal?" Ash called as she almost ran right past them, she slowed down slightly.
"Yeah?" she asked as she tried to pick up the same pace as they were going at.
"What is Misty talking about a 'power' she has?"
"I don't know exactly what she means, but when we found her she was in a cage and she had pieces of the metal bars in her hands." Crystal fell back suddenly to avoid running into a large boulder that appeared out of nowhere to block their path. "Where'd that come from?" she shouted as she picked up her pace. She looked back at Ash and Brock, "Come on you guys, we need to get out of here!" she called to them.
"I can't go any faster," Ash complained, "my ankle is really sore to walk on." Crystal turned round to see the rest of the group standing still.
"What are we waiting for?" she yelled at them as she made her way to the front of the group. She was confronted by a large wall of boulders and rocks. "What?"
"Onix go!" Brock called from behind the group, a familiar red and white Pokéball flew to the front of the group and opened in mid flight. Onix took the place of the red light in seconds. "Onix move these boulders!" Brock ordered the large Pokémon. It nodded slightly then let out a loud cry and head butted the wall. The rocks slowly began to shift, and soon there were holes in the wall. Ash limped forward and took a Pokéball from his waist.
"Bulbasaur go!" he called out weakly, Misty turned and looked at him worriedly. He met her gaze and she blushed and turned back in the direction of the rock wall and Onix, who was desperately hitting it with all its might. Bulbasaur's small form sat infront of the large, powerful Onix and looked incredibly insignificant. Gary laughed a single noise.
"How is that going to help us?" he asked. Crystal turned and glared at him. "It's tiny! And not to mention useless." Ash ignored his taunts, if he let them get to him, they may never get out. The thought of leaving Gary inside the cave crossed Ash's mind, but he dismissed it.
"Bulbasaur, lift up and move the rocks with your vine whip!" he commanded the grass type Pokémon. It uttered a small 'bulba' before starting its chore. It picked up a couple of rocks at a time and threw them to the side. Soon there was only a few rocks left and Onix helped pick up the remains. The small group was on its way again.
Misty climbed out into the small sanctuary she had built with Ash and Brock and ran straight past all the artificial sites they had made, and headed straight towards the exit. She climbed out but soon ran back in. She grabbed the door and threw it shut.
"He's out there!" she said as quietly but as clearly as she could. "Quick, we need to find another exit!" she dashed to the back of the group, confusing Ash and Brock who were just coming out of the tunnel.
"Where are you going now?" Brock asked moving out of her way.
"He's here." She said as she ran frantically past him. "We need to get out of here!" she took a Pokéball from her belt and threw it in front of her. "Staryu go!" Misty ran to the Pokémon when it took shape, she stopped a few feet from it.
"Psy." It muttered holding its head.
"Not you Psyduck!" she called as she summoned the Pokémon back and threw another Pokéball, this time Staryu appeared and took up a battling position. "Staryu, use your water gun to wear away that wall there." She pointed and pulled another Pokéball from her waist. "Starmie, help it." Both of the star shaped Pokémon aimed their powerful attacks at the wall and soon it was reduced to mud.
"My turn!" Gary called out as he threw his Pokéball to the ground. "Eevee tackle attack the plastic barricades."
"Ee!" the Pokémon obliged and started to charge. Soon they were able to get through to the outside again, they hit the road and instantly started to run. They made it back to Ash's house and locked the doors, and closed all the windows. Ash hissed as Gary kicked his ankle on they way past him and he fell down onto the couch. Misty, Brock and Duplica rushed over. He told them to leave him alone and that he was fine but they refused. Crystal came back into the room with an ice pack from the freezer and placed it over Ash's ankle, he tried to pull away but Brock held his ankle still. Suddenly the lights flickered, went out and came back on a few seconds later.
"He's close." Misty said as she looked out of the window, she seen the dark shadowy figure coming down the road. She turned back round and suddenly thought of something. "He only wants me, doesn't he?" Nobody answered so she sat down on the windowsill and waited for someone to notice her, out of the corner of her eye she could see the dark, almost glowing, figure slowly making its way down the paved street. A car suddenly pulled into a driveway and the shadow seemed to disappear in the light, but when the light was gone, the shadow was back. Crystal looked over at Misty, and decided she had better help her before she done anything stupid.
'Like climbing out of that window.' Crystal thought to herself as she shook her head.
"That would be something Misty… She looked over to the windowsill and seen the open window. "Has done!" she ran over to the window and stuck her head out, Misty was walking across the front garden towards the shadow, it looked like it was holding out a hand for her to take. Then the shadow gained a shape; it started to take the form of a human, then it seemed like it shrunk a couple of inches. Misty still walked towards it and Crystal decided this would be a good time to get her back. She threw a Pokéball into the air and the majestic Pideotto flew high into the sky. Both Misty and the shadow, now person in shape, looked up at it.
"Pideo!" it called out in a shrill tone.
"Pideotto, dive at Misty, pick her up and bring her back." Crystal commanded it. It immediately obeyed and dived at the two figures in the street. It got within three feet and suddenly fell to the ground, it twitched slightly then was still, Crystal's mouth lay open, she couldn't believe it, nothing had happened to it, what was wrong?
"Pideotto?" she called out, nothing. She jumped out of the window and ran to it. "Pideotto!" she called its name as she ran, but she did not make it. A sharp pain suddenly rose in her stomach and she was paralysed with pain and fear. She was struggling as best she could, but it was too painful. She cried out in pain and was thrown back against the wall of the house.
The others heard the sickening thud of her body against the cold, hard bricks and Brock, Duplica and Gary all ran to the window. The searched the garden and seen Misty taking hold of the dark shapes hand.
"What's she doing?" Duplica asked, there was no response. Then the three of them saw Crystal's limp body.
"Chrys!" Gary called out as he pushed his way past Brock and Duplica to get out of the window. As soon as his feet touched the ground he started to run and he was beside Crystal's form in seconds. He bent down and slid his arm underneath her shoulders and lifted her head. "Chrys, Chrys are you ok?" Brock and Duplica ran over to them and knelt down beside Gary. "I'll wake her," he said as he turned to face them. "You two go stop Misty." They all turned and looked to where Misty was standing a few seconds ago, she was gone. Their eyes searched the street and seen both figures walking down the sidewalk. Brock and Duplica nodded.
"Right!" they said in unison as they got up and started to go across the garden.
"Wait," Brock stuck out his arm in front of Duplica to stop her.
"What?" she roughly shouted. "They're getting away!" Brock looked back towards Crystal and seen a Pideotto lying on the grass in front of them. "Brock, what is it!?!" she was about to push past his arm and continue going, but he started talking again.
"Well, think about it…" he started.
"We don't have time for a lecture!" Duplica shouted at him again.
"Just listen!" he said in a firm tone. Duplica stopped trying to push past and stood still, but impatiently tapped her foot on the ground. "Crystal seen Misty and that shadow guy outside right. So she released her Pideotto to get him, we heard her commanding it to attack and retrieve Misty, right?" Duplica nodded. "The Pideotto's down and Crystal was flung against the wall, but no more commands were shouted for any more Pokémon."
"So what happened to them?" Duplica asked, she looked around for tracks of any kind, but found none.
"I don't know, but we had better be careful." He started to walk over to the small wall that signalled the end of the garden, he ducked down and crawled on his hands and knees till the end of that, then he climbed the fence into the next garden and followed the same procedure for that. Duplica followed along using his example and soon they were within a couple of metres of Misty.
