Episode 10: Ocean Adventure

Lucca had never felt so anxious before. He grit his fangs and focused as he swam into the depths of the sea, only diverting his eyes for brief instances. As he passed schools of Remoraid and other water types, or odd rock formations that could hide predators, his chest swelled with worry. His concerns were unfounded, as nothing attacked them.

"Lucca!" Azu's panicked shout got his attention, making him flinch and flip around to her.. "Air? Hurry up give everyone air!"

"Ah, I—" he shuddered. Now that they stopped, he realised what he had really done. They group had followed him deep into the sea, and he had only lead them across the seafloor for a few minutes. Mimia's cheeks were red and looked to burst, while Esther was clutching his back so tightly it actually hurt.

"Esther, let go of me!" he ordered, twisting back to try and get the Pikachu to let go. Her eyes widened and she shook her head, clenching even tighter if that was possible. "Gack- I can't help you if you don't- c'mon, just let me- Azu, help?"

Azu was even more anxious than he was, and after a bit more fiddling and fighting, managed to yank Esther off his back by pulling from behind. The moment Esther came free, the Pikachu let out a gurgled breath and started to choke, but Lucca was right there for her. He put his nose to her face and blew an air bubble over her, making sure it was a little bigger than her head before pulling away.

He didn't wait for her to get over her gasping fit, he went straight to Mimia and gave him an air bubble, and then did the same for Ruby, who was oddly calm and unbothered. The Cyndaquil was clearly holding her breath, but equally nowhere near any peril like Mimia and Esther.

"What, what? What the heck is- aahhh it feels funny get it off me!" Esther squealed.

"Stop fidgeting or it'll pop! Do you want to drown?" Azu warned. That shut the Pikachu up, but she was still breathing anxiously. "Whoa, are you okay?"

"Okay? Am I okay? Gods, how can I be okay?" Esther squeaked. She twisted and hugged Azu as tightly as she did Lucca. "I'm at the bottom of the ocean. Oh my gods I'm at the bottom of the ocean! With bad guys who tried to kill me!"

"We didn't try to kill you, the knights did," Ruby objected. "And pull yourself together!"

"No no no you don't understand- I can't- I'm gonna die!" Esther cried.

"You're not going to die. None of us are going to die here!" Lucca shouted above her, silencing her. "I'm not going to let any of you drown. I'm sorry that took so long. I just wanted to make sure we were well out of range."

"I could've gone a few miles, to be fair," Ruby bragged.

"Well you're not normal," Crystal remarked. "Mr Mimia, Miss Esther, are you okay?"

"No!" Esther squealed and hugged Azu even tighter. Mimia barked at her, happily paddling up to Lucca.

"Wait a minute… Esther, can you swim?" Azu asked.

"No! Please don't let go of me I swear, please oh please oh please," Esther cried.

Azu and Lucca glanced at one another, and the former crossed her arms. "She'll sink like a stone if someone doesn't carry her. Well then? What's next on your amazing plan?"

Guilt swelled huge in Lucca's stomach. He couldn't take his eyes off them. This Azumarill was done with him and beyond, while the Pikachu was clearly restless for her life and wouldn't relax until she was out of this situation. Playing with his flippers made him feel pathetic. Pull yourself together, Lucca. You are a crown prince. You have to take charge and just do what you have to do.

Looking around, he thought they were a little above the seafloor, but there appeared to be a road laid out for them. The slightly rugged terrain and frequent masses of coral, moss, and underwater plant life told of how far from convenient this road was, but it was a road nonetheless. No sounds came from anywhere, besides the weak, sloshy current and natural bubbling. There were no barricades either, the sides simply led deeper into the sea where the water got even darker.

Behind them, he could make out the silhouette of the island where Girage Field was. Ahead was another island silhouette, although it was much further way. The water wasn't foggy, but it was dark enough to obscure much of the reefs and Pokémon beyond their outlines. It certainly was as chilly as it looked, however.

"I understand this sounds wild, but we'll keep to this level and the road. The current shouldn't send us off course," Lucca began. He turned to the distant island. "We'll head for our original goal that way."

"That's quite an alternative to a boat," Ruby commented. "Will your air bubbles even last?"

