The eight of them moved carefully through the forest, their four remaining Pokemon all out of their Pokeballs. Golduck ran along with them, as did Pikachu, while Dragonaire and Skarmory glided through the trees.
"Something's wrong. It's too quiet here," Misty observed, struggling to keep the worry from her voice.
"Yeah, I know. There's not a single wild Pokemon here. No bugs, not even a HootHoot or a Zubat." Ash adjusted his hat, a sign that he was getting very nervous.
"So, where is this base at, anyways?" Gloria tugged at her gloves, wanting to make sure they were secure.
"Nurse Joy said that it was in the Old Chateau at the north end of the woods," Chris reminded her as he extended his sword. He kept the sheath on, for now, though.
"Be careful. There's a large power source nearby," Pikachu called.
"The air is losing moisture, too," Golduck warned.
Ash and Misty thought back on when their knowledge of Pokemon speech had become real understanding instead of just part of their bond with their Pokemon. "I remember when I couldn't understand you at all, Pikachu. And now we can carry on conversations."
"It happens," was all Pikachu said.
"Keep focused, we're almost there," Dragonaire cautioned.
Skarmory poked up above the treeline for a moment. "I see a smokestack about 200 yards to the north."
In half that distance, they came to the edge of a clearing. Unlike the old paths through the forest, it was well kept, betraying the presence of an active base on the property.
"I'll take care of the electronic security," Pikachu whispered before he disappeared into the brush. Small zaps and pops could be heard as he overloaded the various sensors around the perimeter of the base. A few minutes later, he jumped back onto Ash's head. "Ok, we should be clear. Though they're probably already expecting us."
"There's not much that we can do about that," Ash stated calmly as they started out into the clearing, moving quickly to avoid any human spotters that might be active.
Suddenly, they were hit with a Gravity attack, pulling them all to the ground, then through the ground as a trapdoor opened beneath them. Held by the Gravity attack, not even Dragonaire or Skarmory could escape sliding down into the depths of the base. As they slid, they were separated, with branches in the metal tubes opening seemingly at random. They each landed in their own glass tube in the basement of the hideout, which resisted all of their attempts to break free, from Gloria punching and Chris slicing to Pikachu trying to zap his way free.
"Well done, Agent J. Your bait, and your plan, worked perfectly."
"Thank you, Commander Mars."
The eight of them looked at the speakers. One, Agent J, was obviously the renegade Joy, though her bright pink hair was flowing down her back instead of being held in the same position as her relatives. Meaning that the other was Commander Mars.
"Oh, we will be rewarded greatly for capturing these four. Cyrus has big plans. And don't bother trying to break out. Your cells are specially designed to keep you in."
The two of them laughed as they walked out of the room, leaving the eight of them in the dark.
"Great, this sucks," Ash whined.
"Calm down, Ash. We'll find a way out of this." Misty tried to comfort him, but it was obvious that she needed more comfort than he did.
"Hey, sorry, Misty. You're right. We'll find a way to get out. But…we've just dropped Uxie and Mesprite into their hands, the very fate that we swore we'd protect them from…"
"I know, Ash. I know." They could hear tears in Misty's voice.
"Hey, all the more reason to get out of here!" Pikachu called.
"He's right. We can find a way!" Gloria shouted, stunning the others as she resumed pounding on her cell.
"Something is bound to give out, if we don't give up," Chris said as he resumed his attacks, too. The Pokemon picked up the spirit, and attacked as well, and a faint illumination spread through the room from Pikachu's Thunder and Dragonaire's Dragonbreath.
"I feel so useless!" Ash shouted. "I just…want to…Yaaaaaa!"
The others stared as Ash yelled. The glass in front of him melted as flames spewed from his mouth. He stopped after a moment, and looked at the hole in front of him. "What…what just happened?" he asked.
"I…have no idea." Misty stared at him, her tears still glistening on her cheeks. "But could you try to do it again to get the rest of us out of here?"
"Maybe. But I don't even know how I did it."
"I think I might," Chris called.
"What are you talking about?" Gloria asked. The others waited for him to explain.
"Well, Gloria and I both have inhuman powers, mostly strength-related. Perhaps Ash has abilities like that, too."
"But, why? Why would I be able to do that?" Ash asked.
"We don't know the answer to that ourselves, Ash," Gloria told him. "Perhaps the heroes of the earth need these powers. Or it could be something else entirely."
"I don't care about that right now!" Misty shouted. "I want OUT!" As she shouted that last word, a blast of water shot from her hands. The glass, not tempered to withstand the sudden pressure, shattered, as did both Chris's and Gloria's, because she had been facing them when she shouted. "What? Don't tell me that…"
"You have powers, too, Misty." Ash ran over to her, and wrapped her in his arms. They kissed, and steam seemed to rise around them. The four of them then worked to release their Pokemon, and then headed into the depths of the hideout, to rescue the others.
"But, why?" Misty asked. "Why us?"
"Ash just asked that, Misty," Gloria reminded her.
"Hey, wait. Uxie is the Being of Knowledge or something like that, right?" Ash asked. "Maybe he knows."
"Yeah, that's a good idea. Let's ask him when we get him back!" Misty's demeanor changed, from slightly fearful to very determined.
"I love that redhead fire!" Ash shouted, his mood improving as well.
"I can see that," commented Chris. "Whereas I like what I have just fine." He wrapped Gloria in his arms and kissed her. Ash followed his lead, sweeping Misty off her feet to do so. The Pokemon just giggled.
"Alright, then let's go!" Chris and Gloria shouted.
"We've got promises to keep!" called Ash and Misty. They sprinted on through the base, looking for some sign of where their other Pokemon, or their enemies, could be…
"Yes, Cyrus, they have awakened."
"Good, Mars. All of the Ties must be either awakened or destroyed. Are the clues in place?"
"Yes. They will make their way to Mt. Coronet, don't worry."
"Good, good. Those four will be necessary for the ritual. Especially the two Dragons. J, you will continue to track them, monitor them."
"Understood, sir."
"The pieces are coming together at last…"