"What now?" Duplica whispered as they tried to keep close but not be seen or heard.
"We had better not show ourselves, but we need to get through to Misty somehow." He sat still and thought about it for a few seconds, Duplica suddenly hit his back. "Ahh! What was that for?" he asked her rubbing his back where she had hit it.
"I think I know what we can do." She pulled a Pokéball from her waist and rolled it onto the grass, a small pink blob came out.
"Ditto." It said quietly as it yawned and rubbed its eye.
"Sorry for waking you Ditto." Duplica said. "But I need you to help us. Can you remember exactly what Togepi looks like, every single marking?" she looked at the small blob as it thought for a second.
"Ditto!" it said happily and nodded.
"Good. Can you change into it then?" it nodded again and began to change. Brock leant over and whispered to Duplica as the Ditto changed silently.
"So what's your plan?" he asked.
"You'll see." She said, as usual she was keeping secrets from everyone. The, now Togepi, waddled over to Brock and Duplica and called out as quietly as it could.
"Togi, togi pri!" it waved its small arms in the air.
"Good, you look just like her." she patted it on the head. "Now, here's what you're gonna do…"
Misty walked along beside the large shadowy man, looking in every direction, taking in everything, but taking in nothing. She stopped suddenly and whipped her head around; running across the grass was Togepi.
"Togepi!" she screamed as she saw the large Vulpix chasing after it, throwing deadly flamethrower attacks at it, but, luckily, missing it by a few inches. The small egg Pokémon fell and rolled out of the way just in time to avoid a deadly fire blast assault.
"Pri!" it cried out defenceless as it rolled down a small hill in the direction of Ash's house. Misty chased after it quickly, she fumbled for one of her Pokéballs, but found nothing on her waist; she thought back and remembered leaving them on the couch beside Ash. She ran faster as the Vulpix head butted the small egg, sending it flying into a fence. It got up quickly and ran underneath the fence and into a small hole in the tree that was situated in the garden. The Vulpix jumped over the fence and landed with a yelp as it twisted its ankle, but soon got up and ran over to the tree and stuck its paw inside, it tried to grasp the egg but after a few tries it gave up and limped away.
Misty ran over to the tree and skidded to a halt. She bent down to look in the small hole, and she could see the outline of the egg. She reached a hand in and tried to pick her up.
"Togepi. It's me, it's Misty. Please come out." She tried to get hold of the small Pokémon and was absorbed in getting it out that she never noticed the two figures that snuck up behind her. One suddenly pounced on her and the other grabbed her arms. "What!?! What's going on!?! Let me go!" she struggled and one of the figures started to laugh. "Wha…Duplica?" the female voice laughed even louder.
"You look like a stranded Magikarp." She laughed some more. Brock struggling to keep hold of Misty himself while she was trying to get out of their grip and Duplica was, literally, rolling around with laughter.
"Hey, Duplica, a little help here." Brock hit her on the head with one hand and she fell backwards.
"Hey!" she rubbed the back of her head and instantly stopped laughing. "Ok. Ditto transform into a net!" she summoned on the Pokémon and Togepi came out of the hole.
"Togepi!" Misty yelled.
"Sorry Mist. Not this time." Duplica said as the egg suddenly began to glow and change shape. It changed into a Ditto and then into a large net that wrapped itself around Misty.
"Let me go!" she screamed as Brock and Duplica held her firmly on the ground. Her arm flew out from her side and almost hit Duplica right in the face, Brock caught her arm at the last moment and took her other arm and held them both securely.
"Quick!" he said. "Tie that rope round her and lets get outta here!" Duplica nodded and quickly tied Misty's hands and feet together. Then they carried her back to the house.
Duplica threw open the front door to Ash's house and ran inside, Brock was a few seconds behind her, carrying Misty in his arms. He lay her down on the chair, as Chrys was on the couch, and checked she was ok. Ash limped over to where Misty was a picked up her hand; he brought it close to his face and kissed it gently.
"Why did she run off?" he asked Brock. He shrugged his shoulders and Ash looked at Misty, she just lay there, breathing in and then exhaling. He thought her eyes opened, but he was just seeing things. The lights flickered again and Ash's eyes darted around the room.
"He's not getting her!" he called out desperately. Hoping that the shadow would not find its way into his house, but it was too late, it was already here…
Right. Sorry again about the lenght of the fic. But i couldn't decide where to cut it off and this is a good enough place as any.
The next part should be the last, (unless I decide to write a sequel kind of thing) and you'll have to excuse me for not getting them all done quicker.
Also for anyone who's interested in my Star Wars fics, I should hopefully have the next one finished soon, hopefully.
Please be a responsible and kind reader and review my fic. Please.
And until the next one, chow for now!
Cerasi
I'll get the next chapter finished as quickly as possible. (hopefully this week.)
Talking about chapters, this one's kinda long, so beware if you're not a fast reader.
And if you have not read the other two parts then this would probably not make a lot of sense, so there's no point in skipping to this one and hoping to pick up what's going on.
Right all that babbling over now. Here's another boring part;
Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon, or the character Chrystal/Chrys, she belongs to Starkiller, i just borrowed her for this story.
Right on with the fic...
Misty's Dream
Part Three
"Thanks for letting me come along with you guys," Gary muttered sheepishly as he walked along trying to keep up with Brock and Duplica.
"Why did we let him come along anyway?" Duplica asked Brock, in an angry tone of voice.
"Because you made him cry, remember?" Brock said in just about the same tone of voice.
"So!" Duplica argued. "That doesn't mean he had to come along." She said as she folded her arms. "I don't understand why we couldn't have just left him there." She put her hands over her ears to prevent her from hearing Gary's thanks. Gary walked over beside her and she quickly went to the other side of Brock. He looked at her as if asking why she had done that. "What?" she said innocently, "I'm not walking next to him." She continued to walk a small smile on her face.
"Stop being so childish." Brock told her, but she ignored his words and continued down the road.
Before long they had walked around most of Pallet and still they had not found any trace of Ash.
"God! Where is he?" Duplica shouted at no one in particular.
"Be patient!" Brock shouted at her, getting annoyed at her restlessness. "We won't find them unless you stop moaning."
"How come?" She was arguing again. "My moaning doesn't hurt anyone."
"Well actually it gives me a headache." Gary said from behind her.
"And since when have I cared about what you do or think?" She yelled at him. He instantly looked at the ground and trudged along slowly and silently again.
"Look," Brock said with his hand on his forehead, "let's just calm down and try to find Ash." He looked at the two of them as they both mumbled apologies. Then they all walked along in silence.
Ash and Crystal had been walking for a couple of minutes when they saw three others walking in their direction. Ash instantly recognised them as his friends and ran up to them. He was taken aback when he realised Gary was walking beside them. He looked to Brock and Duplica for answers.
"Don't bother asking." Duplica said in a dangerous voice as he approached.
"Don't bother asking what?" Ash asked anyone.
"Why Gary's with us." Brock answered for him.
"So why is he here?" Ash asked him and then he looked around again. "Where's Misty?" he asked frantically.
"It's ok. Misty's back at your house, and we came across Gary on the way here." Brock paused. "Wherever here is." He looked around and didn't recognise anything he saw. Suddenly he looked over and saw Crystal standing with Duplica.