"If they don't, I'll just make more," he stated, offering a flipper out to Esther. "You'll have to trust me on this. Let me carry you, or you'll stop Azu from swimming."

"You're out of your mind," Azu said as Esther was given to him. "I can't believe I- I'm going crazy right now. Do you have any idea what you're putting us through?"

"Please Azu, let's just try, okay? We have to do this, and we have to focus," Lucca argued.

"No Lucca!" Azu cried, and he stopped. The others looked just as disoriented with him. "You made us run away from the police. They fired at us. And now we're going to swim across the freezing cold ocean for miles in hopes we don't get swept out to nowhere?"

Put into words, that swell of guilt came back in full force. He could have thrown up just trying to stay composed. If it was just me and Mimia, he wouldn't object to it. In fact, we've done long underwater travels like this before. But I didn't think about the kids with me… Can they do this?

"You need to tell us what's going on. All of it. You said you would," Azu ordered desperately.

"Is now really the time?" Lucca objected.

"We're not going to make it, Lucca. You can't expect us to blindly attempt something this perilous," Azu reasoned.

"Wait but aren't you a water type?" Ruby wondered.

"Not every water Pokémon can breathe underwater. My body's not built for swimming in the sea. If we reach a strong current, there is nothing I could do to save you," Azu explained.

"I'm an air breather, too. Think of it this way – there's a reason all of the water Pokémon here live on land," Crystal added. "We're just really good at holding our breaths."

"Ah so like me, except you can actually talk underwater," Ruby clarified.

"You… understood that," Crystal hung her head. "I'm so scared. If we mess this up, we could… we could actually—"

"We're gonna be okay!" Shelly interjected. Everyone turned to him. "We're gonna be okay if we stick to the road. I… I know we will."

"Shelly…" Crystal replied.

"Nothing's going to happen to us unless we sit here and keep arguing," Lucca added. The group gave him needy looks again, and he turned away.

"I didn't say I wasn't gonna try," Ruby stated, and he looked at her. "I meant it when I said I'd stick by you, yeah? But if we're gonna be swimming all the way to an island, you might as well take the time to tell us what the heck was goin' on back there. You got me to tell ya my story, after all."

Mimia let out a round of growls and noises too, and then began to lead the way. He almost looked leisurely as he paddled ahead, and that guilt came back.

"Not this time, buddy. You took a beating back there. Let me lead," Lucca said as he went ahead. "And… I will."

There was a long pause. He could hear everyone swishing water aside in their attempts to keep up, so he slowed down and went closer to the ocean road. That way everyone could at least walk.

"Now that I think about it, where do I even start?" Lucca cocked his head. Got to come up with something that makes sense without revealing who Alver is, or the Crystal situation.

"Just take it from the top. I want to know everything," Azu replied.

Lucca rubbed his face. That guilt wouldn't be leaving his belly anytime soon. "When the police took me away, they did it because of some wanted poster or something I had."

"Oh yeah, is no one gonna talk about how awful they made you look on that?" Ruby commented. "They didn't just make you look like a bad guy, they barely captured any of your cute features!"

"… Cute features?" Crystal said unsurely.

"Ouch. Is nothing about me cute?" Lucca joked, batting his eyelashes.

"You are rich thinking you can jest at a time like this," Azu said, unimpressed. "Don't get distracted. Girls, don't encourage him, either."

"Sorry about that. Erm… The authorities acknowledged me as a sort of leader of the Shining Warriors. We managed to come to a proposition, that we would be able to leave if we kept everything under wraps. We would go on as if I was still wanted, but the police in the city wouldn't chase us," Lucca continued. He glanced behind him at Esther, who appeared confused. "But then there was a murder in the hotel, and Esther believed it was one of us."

Esther opened her mouth to comment, but didn't say anything. He felt her grip tighten, however.

"I knew they would instantly turn against us, so I meant to rush us out of the city," he explained.

"If that was what happened, then why the heck didn't you just tell us earlier? There was literally no reason to hide the police's proposition from us!" Azu cried.

"I," Lucca gurgled a sigh. "I'd already put you through a lot with Vergrace and the situation with the Ribombee. I at least wanted to make sure you guys could have a good breakfast, and maybe look around… you know, calm down and treat Girage Field like the happy holiday you wanted to begin with."

