Taki stretched her arms and cracked the knuckles in her tired hands. She gripped the fish Pokémon tightly and began to spin with all her might. Soon, the pair became a blur, a spinning kaleidoscope of colours.

Suddenly, Taki released her grip on the Magikarp. The group stared at the now skyrocketing Pokémon, tracing its arc high above a canopy of trees in the distance.

"Taki, what the heck?" said Louis.

The Spearows were having a fantastic day. Gentle winds carried them westward toward their next stop.

Not one of them expected a Magikarp to fly like a soaring jet, bursting through their group, scattering them.

"Aah! What was that?!" a Spearow exclaimed.

"A Magikarp?!" another added.

The fish in question quickly vanished from view. The sharp eyes of a Fearow glanced downward and pinpointed three dots on the ground.

"...did they just throw that at us?" it questioned.

Then, the flock turned and followed the flying Magikarp. Whiskers flailing, the fish Pokémon's journey continued.

"Uh...should we follow that flock?" asked Louis.

Meanwhile, a fisherman sat quietly with a Meowth by his side.

"No bites today," he sighed.

Movement from above caught the Meowth's eyes. It stared up with a confused look on its face. The fisherman noticed the Pokémon's strange expression.

"What's wrong?" he questioned.

"Meowth!" replied Meowth, pointing to the sky.

The individual looked up to see a flying Magikarp being followed by a flock of Spearows. His jaw dropped.

"A flying fish!" exclaimed the fisherman.

An enormous splash erupted from the stream nearby as the Magikarp belly-flopped safely into its watery home. The cloud of birds in pursuit scattered, narrowly avoiding diving in after it.

"Wow! A rare Pokémon!" cried the fisherman.

"I'm gonna catch it!" he continued as he hastily attached a new rig to his line.

Before he could cast, the trio of adventurers caught up with the commotion.

"Wait!" called Taki. Don't catch it!"

...but it was too late.

Hook, line and sinker now flew in the direction of the splash. The Meowth quickly jumped and caught the line near the reel, stopping its trajectory.

The hook fell limp into the riverbank.

The fisherman glanced at the newcomers and realised that they had previously met.

"Hey, it's you three from before," he said.

Louis and Taki turned their heads to the fisherman, recognising him.

"Oh, hello again," replied Taki.

Before the trio reached the edge of the river, Totodile noticed that a pulsing glow emanating from Louis' pocket.

"Your chest is glowing," it said.

Louis clutched the crystal in his pocket. He pulled it out and inspected the artifact.

"The crystal," acknowledged Taki.

An irresistible force began to pull the crystal, still in Louis' clutches, towards the river.

"No no no no no no!" pleaded Louis, as he took a deep breath.

Now waist-deep in the water, the force continued pulling him in. Soon, Louis was fully submerged as the force of the crystal propelled him downward toward its goal.

Louis' fist touched the riverbed and a blinding light exploded under the surface. The riverbank occupants shielded their eyes as bubbles floated to the surface in front of them. Taki thought she could hear Louis' yells popping from the bubbles.

Until, calm returned to the surface, no bubbles nor ripples rose to meet the concerned group.

Louis suddenly emerged from the water with a sputtering sound. He took a deep breath and opened his hand.

A bright-blue shard had now fused with the crystal.

"There was one down there?" questioned Taki.

"That's the third piece!" she exclaimed.

The group's concentration broke as Totodile leapt into the air.

"Cannonball!" it cheered, landing with a playful eruption.

The water from the splash slapped Taki, drenching her.

Louis pointed and laughed, while Taki scowled.

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