"Duh, heh, heh…hello. My name's Brock. Will you go out with me?" Crystal blinked in surprise, before backing away.
"Ehh, Earth to Brock! It's me, Crystal!" She shouted. Brock fell to one knee and took hold of her hand.
"And may I say your name describes your most beautiful crystal blue eyes. My one and only sweet lov, OWE!!" Brock rubbed the back of his head where Duplica had just punched him. He looked up with big innocent eyes.
"What did I do?" He whined. Duplica glared at him.
"Snap outta girl mode! We've gotta get back to Misty. If she's woken up, she'll want her friends." She ended in a softer tone, and looked purposely at Ash. Ash bowed his head to hide his blush.
"You're right. Sorry I ran off you guys…I just couldn't …take it." He choked out.
Now at this point, both Crystal and Gary were looking more than a little confused. The most either of them could gather was that something was wrong with Misty. But what?
"That's it! I come home after what, three months, only to find one big ruddy mess! What the hec is goin' on round here?" Ash felt a little guilty as he heard Crystal's words. He should have told her.
"Huh, maybe you shouldn't of come back." Gary snorted. Crystal glared at him.
"If I'd known you'd be here, maybe I wouldn't hav--" Duplica suddenly cut off Crystal,
"As I said before, Misty will need us now! So come on. We'll explain on the way." She finished, marching ahead of them. The group turned to each other, sighed and slowly followed on.
Misty woke. She couldn't tell where she was, but she knew it wasn't somewhere friendly. She tried to sit up, but pain shot through her leg, she let her breath out in an involuntarily hiss. Her head hit the ground with a soft thud. It felt like a stone floor, cold and hard. She heard a noise in the distance; maybe someone was coming to get her. A friend she hoped.
She looked around to see if she could identify the building she was in. She couldn't see anything but dark walls with red curtains dotted around the vast space.
Footsteps.
Someone was close. Impossible to tell how close, the emptiness made every sound echo. She tried desperately to get up and out of wherever she was. She wanted out, she wanted to be home. Most of all, she wanted her friends.
"What do you mean she's not here!?!" Ash screamed in the doctor's face.
"She's gone. I went to get you and when I got back she was gone. I checked the rest of the rooms, but she was nowhere in the house." The doctor stopped for a brief moment. "I thought maybe you had got her and took her…"
"Took her where!?!" Duplica shouted, joining in the argument willingly.
"Well I, I…I don't know." The doctor said worriedly.
"Hey, calm down guys." Brock said as he stood between the doctor and held back Ash and Duplica. They both looked ready to jump at him and beat the answers out of him. Professor Oak entered the room and stood behind Mrs. Ketchum, Crystal, and Gary.
"What's going on?" he asked anyone that would answer.
"Misty's gone missing." Crystal told him.
"One minute she was here, and the next she was gone." Gary told his grandfather, a small bit of sadness in his voice. The argument raged on until Mrs. Ketchum entered the room. She went over to stand by her son.
"You had better stop arguing Mr." She warned her son.
"But mom, he let Misty get out. After all she's had to cope with God knows what she'll do!" Ash was almost shouting at his mother, and everyone could see she was not happy with that.
"Don't use that tone of voice with me Mr.!" She took Ash by the ear and pulled him out of the room. Duplica was about to continue on with the argument when Brock stepped further in front of her.
"It doesn't really matter whose fault it was that Misty is gone. What matters now is that we find her and we find her fast." Once again Brock's words made everyone in the room stop and think. Duplica backed down, beaten by Brock's words.
"You're right," she said in defeat, "it is better to find her than to argue about who lost her." The doctor wiped his brow in relief. Crystal stepped forward.
"Well let's get going." She said, loud enough so that Ash could hear over his mother's lecture. "If we are going to search for her, we'd better start now." She walked out of the room and opened the front door. Everyone followed her and Ash tried to get past his mother.
"Not you Ash Ketchum." She said as she took hold of his arm.
"But mom…" he began.
"No but's Mr. You owe an apology to the doctor, and you're not going anywhere until he receives your words." Ash cringed; he had to catch up with the others before they vanished like Misty. He quickly ran over to the doctor and said sorry. Then he turned to his mother and she nodded. With that he ran out of the house and down the street. He could still catch the rest of the group before they went far.
"This is pointless!" Gary said as he sat down on a rock wall. He threw his arms down at his sides. "We are never going to find her, so let's just forget her." Duplica lunged forward at his words. Gary scrambled off the wall and stood behind the rest of the group.
"You take that back!" Duplica screamed at him. "We will find her and we're not going to forget about her! Not ever!"
"We just need to look a little bit longer!" Ash called out to everyone as he ran over to hold Duplica back. He got her tightly and pulled her arm behind her back. "This isn't helping us." He said in her right ear. "If we are going to find her, we need to act as a group. Ok?" Duplica tried to twist away, so Ash tightened his grip and pushed her arm further up her back. She let out a small noise of pain. "Ok?" Ash asked again.
"Fine!" she said unwillingly. Ash let go and walked over to Gary. Duplica rubbed her arm where Ash had held it. Even though he was younger than her, he still had a tight grip. She looked around to see if she recognised where they were. All she could see were trees and grass. "Where are we?" she asked the group. No one really heard her over the talking of others. She walked over to Crystal. "Hey," she said.
"Hey." She smiled. "So do you always let Ash boss you around?" she asked as she pointed to her arm.
"No. If he gets on my nerves I can just call him Ashy-Boy. He really hates that."
"Where'd he get that name?" Crystal laughed gently as she looked over at Ash, who was busy lecturing Gary.
"I gave it to him when we were kids." Duplica seemed to go into a daydream. "It seems like ages ago now." She shook her head. "But just now we have to find Misty." She looked around and remembered why she went over to Crystal in the first place. "Do you have any idea where we are?" Crystal looked around and took in the scene.
"I think I remember this place, but I can't think of where I've seen it." They both walked over to Ash and Gary, Crystal grabbed Ash's collar and pulled him away from Gary. "Ok Ketchum, where are we?" she asked, not bothering to apologise for almost flinging him into the wall that was next to them.
Ash looked around. "My God. It can't be." He started walking around looking at… well nothing but in a way everything. "Brock, do you remember this place?" he asked as he walked past his life long friend.
"Well, it does seem familiar." Brock said as he followed Ash over to the edge of the woods.
"Ok," Duplica said to Crystal, "they've both completely lost it."
"Yup." Crystal replied as she watched the two walk along the edge of the trees looking at every crack and space in the leaves. "Hey Clefairy's! Do you want to come back to this planet or what?" she shouted at them. They both turned but had a vacant look on their faces. They both raised their fingers to their mouths and motioned for her to be quiet, and then they went on searching again. "I give up." She said as she turned to Duplica and Gary.
"So what do you want to do while the dreamers are searching for a mystic cavern?" Duplica asked in a joking tone.
"We found it!" Ash and Brock called from behind the three. They casually walked over to see what the two of them had found, despite both Ash and Brock urging them to quicken their pace. When they got there Ash was half way into a small opening in the bushes.
"Ash Ketchum, what are you doing!?!" Crystal asked, looking completely confused.
"We might know where Misty is." Brock said excitedly. He then quickly followed Ash down the small gap. When they were all down Ash explained to them.