"Aren't you and Azu the ones who wanted the holiday?" Shelly pointed out.

"Yeah. Pretty sure it's all your fault. You should've taken me instead!" Ruby added.

Lucca nervously nibbled a flipper. "But when Esther came in and started pointing claims, I panicked. I panicked and I just… said things, okay?"

"But it wasn't one of us who- I didn't even know who you were until this whole mess," Ruby stated.

"I… I'm sure it was. I thought I saw the Piplup. It was a Piplup with a bow and arrow, and you were the only one I've ever seen," Esther explained.

"You thought?" Ruby repeated.

"Me?" Crystal squeaked.

"I… I dunno anymore. It was dark and… you seemed so soulless and evil, saying all these vile things. I…" Esther shuddered.

"Why the apprehension all of a sudden?" Azu asked.

"I saw you guys on the caravan and I just… I don't wanna just say 'my bad', but it almost seems like I got the wrong Piplup? I don't even get how that's possible, but seeing you here and stuff, it almost seems like it couldn't have been you," Esther explained. "If I really am wrong, then I'm sorry. I'm really, really sorry!"

She's… quite naïve. Lucca remarked, watching Esther and Crystal. But I know what I saw. I doubt I could ever forget what I saw even if I wanted to. If she doubts it could be Crystal though, this gives me a chance.

"Then there's the mystery that the knights suddenly turned on you during that scene. They were right on your side up until that moment, as if when they realised who you were, they wanted you dead," Lucca explained. "That threw me off. I didn't mean to give you guys distrust or put you through this whole mess… but all I could think to do was to try and save everyone and escape."

"I thought the knights might side with the police, but it did seem like they were on opposite sides there," Azu put a hand to her mouth. "I don't mean to discredit you Esther, but… a Piplup with a bow and arrow is pretty specific, yet I can't bring myself to believe Crystal would do a thing like that."

"Please. I honestly don't know who you or anyone around you are. I don't have any reason to hurt any of you," Crystal pleaded.

"Wait, lots of Pokémon don't like the Shining Warriors. Could you guys have imposters?" Esther gasped. She promptly panicked and moved to cover her mouth, flinching at the feeling of the bubble.

"Would Pokémon do something like that? Just to throw us off?" Lucca asked.

"Maybe not to throw you off, but for other nasty stuff. There was once a group who pretended to be the heroes in Girage Field. They kept demanding free food and to see us perform—" Esther squealed, and then gasped again. "What if it was them again? What if they were after me for something?"

"It's a plan a criminal would come up with sure. I bet they weren't counting on the real Shining Warriors turning up and making things weird for them, though," Azu added. "This is all just conjecture. Until we see something more concrete, we're in the dark."

"Wargh!" Shelly made a gurgled squeak, making everyone spin around. He was on his backside and looked like he'd seen a ghost.

"You okay? What is it?" Lucca asked, one flipper on his sword. Shelly didn't respond. "Shelly?"

"Ah- I… s-sorry. I thought I saw something… in the dark," Shelly whimpered, playing with his paws.

"Geez, again with that. You can't go screaming at every tiny little—" Ruby rambled, only to suddenly plant her feet and turn to the side.

She wasn't the only one. Lucca tightened his gaze and gripped the hilt of one of his blades. He could hear the current changing unnaturally, as if a few Pokémon were swishing past them. He couldn't see anything besides more coral formations, however.

"Esther," Lucca began to mutter. "If I try to fight with you on my back, your bubble with pop."

"Please for the love of the gods don't let go of me," she responded, shaking her head.

"You had best hold your breath, then," he instructed.

Mimia barked and popped up beside them, offering a foot.

"That's a better idea. Let Mimia carry you," Lucca said, transferring her to the Stufful. Esther was reluctant, but hugged Mimia close.

"Just stay back and take care of her. Lucca, if any of their air bubbles pop, we'll need you to—" Azu instructed, but was silenced as their foe revealed themselves.

A small group of Wishiwashi swam a loop through the water before settling in front of the group. There were just four of them in a tight-knit formation, but they were fast and didn't float still. Even stranger, their normally blue eyes had a bright red glow, although with their tiny forms, Lucca didn't feel at all threatened.

