The True Test
AAMRN
Dreamer

Characters
Misty: 17
Ash: 16
Mysterious Woman: ?

Editors Note: I do not own any of the characters or anything pokemon related. Everything related to Misty is in red. Everything related to Ash is in blue. Everything related to the Mysterious Woman (MW) is in green. This fan-fic is not rated.

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I'm wearing blue jean shorts and a turquoise t-shirt. My hair is wet and out of a pony tail. It's pouring and there is thunder above my head. I'm barefooted and the ground seems peculiarly dry and soft. I walk through a forest and come to a clearing. I see a woman with a long robe with a sword in one hand leaning over a body, a limp body. I notice black hair and sift brown eyes staring at me. They are crying. They are pleading for help. I turn around quickly and run away from the clearing. I'm running as fast as I can but it seems i move only inches by inches. I see a cliff with an ocean beyond it. Safety. As I reach the edge and get ready to jump to safety the sun rises and light hits my face. I jump. "My name is Manquila."

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I'm face forward on the ground. I feel the softness of the ground under me. I'm groaning from pain. My body aches and hurts all over. I'm having a hard time breathing. I begin to notice things around me. A flash of lightning. Water beating down on my back. I look up and see red/auburn hair in the clearing. She looks dumbstruck. I then notice that I'm crying from the pain and from the lack of help. I watch her run out of the clearing afraid and I wonder if she will get help. I slowly turn myself over and she a woman with a sword pointed at me over me. I freeze in fear of being killed. I close my eyes as the blade cuts into my throat. I see Misty jumping into water and a sunrise. I feel the pressure of the blade on my throat and I hear the woman's voice. "My name is Manquila."

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      Misty and Ash both woke at the same time. They both were sweaty cold and wide awake. They couldn't remember their dreams but they knew that they were nightmares.
      She hurriedly put on a pair of shorts and a t-shirt while looking at the clock. 6:30 a.m.
She combed her hair and put it into a pony tail and slipped on her sneakers. She put on her belt and grabbed her bag on the way out. She ran down the hotel stairs and waited at the reception counter for Ash.
      He got out of bed quietly trying not to wake pikachu. He was half dressed so he put on his jacket, cap, and shoes. He grabbed his belt an d bag on the way out in fear of being late. he was buckling his belt when he reached the bottom of the stairs and ran down the hall way and caught Misty at the same time.
      They walked together into the restaurant to find a booth. They sat down and ordered o.j. and milk while they talked.
      "Thank you," she said as the waiter walked away.
      "So, how did we end up doing practically the same thing at the same time?" he questioned fate more than her questioned Misty.
      "I don't know but that dream I had was horrible. Yet I can't remember it exactly" she explained ,"All I know was I was in a forest and there was a bad storm."
      "The same here."
      They finished their breakfast in silence. They then headed out into the streets like always.
      "Shall we go for a walk. Maybe we can find out some more details and clues." she asked.
      "Sure."
      They walked until they found a small park by the looming forest near by.
      "It is so confusing. I barely remember anything. It was a warning for sure." She questioned herself.
      "I have no idea. Maybe we can go to the forest and look for clues." he suggested.
      "Are you out of your mind! That was the setting of the dreams. If we go there we will be going into a straight trap!"
      "I happen to think it's a good idea!"
      "Do you want to get us killed!"
      "We won't get killed if we keep our wits about us!"
      "Err, Ash with your luck we will probably get lost."
      "What, I have great luck!"
      "Yeah right. Remember those times you got you, Brock, and me lost in the forest."
      "But I got us back out!!!"
      "I'm not going in there! I'm not getting killed!"
      "Fine then! Stay if you like I'm going in there with or without you!"
      "Then go! No one is making you stay! I don't care if you get killed. I'm leaving."
      With that the run off in separate directions. Misty south towards the city and Ash north into the forest.

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Err... I hate him. He's such a jerk. He's stubborn as ever too. But I wish he didn't go in there... He's my best friend. We were supposed to come here for a vacation... Sounds more like a mystery to me. Oh I feel so bad for leaving him like that. Why do we always have to get into fights? He's my best friend but he means lots more to me just as well. If he gets killed I'll never be able to tell him. The longer I wait the more I love him and the worse it gets. Why me?

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Why can't she just once go with me. I only wanted to go in here to find answers. It's no use going in here without her. The whole purpose was for us to figure out the dream. I hate getting mad at her. The bad thing is it's the only way to hid my feelings. I love her so much. It gets worse every day. Brock and Tracy have told me so. If she's right about me getting killed. I will kill myself in my death for letting her down.