"I found this place when I was a kid. I had got lost and it was starting to rain, so I found shelter in the trees. It wasn't very big, to start off with, and was pretty horrible. But I had found it, and it kept me dry."
"Then, he went on his Pokémon journey and found me and Misty." Brock continued the story as Ash tried to open another area. "We came back to Pallet and Ash brought us here. It was in quite a mess, so Ash, Misty and I fixed it up and made it bigger."
"When we finished it was like a hiding place and somewhere for us all to relax." Ash went on once he had found the small handhold he was looking for. "We made it water proof by putting up pieces of corrugated iron and other materials, then we cleaned it up. No one else knows about this area as we all promised to keep it a secret. We haven't been here in years." Ash went down a smaller tunnel and then a large area appeared in front of the group. They went in and started looking around for Misty. They spent about ten minutes and then they all met back in the middle of the area next to the small stream.
"Anyone find anything?" Brock asked as he looked round the group. There was a series of 'no's' until Gary spoke up.
"Well I did find this." He said as he held out a piece of a cloak and a Pokéball. Ash took them and studied them with Brock. The rest of the group didn't hear much of there conferring because they were talking so fast and so quietly. Finally they stood up.
"Well this looks like one of Misty's Pokéballs, and this could be ripped off of someone's cloak, but we're not quite sure." Suddenly the Pokéball opened and a red light emitted from it. The light began to take shape and a small pink blob took shape.
"Ditto!" it cried happily.
"Ditto?" Duplica spoke up. "Since when did Misty have a di…" she took a sharp breath and ran towards the Pokémon. "Ditto!" she cried as she picked up the small blob and held it close to her. "Ditto. Where on Earth did you go?" she asked, tears almost falling from her eyes with joy.
"Dits, Ditto, dit dit Ditto." It told her, Duplica nodded at every word. Gary leaned over to speak to Crystal.
"What did it say?" he asked her.
"I'm not quite sure. You'd need to ask her, she's its master." Ash bent down next to Duplica and Ditto. Duplica was frantically checking to see if Ditto had been hurt.
"Duplica," Ash said, "why was Ditto here?" Duplica looked up suddenly puzzled.
"What?" she said. "Oh yeah, sorry. I was just so worried when I couldn't find it I guess I forgot. It said it came here after following Misty. It took shape of one of the leaves and watched over her for a while, but there was someone else here."
"Who?" Ash asked he looked at Brock. None of them had told anyone where this hidden place was, and it wasn't easy to find until Ash knew it was there. "Ask it." Duplica nodded and turned back to the small Pokémon on her lap.
"Do you know who it was that was with Misty?" she asked it. It lay silent for a few moments as if thinking hard before answering. Then its face turned serious, and instead of the big smile and bright eyes it had a small frown and an upside down smile on its face.
"Ditto." It sad sadly, then it began again. "Dit Ditto dit dit dits. Dits Ditto Ditto di di to Ditto." Duplica rubbed her head. "Ditto dits?" it asked quietly. Duplica picked it up.
"No I'm not mad at you. It's not your fault." She held it close to comfort it.
"Well, what did it say?" Ash asked impatiently.
"It didn't recognise the person. But they spoke and it knew they were male. He wore a long dark cloak and black gloves and boats. His face was hidden by shadow. Ditto said that they snuck up behind Misty and then she fell. Ditto didn't know what to do, so it kept still. Misty fell asleep, either that or she was unconscious."
"Dit Ditto dits." It said sadly as it looked in Ash's direction.
"Ditto says its sorry it couldn't do anything to help her." Ash leaned over and patted Ditto's head.
"It's alright Ditto. There was nothing you could do." Ditto smiled once again. Ash laughed slightly when he seen Ditto's happy little face. "Right, well we had better start looking for Misty somewhere else. We know someone has taken her, and we have a piece of his clothing. Gary, could you help us?" everyone gasped at the same time. Ash asking for Gary's help. Was this the real Ash?
"Huh?" Gary said confused.
"Well you do have an Arcanine." Ash told him.
"It could follow the scent of the cloak and lead us to Misty." Crystal said. Then she realized Ash was asking Gary for help. "Wait a minute, are you the real Ash? You never get on with Gary. Why are you suddenly asking for his help now?" Ash blushed.
"Ah, well, I…" Ash desperately searched for words. Brock leaned over and whispered something in Crystal's ear.
"Ah. That's so sweet." She said. "Not caring how your enemies are as long as you find the one you…"
"La la la la la!" Ash called out at the top of his lungs. "Let's go. Gary get out your Arcanine." He walked over to Brock and hit him on the back of the head.
"Oww!" Brock cried as the sharp sound of it struck through the air. "What'd you do that for?"
"Let's go." Was all he said, as he went over to the Arcanine that now stood in front of Gary he gave the material to him. "I hope your Arcanine is better trained than your Vaporeon." He said as Gary let the dog-like Pokémon sniff the ripped cloak.
"Arcanine. Follow that scent." Gary ordered the firedog. It barked sharply to let Gary know that it understood. Then it started sniffing the ground. It followed the scent into a corner and then retraced its steps. It got into the middle of the room and then it barked excitedly before running off in another direction. It headed towards a tall wall of bushes and thorns.
"I think your Arcanine's broken." Duplica said as the large red dog began scratching at the blur of green and brown.
"What do you know?" he shouted at her. "You're about as big a loser as Ash!" Duplica began to walk forward but Ash and Brock grabbed one of her arms each and held her back. Suddenly the Arcanine let out a long howl. Gary turned back to his Pokémon. "What is it Arcanine? Did you find something?" he went over and bent down to see what was the matter. He felt around in the bushes and soon came across a small black stone. "What's this?" he said to himself. He tried to lift it, but the stone wouldn't budge. Crystal came over to look at it.
"Have you ever tried to move it a different way?" she pushed Gary out of the way and fiddle with the stone. She spent a couple of minutes and then she pushed down on it. A small buzzing noise was heard and then a click. Suddenly the wall began to vibrate and then it slowly slid out of its place. Everyone stood back, and watched as it moved and revealed another path, long metal sheets filed along as a makeshift walkway.
"Well," Crystal said, "it looks like we're not the only ones that know about this place." She began to walk slowly down the seemingly small path the others followed along. They were walking for about ten minutes until they finally came to a large door. Brock pulled on the handle.
"Locked."
"Great!" Duplica said as she slumped down on the floor. "All this way for a locked door. That was pointless." Ditto slowly made its way over to her feet.
"Ditto." It said as it laid a small jelly like hand on her shin.
"Hey, Duplica." Crystal called over to her. Duplica lifted her head out of her palms. "Couldn't you're Ditto transform into a key and open the door for us."
"Yeah. I think it could." she said as she picked up the small amoeba body. "Do you think you could help us now Ditto?"
"Dit dit Ditto!" it said as its body glowed. The light slowly changed shape and shrunk. When the light was gone a small key lay on the floor. Duplica picked it up and handed it to Brock. He put the small key into the lock and tried to turn it, but the key was the wrong shape.
"It doesn't fit." He said to Duplica. "Get your Ditto to change shape until it does." Duplica nodded.
"Ditto, transform." The Ditto changed shape again and moulded itself until it fit the lock. It hardened again and Brock turned the, now key shaped, Ditto. There was a small click and the door began to open. Brock quickly took the key out of the lock and handed it to Duplica, it quickly dissolved and formed into a Ditto again. The door swung right open and the group started through into the darkness that lay ahead.