"It's just these guys," Lucca remarked, still drawing one blade.

"A quick Flamethrower ought to deal with this," Ruby bragged.

"Underwater? I'd be impressed if that even turned into an Ember," Crystal cried, nocking an arrow. "Wa-wait a minute, an arrow wouldn't be much better."

"And Mimia's going to be slowed by the pressure," Lucca added, and then turned to Azu. "It's up to us."

"You're actually asking me to fight?" Azu replied, reluctantly taking her staff off her back.

"I owe you so much already. But please, just to protect everyone," he stated.

The Wishiwashi squeaked together, sounding almost like a siren, and then came charging as a single, coordinated unit. They were fast, but Lucca was in his element. The moment they moved, he flew forward too, and swung his tail around the smack them aside. It was as easy as brushing fur.

There's no reason to brandish a blade on every little feral, he remarked, watching them carefully. The little fish cried at him like a siren again, and then tried exactly the same attack. This time Lucca swiped them aside with a flipper, but then pointed his sword at them. "Next time's the sword. I'd think carefully if I were you."

The Wishiwashi grew quiet, and watched him and Azu carefully. Azu tightened her pose too, and brought her staff forward a bit. After a while, the Pokémon simply scattered, wailing and squeaking as they disappeared into the dark water.

"What was that all about? They were just as wimpy as all the other ferals," Ruby complained. "What a waste of time."

"Well, why wouldn't they be? They weren't a full Wishiwashi shoal, either," Azu replied. "Speaking of, we should definitely get moving in case they come back with one."

"What difference would a shoal make? Whatever that is. They're still just weak lil' things," Ruby asked.

"Trust me, you don't want to know. I know you like strength Ruby, but trust me, now is the worst time to want to tangle with a Wishiwashi shoal," Azu warned, resuming their trip.

"I'll take your word for it, at that tone," Crystal leaned back.

"But you, you did it!" Ruby cheered. She motioned to jump on Crystal, but the water slowed her too much, and she slowly flopped onto the coral instead.

"Wha-what? What'd I do?" Crystal squeaked.

"You got into a fight, and then just like, got all cool. Like yeah you couldn't actually attack, but you got an arrow ready and made 'em all scared," Ruby remarked. Everyone's eyes widened.

"But I…" Crystal hung her head.

"Just keep it like that, okay sis? One step at a time. You'll stop being scared and can fight soon," Ruby stated.

Lucca stared at Crystal's troubled look. I don't want to read into it too much… but Crystal's always got her weapon out even if she doesn't fight. This is nothing new… but let's not take this away from Ruby.

"I have a really bad feeling about this," Shelly said. A few turned to him. "Don't this seem really weird? There's this road down here goin' straight to Van Aken, just like the roads above water."

"Don't moan about convenience. I would rather not have to actually swim the whole way," Ruby replied.

"But doesn't it seem too convenient? There's not that many wild Pokémon either. Those Wishiwashi looked more dangerous than they were, too," he added.

"Shelly, you can't get scared by every little guy just 'cos they've got glowing eyes or somethin'," Ruby sighed, and then edged as close to him as her air bubble would allow. She mumbled something, and he rubbed his face. Oddly, the colour of his leaf was clear despite the water, and flashed pink slightly.

"Don't scare me, what're you talkin' about?" Esther asked.

"There's nothing to be afraid of, lass. I just find it weird that there's a road underwater," Shelly corrected himself.

"You just said you had a really bad feeling about it!" Esther cried.

Shelly scratched the back of his head. "Er, I put it the wrong way. I'm not scared or anything."

"He does have a point, though. Red-eyed monsters are never good news, and it does seem weird that there's a road underwater. I expected there to be trenches or other terrain to contend with," Lucca pointed out. "It's almost as if Pokémon actually use this road for transport."

"For transport?" Azu questioned.

"That is what this is, isn't it? The road is perfectly straight, it isn't that bumpy, and it's high enough that the surface is in sight. There aren't that many ferals, either," Lucca explained. "I just can't think what purpose an underwater road like this could be useful for, though. Pokémon that live in the sea and those that live on land don't exactly trade, and swimmers don't need roads or routes like this."