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As Misty walks silently into the city trapped in her own thoughts she runs into a stranger. She tries to say sorry but she watches as the stranger growls at her and glares down. The stranger she noticed was a woman. And she was running to the park. She pushed it away and walked down a strip mall. She saw a small store and peered inside. She saw what she would never want to see. Knowing this she ran out of the strip mall and headed to the hotel. She opened her door quickly and saw her stuff gone. She cursed and grabbed her long sword. She ran out of the hotel and ran outside to find that she became quickly lost. Again she cursed and ran down an alley looking for someone who knew the place....

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As Ash walked to a gap into the forest where he could enter he continued thinking about his fate. He took a quick breath and plunged into the forest. Before he entered he saw a woman about 20 running down the nearby street and disappeared from sight. He shrugged it off. He continued through the forest and found the ground was quite soft. He felt he knew this from somewhere. He thought of it as another excuse and continued into the forest. He then finds a clearing and enters it without thinking. He meet the woman he saw before....

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She ran and found someone who directed her to the park. She ran as fast as she could. She knew to head south so she ran straight head way out of the city and to the middle of the park. She sighed and jumped into the forest for search of Ash.

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      "Who the heck are you!?!" Ash questioned
      "That you will find out later.. Right now I have to ask you something. Are you afraid of death?" MW replied.
      "What do you mean afraid of death? I'm only afraid of death if I haven't accomplished something that I've been meaning to do..." he trailed off.
      "That red head girl.. Yes I know but that's a shame.. I really am fond of young love.. But it's to late now.. It's pay back."
      "For what.. ?!?
      "It doesn't matter any more... By the time your precious red head comes to save you. You will be dead.."
      "If it doesn't matter then why are you going to kill me?"
      "Shut up."
      He blocks his head from her as she comes hurling at him with a sword. Man.. why didn't I listen to Misty.. Now look. He blocked her again as she slashed at his arms. They began bleeding horribly. He flinched das she whacked at one of them again. His arms were now covered in blood. He stands up and dodges another blow and jumps behind. The MW had been hurled to the ground and had a slash on her face. She touched her face and looked at her fingers. She glared at him and jumped up and slashed at his hair. He flinched and saw only a few hairs were cut off. She sneered. Obviously she won't be speaking much this battle. He ducked as she swung at his neck. She had cut into his neck but it was not bad. He fought as hard as he could. But she was better. He was stained with blood. He falls to the ground face forward. He couldn't fight any more he was alive but he was weak. He looked up and saw Misty.

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      She ran and ran on the soft ground.. It can't be that far can it.. I can't give up I have to continue.. She came to a set of bushes and peered through them.. No.. please don't let me be too late.. She saw the MW getting ready to throw a dagger at Ash's out stretched body.. "NNOOO..." She ran out while the MW was throwing the dagger.. She jumped at it hit her in her arm.. it began to bleed.. She glared at the MW..
      "Misty..?"
      "Don't worry save your strength.."
      Soon.. Black clouds began to whirl in the sky... Misty smiled. MW sneered. It began to pour. Misty's clothes got wet and stuck to her. Then the thunder and lightning came. At the first flash and boom they began. They pulled out their swords and circled around the ring with the swords pointing to the middle. They ran toward each other and their swords clashed. Sparks flew and hit the ground and sizzled. They had begun. The clashed and slashed. They swung and flung. Misty was bleeding very badly but the MW was worse. She was panting and she was sitting on the ground.. Misty pointed her sword to the gap.. She obeyed..
      "My name is Manquila.."
      At that she nodded her head at Ash who had fainted and was bleeding very badly. He had been breathing hard.
      "Better tend to your boyfriend."

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      She picked Ash up and started to carry him.. We need to find shelter for the night.. She looked around until she found a river. She started to climb North until she found a waterfall.. She set Ash down and searched the waterfall and found a cave the perfect size. Then she picked him up again and set him in the cave and climbed in herself. She sat down with her legs out stretched and placed Ash's head on her lap.
      "Misty.. take this," he said in a hoarse whisper. He took a locket the shape of a heart and gave it to her. "Look at the inscription on the back also."
      "You shouldn't talk.." She took the locket and read the inscription. Together Forever. "Oh.. Ash.. I love you..."
      They kissed for quite a while. Until Misty began to cry because she could no longer tell that Ash was breathing.
      He died in my arms... He died in my arms.. Together Forever.. She set Ash up against the rock wall and leaned against his chest.. She cried and cried until she fell asleep.. She wanted so much to die in his arms that night.. He prevented that from happening.

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Misty awoke that next morning at dawn. She looked through the water and saw the sun coming up. She looked at Ash. She knew that this was a new beginning in her life.

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So how did you like it. ^.^ It's not my first but my first posted in a web-site. Please e-mail me if you have ideas and/or comments. My email is MistyDEH@aol.com