Misty lay in a corner. She had managed to drag herself across the floor. It wasn't rough stone, well not that rough. She had a few grazes on her knees and up her legs, nothing that wouldn't heal. But, still she couldn't feel one leg. Her arms were tired and her muscles ached. She tried to take in breath slowly and quietly, but she needed the air quicker than her lungs would allow.
She heard the footsteps again. For a minute she had thought whoever it was had left, but they must have been tracking her. She tried to remember how all this had started. She remembered the dreams, and falling unconscious, then running away from Ash's house. Then where had she gone? She thought for a few seconds.
The secret area.
She had gone there to find Ash. But he wasn't there. Then someone had snuck up on her, a man. But he was no ordinary human. He had used a very powerful psychic attack on her.
"Just like in my dreams." Misty said quietly as she realised the truth. "No." she was beginning to think that she could see the future in her dreams. After all, what she had seen in her dreams had almost all came true.
"Yes," a low voice said from in front of her, "you have a very powerful gift." Gift? What gift? "You know what I'm talking about." The voice said, quietly and in some strange way, dangerously. "The ability to see things before they happen. Like the so-called power cut at Ash Ketchums house." Ash.
"How do you know his name?" Misty demanded.
"I know more than that." The tall man sneered.
"And what of this gift?" Misty called out. "I don't want it. Why was I given it? Why?" Questions were burning on the tip of Misty's brain. She had to find out more about this so-called gift and this dark mysterious figure that had watched her ever so closely, just to kidnap her. "And why do you want me? What good can I possible do for you?" The tall man laughed. But, it was not a laugh of joy; it had a more mocking tone in it.
"You'll soon see." He said. "You'll soon see." He raised his hand and bars seemed to rise out of the ground. Misty tried to run forward, but her leg was still numb. The bars were ten maybe fifteen feet high, and surrounded her.
"Why are you keeping me prisoner? What have I done?" tears were about ready to fall from her eyes. She tried not to think of them. The man didn't answer; instead a large black cloak suddenly became visible around him, covering his entire body.
"I have no time to answer your puny questions." He slowly began to walk off in the other direction and a large door appeared out of nowhere. "I need to go and banish some intruders. You might want to try and say goodbye to them in your own mind, I think you might know them." Ash's, Brock's, Crystal's, and Duplica's faces suddenly rose out of nowhere.
"No!" Misty cried. "Please don't hurt them, please." But it was no use. The man was gone. Misty let the tears fall now, even if she hadn't let them she had no choice, they fell freely.
She thought for a couple of seconds. 'What are you doing!?!' her mind voice demanded. 'Why aren't you trying to get out? He hasn't done anything yet. There still might be a way to stop him!' Misty looked up. The tears had stopped falling, but her eyes still glistened.
"Yes, there is still time." She said. The words brought confidence to her. She closed her eyes, and focused on her leg. She imagined it healing, and seen herself walking and running again. A small sensation of pain rose in her leg, almost causing her to lose focus. 'No! Don't quit now! Think of your friends, they need your help!' she held back the urge to scream and thought of how good it was to walk. The pain increased, but Misty hardly felt anything. She knew her friends depended on her, and she knew she was going to help them no matter what.
"Where are we going?" Gary moaned. He had tripped over various objects as they walked down the dark tunnel. "And doesn't any body have a light?" Crystal scowled. He had been moaning all day. She had forgotten how much she hated him.
"Will you ever shut up?" She asked in an angry tone. Brock sighed, not another fight. That's all the group had done since they all met up. He put a hand to his forehead.
"I'll shut up when we get out of here!" Gary snapped back at her.
"Yeah right. All you've done is moan about something for the past hour. 'I stubbed my toe, I hurt my finger. Oh boohoo won't somebody help me before I fall over and die from the pain.' Why did you even bother to come along anyway?" Crystal walked around the group impersonating Gary as she did so. Gary was getting real mad. He hated it when people done impressions of him.
"Oh well you're one to talk." He sneered at her. "Where were you when Misty disappeared?" he demanded.
"How can you blame me for not being there, when you weren't there yourself!?!" they continued to fling insults at each other. Pikachu couldn't take it anymore, and began to work up electricity in his cheeks.
"Pika!" he said quietly but in a very angry and dangerous tone. Duplica was walking next to the small mouse type Pokémon.
"Eh, Ash?" she said carefully.
"Not now Duplica." he said as he clutched at his ears to try and block out the argument between the other two.
"Ash?" she repeated, more insistent. She looked at Pikachu. More electricity was sparking from his cheeks. "Ash? You might want to calm Pikachu down a bit."
"Not now!" he said again.
"Pika!" Pikachu said again.
"ASH!" Duplica screamed at him.
"WHAT?" he yelled just as loud as she had. She pointed at Pikachu before calling for Ditto.
"Ditto transform." The small Ditto transformed into a shield that surrounded Duplica's body. Pikachu's eyes began to glow with all the electricity in its small body.
"Pikachu?" Ash asked quietly before he took cover behind a rock, he pulled Brock back as he went to the ground.
"PIKACHU!!!!!!" the small pokemon yelled as electricity sprung out of its cheeks, heading straight for Gary and Crystal. They had time to look at it coming before it hit them. Both of them fell down to the ground with the charge. A few seconds later the tunnel plunged into darkness once again.
"That's enough light now." Gary mumbled, then his head fell to the ground. Crystal lay a couple of meters away shaking her head to try and clear it.
"Wow Pikachu. You'd make a good car battery." She slowly stood up and held onto a rock in the wall for support. She looked over and seen Gary, her breath escaped her lungs in a quick gasp. "Will he be al…I mean at least he won't be able to annoy anyone now." She laughed quietly and then slowly went to the back of the small group. Brock took a Pokéball from his belt and threw it into the air.
"Geodude! I choose you!" he called as the Pokéball turned and twisted through the fall. It hit the ground and a red light emitted from it, it changed into a large rock with two stony arms coming from either side of it. "Geodude, pick up Gary and bring him with us." He ordered it.
"Geo." The Pokémon said before taking Gary in its strong arms and carrying him beside the group. For the longest time since the group had started down the tunnel there was silence. They continued into the tunnel and as they did it seemed to get darker, if that was possible. It got so dark that they couldn't even see there own hands in front of their faces.
"Pikachu!" Ash called out to his Pokémon.
"Pi?" it answered.
"Use flash to light the way." Pikachu nodded and ran slightly in front of the group. It began to gather more electricity and then emitted a bright light. It took a few seconds for everyone eyes to get used to the light, but once their eyes had adjusted, they were fine. The group continued on their way.
Ahead of them they could see a large building. Ash knew Misty was there. He didn't know how he knew but he did.
"Come on. She's in there." He said as he pointed at the building. He began to run towards it but before he could get there a large dark shape appeared out of nowhere and knocked him backwards. He felt his breath leave him as he hit a boulder and he gasped for air. Brock, Duplica, Gary and Crystal ran over to help him. While Pikachu searched for what had hurt his master and friend.
"Hey Ash!" Brock called as he knelt down beside him. "You ok man?" Brock helped Ash sit up as Ash began to breathe more easily. He coughed a few times.
