Disclaimer: I don't own any character in this story.

A/N: Thanks for all the wonderful responses and suggestions! Some of the suggestions, while I didn't take them, lead me to this solution.

Val brought up a good point in that lots of people go through air ducts to sneak into bad guy's hideouts. Any decent smart bad guy would have some kind of surveillance system on that entry point. Cameras or motion sensors. Whatever. Also, the third suggestion, while plausible, is against Ash and Brock's character and I don't want to take the too far OOC.

ipcryss said Ash should turn into a merman and have Brock command him to use water attacks to break into the lab. This was a really good idea, until I remembered something I had decided when I started making this fanfic. Ash is a merman, and while they can do pokemon attacks, can even be ordered by humans, it requires a level of trust almost no human reaches with merpeople. Even though Ash knows Brock really well, Brock just doesn't rank high enough on the trust-meter to command him. Only Misty's high enough. It's like on Pokemon Ruby or any other game. The trainer has to have the trust of his pokemon to order around really high level pokemon. It's just the same. And, like pokemon, merpeople can do attacks on their own, but it's always stronger when commanded by a trainer, or by someone they trust and love.

Ri2 gave a really well thought out plan for getting into or out of the lab that I may have used if I hadn't already scripted their escape, and they couldn't enter or leave the lab in a hail of gunfire or I'd have to totally rewrite the entire ending.

And so I came up with this solution, that while not very detailed, fits well into the entire storyline without taking Ash and Brock OOC. So thanks to everyone who reviewed, I can continue the story in a realistic and original way.

People Are Stupid

Brock stood looking at the too-small air duct by the door.

"Why don't you go through there and open the door from the other side?" he asked.

"This kind of lock will undoubtedly have a twin on the other side. I can't open it from either side without a code," Ash replied, leaning down to the floor, pressing his ear flat to the ground. Closing his eyes, he devoted all his being to listening for that pulse of life-giving water.

There.

There was a water line not too far under the flooring, the water rushing harsh and strong, furious at being caged and confined in a weakening pipe.

"I think I found a way in," Ash said, smiling from his place on the ground.

The scientists and medical doctors inside the labs were hurrying about their jobs, conducting countless tests on less than willing patients.

It was an average day. They recorded new data from their subjects after exposing them to a new set of variables. These variables differed from one subject to the next, but they were always discomforting to some degree.

They had all experienced countless days like this in the past and expected nothing new to happen today.

They were wrong.

The air duct by the laboratory entrance suddenly burst apart, water rushing in through the small opening.

An unfortunate attendant who had happened to be walking by it at the time, was thrown from his place by the violent gush of brutally surging water that was quickly flooding the medium sized lab.

It was said that a single person is smart. But people are stupid.

This saying was proven quite true as the people in the lab immediately panicked, rushing the door like a herd of stampeding Rapidash. There was a mighty struggle for someone to open the door for them to get out of the flooding lab.

With one last fight over the keypad to unlock the door, the door opened, spilling water, scientists, doctors, and attendants out into the subject cellblock.

There was a mighty scramble to get to their feet and flee the still flooding waters that was still rising.

"Okay. That was a good idea," Bock said from his place behind the large door, which was jammed open by the still rushing water and the various instruments dropped by the scientists.

"It's just like I said. Multiple people in a little place that's getting smaller always panic," Ash replied, "especially when they can't breath underwater."

The pair waded through the still rising water, looking for any indication of Misty.

There hadn't been much time since the kidnapping, so there was a good possibility that if Misty wasn't still here herself, that the information on her whereabouts wouldn't be hidden and would be relatively easy to find.

There hadn't been any flying service in this area for several weeks, and the abduction had been reported quickly enough for a barricade to have been set up which inspected all people leaving to area with anything larger than a six inch package. There was still the chance that she had been teleported out, but if that were the case there would still be information on her around here.

Looking around, Ash wondered about another door on the opposite side of the lab. This one was far less impressive, but somehow felt more important. He couldn't stop himself from reaching forward and opening the door.

A/N: It's short, I know. I'm gonna do the next chapter within a few days. Then the pace should start picking up.