"Yeah." He said as he motioned with his hands. "Where's Pikachu?" he asked. "Find him." Duplica and Crystal nodded before running off in the direction that Pikachu's voice was coming from. Brock and Gary helped Ash to his feet and supported him as he walked. "WE need to catch up with them." Ash said weakly. "Pikachu and Misty are there." Ash closed his eyes for a few seconds. When he opened them it was dark again, Pikachu had long since gone. The three of them walked on blindly.
Misty stood up. "It worked!" she called out happily. Then she rethought about what she had just done. "How did it work?" she asked herself. She had completely healed her leg, or at least healed it enough to get up. She tried walking, and it felt fine. 'Right!' she thought. "Now all I have to do is get out of these bars." She walked up to them and closed her eyes again. She saw the bars bending and twisting, then eventually breaking. She focused her energy on them and she felt them begin to heat up underneath her hands. She was tempted to pull her hands away, but forced them to get used to the heat. Then there was a loud snapping noise and Misty fell backwards. She opened her eyes and looked at the bits of bars in her hands. "I done it!" she called out. Her voice echoed around the room.
"Misty?" a female voice called out. She knew that voice, she hadn't heard it in a while, but she knew it.
"Crystal?" she called out happily as she looked around. "Crystal is that you?"
"Pikachu!" Pikachu screamed as he let out an electrifying jolt of electricity, lighting up the room once more. Misty looked over and recognised two of her friends.
"Hey." She called. "Over here!" they looked around and then ran over to the make shift cage.
"How'd you get in there?" Duplica asked as she walked round inspecting it. She came to the bits that were missing. "Where'd the rest of it go?" she looked at Misty, and realised she was holding bits of the bars. "Wow! How'd you break it?"
"Hey, too many questions at once." Misty said. "One, a weird man put me in this cage, two, the rest of it is in here, and three, I don't know how I broke it." She threw the pieces down and they hit the ground with a clang. "You need to get me out of here guys. Before he comes back." Misty looked around.
"Before who comes back?" Crystal asked her, a bit confused.
"That weird man. He wore just a long black cloak and had a low mysterious voice. He said something about me having a gift. Then he left. He was coming to get you. Oh my God, are Ash and Brock ok?" her voice was thick with concern.
"Yeah, well Brock's fine. But Ash got knocked pretty bad." Crystal told her.
"What? What hit him?" Misty was almost screaming.
"Woah calm down. Lover boy's fine." Duplica joked from behind, as she used the small saw in her hands to cut through the bar.
"What do you mean by that?" Misty demanded, then she looked at Duplica. "Where'd you get that from?" Misty asked. Duplica didn't need to answer, as a small voice came out of nowhere.
"Ditto!" it said and then Duplica got back to work.
"Shh. Ditto. If you ever want me to finish you have to keep still." The saw was silent as it cut through the bars. "Anyway, Brock and Gary will look after him. He'll be fine. They'll be here soon."
"GARY!?!" Misty screamed. "What is Gary doing here?"
"Oh, he tagged along when we were looking for Ash." Duplica told her. "Me and Brock met up with him, and I kinda made him uh cry a little." Misty laughed as quietly as she could.
"You made Gary cry! How'd you manage that?" Misty could hardly control her laughter.
"Oh, I just said some things, got him angry, made him sad and then left him alone. He caught up with us a few minutes later and begged to come along." The room plunged into darkness again.
"Pikachu, use flash to light up the room." Misty commanded him, he nodded and then let out more electricity. The three of them could feel the force of it in the air, but Pikachu didn't notice. There was a small clanging noise as the Ditto/saw broke through the metal.
"Ha, no metal can stop Ditto and me!" Duplica called out triumphantly. She put Ditto on the floor and it dissolved back into a small pink blob and bounced its way over to Pikachu. They started talking, but no one really paid any attention to them, they were too busy helping Misty out of the hole Duplica and Ditto had cut. They got Misty out and she brushed herself off.
"Let's get out of here," she said as she began to walk in the direction Crystal and Duplica had come from. They got into the tunnel just as Gary and Brock were coming round the corner. "Where's Ash?" Misty asked as soon as she had seen them.
"Right here," Ash's familiar voice called out from round the corner. He was limping slightly and he had a large purple bruise above his right temple. Misty ran forward and tried to help him.
"Why aren't you guys helping him?" Crystal shouted at them.
"He didn't want our help." Brock told her as he stepped back. Even though she was smaller than him, he knew she could still pack a powerful punch.
"So. You still should have helped." She argued.
"Well if he doesn't want help, who are we to give it to him?" Gary said, in his usual obnoxious tone. He shrugged and walked off. Crystal stalked after him; she stood in front of him and wouldn't let him past. "Will you move?" he said to her, trying to side step around her. She moved to block his path again.
"Why are you always so self-centred?" she shouted at him. He shrugged once again and smiled slightly.
"I dunno. Must be in my genes." Pichuu burst out of its Pokeball and ran over to him and pulled on the bottom of his jeans leg.
"Pi?" it asked.
"Not them jeans, 'genes' you stupid Pokémon." He laughed quietly and bent down to pat the small Pokémon on the head, Crystal glared at him.
"Leave him alone!" she shouted at him, the small Pokémon smiled as Gary scratched behind its ear.
"Ha," Gary snarled, "even your Pokémon don't want to be with you! See no body likes you!" Crystal started forward; she picked up her Pokémon and held it close to her.
"Well…I…ah…" she tried to think of a good enough thing to shout at him.
"Ha! You can't beat me! Na na na na na!" Gary taunted. The small Pichuu cried quietly and clutched its small head from all the shouting. Crystal kicked Gary's leg and went to walk off. He grabbed her arm and threw her out of the way. She gained her balance and handed Pichuu to Brock.
"Watch over him please." She said as she put the rest of her Pokéballs down beside him. She took a deep breath and literally flung herself at Gary. She caught him off guard and he turned round just in time to meet her fist coming flying at his left shoulder. He didn't have time to bring out a Pokémon so he tried to move. Her fist hit him square on the top of his shoulder. He moved out of the way and threw a Pokéball into the air.
"Pokéball, go!" he cried as a bright red light lit up the tunnel for a second. Misty watched from the sidelines. She sighed,
"Will they ever stop fighting?" she asked no one. Brock came over to her and Ash with Crystal's Pokémon and Pokéballs.
"Kinda reminds me of you two." He said as he sat down on a nearby rock. Misty looked at Ash. "You know always fighting but deep down a loving bond connects both of you to the other being."
"What' d ya mean?" she demanded as she stood up. Ash let his breath out in a low hiss as Misty kicked his leg as she headed off towards Brock.
"Whoa! Calm it Misty!" Brock tried to calm her down as she stormed over in his direction. Suddenly a large electric shock filled the room. Everybody stopped fighting and Ash turned to Pikachu.
"Pi," it said innocently, it tilted its head in the direction of Pichuu.
"Pichuu?" Crystal asked as she walked over to him.
"Chu!" he said. "Pi, pi, pi Pichuu!" it jumped out of her arms and ran over to a Jolteon. It hissed loudly at the small Pokémon, and the spikes on its back crackled with electricity.
"Wow, a Jolteon!" Gary said as he grabbed a pokeball. "Eevee attack!" he called out to the small Eevee he had brought out earlier. It nodded and ran in front of its trainer. The Jolteon and Eevee both growled quietly at each other. Then, both of them refused to fight and the Jolteon started to glow and shimmer. It grew smaller and soon was no more than just a small pink glob. "A Ditto?" Gary asked confused, then he remembered who else was travelling with them. "Duplica." He said quietly.
"Hey, you finally guessed!" she jumped out from behind a rock. "Well, I would have expected Misty or Brock to guess as they are the smartest out of you lot, but, at least somebody worked it out." She sat on the rock and held out her arms, the small blobish Pokémon leaped into the air and landed safely in her arms.
"Ditto dits!" it cried happily. It bounced over towards the rock, which Duplica sat on, it raised its small arms and Duplica picked it up. It sat happily on her knee and waited for her to move. She got up and walked over to Ash and Brock, her Ditto holding gently onto her shoulder.
"So how's Ashy-Boy?" she asked Ash as she almost stood on his leg.
"I'm fine," he answered quietly as he nursed his ankle where Misty had kicked him, "and don't call me Ashy-Boy!" Duplica laughed.
"Aw come on, lighten up!" she walked over to Crystal and petted her Pichuu. "He's just so sweet!" she said as Pichuu tilted his head as Duplica scratched his neck. Crystal picked up the rest of her Pokéballs and clipped them onto her belt. Misty stood in the middle of the group.
"Hey guys, let's get outta here!" she said as she looked around the large cave. "I don't like being this close to that…place…that weird guy has made." She shivered slightly and walked in the direction Ash, Brock and Gary had come from. The rest were soon to follow, they got further down the tunnel when a strong gust of wind blew. Crystal shivered,
"What is that?" she asked as she held Pichuu closer as he began to shiver. "How can you get wind in such a closed off area?" She walked faster to keep up with the group.
"I really don't like this." Duplica said as she walked up to the front of the group where Misty was jogging faster and faster with every step. "Woah. Misty calm down. We'll get out without that guy catching up with us." She stepped over a small rock that lay on the bumpy ground. "And when we do, he'll never be able to find us. I promise you." Duplica grabbed Misty's elbow and stopped her.
"And how will we lose him?" Misty almost shouted at her. Duplica took a step back. "He managed to find me when I didn't even know I had this power. So how can I hide from him now?" Ash came half jogging, half limping up beside them.
"What power?" he asked but they ignored him. he slowed down again as the pain in his ankle began to worsen. Brock took his arm and helped him along. "What power is she talking about Brock?" he asked, Brock shook his head.
"I don't know, why don't you ask Crystal?" he suggested. "After all she went with Pikachu and Duplica to finds Misty." They slowed down and waited for Crystal to catch up with them.
"Hey Crystal?" Ash called as she almost ran right past them, she slowed down slightly.
"Yeah?" she asked as she tried to pick up the same pace as they were going at.
"What is Misty talking about a 'power' she has?"
"I don't know exactly what she means, but when we found her she was in a cage and she had pieces of the metal bars in her hands." Crystal fell back suddenly to avoid running into a large boulder that appeared out of nowhere to block their path. "Where'd that come from?" she shouted as she picked up her pace. She looked back at Ash and Brock, "Come on you guys, we need to get out of here!" she called to them.
"I can't go any faster," Ash complained, "my ankle is really sore to walk on." Crystal turned round to see the rest of the group standing still.
"What are we waiting for?" she yelled at them as she made her way to the front of the group. She was confronted by a large wall of boulders and rocks. "What?"
"Onix go!" Brock called from behind the group, a familiar red and white Pokéball flew to the front of the group and opened in mid flight. Onix took the place of the red light in seconds. "Onix move these boulders!" Brock ordered the large Pokémon. It nodded slightly then let out a loud cry and head butted the wall. The rocks slowly began to shift, and soon there were holes in the wall. Ash limped forward and took a Pokéball from his waist.
"Bulbasaur go!" he called out weakly, Misty turned and looked at him worriedly. He met her gaze and she blushed and turned back in the direction of the rock wall and Onix, who was desperately hitting it with all its might. Bulbasaur's small form sat infront of the large, powerful Onix and looked incredibly insignificant. Gary laughed a single noise.
"How is that going to help us?" he asked. Crystal turned and glared at him. "It's tiny! And not to mention useless." Ash ignored his taunts, if he let them get to him, they may never get out. The thought of leaving Gary inside the cave crossed Ash's mind, but he dismissed it.
"Bulbasaur, lift up and move the rocks with your vine whip!" he commanded the grass type Pokémon. It uttered a small 'bulba' before starting its chore. It picked up a couple of rocks at a time and threw them to the side. Soon there was only a few rocks left and Onix helped pick up the remains. The small group was on its way again.
Misty climbed out into the small sanctuary she had built with Ash and Brock and ran straight past all the artificial sites they had made, and headed straight towards the exit. She climbed out but soon ran back in. She grabbed the door and threw it shut.
"He's out there!" she said as quietly but as clearly as she could. "Quick, we need to find another exit!" she dashed to the back of the group, confusing Ash and Brock who were just coming out of the tunnel.
"Where are you going now?" Brock asked moving out of her way.
"He's here." She said as she ran frantically past him. "We need to get out of here!" she took a Pokéball from her belt and threw it in front of her. "Staryu go!" Misty ran to the Pokémon when it took shape, she stopped a few feet from it.
"Psy." It muttered holding its head.
"Not you Psyduck!" she called as she summoned the Pokémon back and threw another Pokéball, this time Staryu appeared and took up a battling position. "Staryu, use your water gun to wear away that wall there." She pointed and pulled another Pokéball from her waist. "Starmie, help it." Both of the star shaped Pokémon aimed their powerful attacks at the wall and soon it was reduced to mud.
"My turn!" Gary called out as he threw his Pokéball to the ground. "Eevee tackle attack the plastic barricades."
"Ee!" the Pokémon obliged and started to charge. Soon they were able to get through to the outside again, they hit the road and instantly started to run. They made it back to Ash's house and locked the doors, and closed all the windows. Ash hissed as Gary kicked his ankle on they way past him and he fell down onto the couch. Misty, Brock and Duplica rushed over. He told them to leave him alone and that he was fine but they refused. Crystal came back into the room with an ice pack from the freezer and placed it over Ash's ankle, he tried to pull away but Brock held his ankle still. Suddenly the lights flickered, went out and came back on a few seconds later.
"He's close." Misty said as she looked out of the window, she seen the dark shadowy figure coming down the road. She turned back round and suddenly thought of something. "He only wants me, doesn't he?" Nobody answered so she sat down on the windowsill and waited for someone to notice her, out of the corner of her eye she could see the dark, almost glowing, figure slowly making its way down the paved street. A car suddenly pulled into a driveway and the shadow seemed to disappear in the light, but when the light was gone, the shadow was back. Crystal looked over at Misty, and decided she had better help her before she done anything stupid.
'Like climbing out of that window.' Crystal thought to herself as she shook her head.
"That would be something Misty… She looked over to the windowsill and seen the open window. "Has done!" she ran over to the window and stuck her head out, Misty was walking across the front garden towards the shadow, it looked like it was holding out a hand for her to take. Then the shadow gained a shape; it started to take the form of a human, then it seemed like it shrunk a couple of inches. Misty still walked towards it and Crystal decided this would be a good time to get her back. She threw a Pokéball into the air and the majestic Pideotto flew high into the sky. Both Misty and the shadow, now person in shape, looked up at it.
"Pideo!" it called out in a shrill tone.
"Pideotto, dive at Misty, pick her up and bring her back." Crystal commanded it. It immediately obeyed and dived at the two figures in the street. It got within three feet and suddenly fell to the ground, it twitched slightly then was still, Crystal's mouth lay open, she couldn't believe it, nothing had happened to it, what was wrong?
"Pideotto?" she called out, nothing. She jumped out of the window and ran to it. "Pideotto!" she called its name as she ran, but she did not make it. A sharp pain suddenly rose in her stomach and she was paralysed with pain and fear. She was struggling as best she could, but it was too painful. She cried out in pain and was thrown back against the wall of the house.
The others heard the sickening thud of her body against the cold, hard bricks and Brock, Duplica and Gary all ran to the window. The searched the garden and seen Misty taking hold of the dark shapes hand.
"What's she doing?" Duplica asked, there was no response. Then the three of them saw Crystal's limp body.
"Chrys!" Gary called out as he pushed his way past Brock and Duplica to get out of the window. As soon as his feet touched the ground he started to run and he was beside Crystal's form in seconds. He bent down and slid his arm underneath her shoulders and lifted her head. "Chrys, Chrys are you ok?" Brock and Duplica ran over to them and knelt down beside Gary. "I'll wake her," he said as he turned to face them. "You two go stop Misty." They all turned and looked to where Misty was standing a few seconds ago, she was gone. Their eyes searched the street and seen both figures walking down the sidewalk. Brock and Duplica nodded.
"Right!" they said in unison as they got up and started to go across the garden.
"Wait," Brock stuck out his arm in front of Duplica to stop her.
"What?" she roughly shouted. "They're getting away!" Brock looked back towards Crystal and seen a Pideotto lying on the grass in front of them. "Brock, what is it!?!" she was about to push past his arm and continue going, but he started talking again.
"Well, think about it…" he started.
"We don't have time for a lecture!" Duplica shouted at him again.
"Just listen!" he said in a firm tone. Duplica stopped trying to push past and stood still, but impatiently tapped her foot on the ground. "Crystal seen Misty and that shadow guy outside right. So she released her Pideotto to get him, we heard her commanding it to attack and retrieve Misty, right?" Duplica nodded. "The Pideotto's down and Crystal was flung against the wall, but no more commands were shouted for any more Pokémon."
"So what happened to them?" Duplica asked, she looked around for tracks of any kind, but found none.
"I don't know, but we had better be careful." He started to walk over to the small wall that signalled the end of the garden, he ducked down and crawled on his hands and knees till the end of that, then he climbed the fence into the next garden and followed the same procedure for that. Duplica followed along using his example and soon they were within a couple of metres of Misty.
"What now?" Duplica whispered as they tried to keep close but not be seen or heard.
"We had better not show ourselves, but we need to get through to Misty somehow." He sat still and thought about it for a few seconds, Duplica suddenly hit his back. "Ahh! What was that for?" he asked her rubbing his back where she had hit it.
"I think I know what we can do." She pulled a Pokéball from her waist and rolled it onto the grass, a small pink blob came out.
"Ditto." It said quietly as it yawned and rubbed its eye.
"Sorry for waking you Ditto." Duplica said. "But I need you to help us. Can you remember exactly what Togepi looks like, every single marking?" she looked at the small blob as it thought for a second.
"Ditto!" it said happily and nodded.
"Good. Can you change into it then?" it nodded again and began to change. Brock leant over and whispered to Duplica as the Ditto changed silently.
"So what's your plan?" he asked.
"You'll see." She said, as usual she was keeping secrets from everyone. The, now Togepi, waddled over to Brock and Duplica and called out as quietly as it could.
"Togi, togi pri!" it waved its small arms in the air.
"Good, you look just like her." she patted it on the head. "Now, here's what you're gonna do…"
Misty walked along beside the large shadowy man, looking in every direction, taking in everything, but taking in nothing. She stopped suddenly and whipped her head around; running across the grass was Togepi.
"Togepi!" she screamed as she saw the large Vulpix chasing after it, throwing deadly flamethrower attacks at it, but, luckily, missing it by a few inches. The small egg Pokémon fell and rolled out of the way just in time to avoid a deadly fire blast assault.
"Pri!" it cried out defenceless as it rolled down a small hill in the direction of Ash's house. Misty chased after it quickly, she fumbled for one of her Pokéballs, but found nothing on her waist; she thought back and remembered leaving them on the couch beside Ash. She ran faster as the Vulpix head butted the small egg, sending it flying into a fence. It got up quickly and ran underneath the fence and into a small hole in the tree that was situated in the garden. The Vulpix jumped over the fence and landed with a yelp as it twisted its ankle, but soon got up and ran over to the tree and stuck its paw inside, it tried to grasp the egg but after a few tries it gave up and limped away.
Misty ran over to the tree and skidded to a halt. She bent down to look in the small hole, and she could see the outline of the egg. She reached a hand in and tried to pick her up.
"Togepi. It's me, it's Misty. Please come out." She tried to get hold of the small Pokémon and was absorbed in getting it out that she never noticed the two figures that snuck up behind her. One suddenly pounced on her and the other grabbed her arms. "What!?! What's going on!?! Let me go!" she struggled and one of the figures started to laugh. "Wha…Duplica?" the female voice laughed even louder.
"You look like a stranded Magikarp." She laughed some more. Brock struggling to keep hold of Misty himself while she was trying to get out of their grip and Duplica was, literally, rolling around with laughter.
"Hey, Duplica, a little help here." Brock hit her on the head with one hand and she fell backwards.
"Hey!" she rubbed the back of her head and instantly stopped laughing. "Ok. Ditto transform into a net!" she summoned on the Pokémon and Togepi came out of the hole.
"Togepi!" Misty yelled.
"Sorry Mist. Not this time." Duplica said as the egg suddenly began to glow and change shape. It changed into a Ditto and then into a large net that wrapped itself around Misty.
"Let me go!" she screamed as Brock and Duplica held her firmly on the ground. Her arm flew out from her side and almost hit Duplica right in the face, Brock caught her arm at the last moment and took her other arm and held them both securely.
"Quick!" he said. "Tie that rope round her and lets get outta here!" Duplica nodded and quickly tied Misty's hands and feet together. Then they carried her back to the house.
Duplica threw open the front door to Ash's house and ran inside, Brock was a few seconds behind her, carrying Misty in his arms. He lay her down on the chair, as Chrys was on the couch, and checked she was ok. Ash limped over to where Misty was a picked up her hand; he brought it close to his face and kissed it gently.
"Why did she run off?" he asked Brock. He shrugged his shoulders and Ash looked at Misty, she just lay there, breathing in and then exhaling. He thought her eyes opened, but he was just seeing things. The lights flickered again and Ash's eyes darted around the room.
"He's not getting her!" he called out desperately. Hoping that the shadow would not find its way into his house, but it was too late, it was already here…
Right. Sorry again about the lenght of the fic. But i couldn't decide where to cut it off and this is a good enough place as any.
The next part should be the last, (unless I decide to write a sequel kind of thing) and you'll have to excuse me for not getting them all done quicker.
Also for anyone who's interested in my Star Wars fics, I should hopefully have the next one finished soon, hopefully.
Please be a responsible and kind reader and review my fic. Please.
And until the next one, chow for now!
Cerasi