There was silence for a few seconds, and then Azu beamed up.

"Wait a minute!" Azu squeaked high pitched enough to make everyone flinch. She swam to the left edge of the road, laughing with gradual insanity. Then she swan to the right, and then spun around, admiring everything around. Each movement, she got quicker and quicker, and laughed ever louder. "Oh my gods, how didn't I figure it out sooner?"

"Azu?" Lucca said, the only one not weirded out.

"Lucca!" Azu squeaked at him, and slammed her hands on his sides so hard it hurt. "You're a genius! I could kiss you right now!"

"I… I am?" he replied, blinking blankly at her. What she just said sunk in after a moment, and he turned away to rub his nose. "Er… that…"

"Better not do that," Ruby commented.

"These are ruins of an Undine civilisation!" Azu announced. "You're exactly right, Lucca. These are Pokémon who traded and travelled with Pokémon on the land. It's written that they based their architecture off of land dwellers so that anyone could use them conveniently."

"What're Undine again? I know you said I'm half one or somethin' like that," Ruby cocked her head.

"They're an aquatic civilisation that once thrived in Heroica. They're said to be Pokémon that have awesome powers like the ability to manipulate water, and lived in perfect harmony with the element," Azu explained. Every word sounded more enthusiastic than the last, and she bounced faster that a hyperactive Cherrim. "Maybe that Wishiwashi we met was a remnant of their super-advanced magitech, constructed to guard something. It still wanders the seas today, warning what few travellers remain of greater dangers lurking here."
"Stop it! I don't wanna drown!" Esther cried.

"I don't fully get it. Normal Pokémon can't breathe underwater, so what gives?" Ruby asked.

"They could manipulate water, Ruby. So Pokémon wouldn't need to breathe underwater. They could make the sea arch around this road or something," Azu stated. "What I'm saying is, Pokémon walked along this road as if it wasn't underwater when the Undine wanted them to."

"Wait, really? That sounds amazing!" Crystal remarked, looking up and around.

"Yep! And speak of the devil, looks like the Wishiwashi was trying to warn us after all," Azu announced, pointing her staff forward.

Lucca and Mimia had stopped not far ahead, right before the very thing she pointed out. There was a strange phenomenon ahead, a section of the sea that almost looked like an illusion. The water turned black, but not in the sense that there was a black cloud dirtying the colour. The sea retained its transparency and filtered light through enough to see the surroundings, yet a black filter passed through it all. Everything ahead was rendered in black and light.

"It's like the colour's been sucked from the sea," Lucca pointed out. Mimia whined with him.

"It's called Black Water. It's what happens when Bestia is completely drained from natural water," Azu explained. "Black Water retains all the properties of water that you don't want. Water pressure, the need to swim, that sort of a thing… but it lacks everything that could be helpful."

"As if there was anything helpful about water in the first place," Ruby grumbled.

"Water's good for you to drink. Not seawater, though," Crystal happily pointed out.

"It doesn't beat juice!" Ruby objected.

"This water has absolutely no oxygen in it. If we go ahead, even me, Crystal and Lucca will have to hold our breaths," Azu stated, and the trio flinched. "Your air bubbles will likely pop, too. No oxygen, no nutrients, nothing. It doesn't even have salt in it, or a temperature."

"So we're stuck, right? We have to turn back, don't we?" Esther said. No one replied. "Oh gods, please don't tell me you guys actually wanna go in there."

"We don't have much choice. We can't go back to Girage Field. The knights will try to kill you," Lucca stated.

"If this carries on to the surface, then a ship would actually sink here, too. Think of it as totally cursed water," Azu added.

"So we couldn't even sneak around to try and grab a ship," Lucca rubbed his chin.

"Will we make it?" Shelly asked, playing with his paws.

"It depends on how long this carries on for. Which of us has the longest breath hold time?" Azu asked. There was a long pause, and everyone exchanged awkward glances with each other.

"Well uh… I guess you or Lucca," Crystal pointed at them.

"Me? A Snorlax is fitter than I am. Plus, admittedly I'm running on gas right now. I'm going to need to surface in a minute, haha," Azu rubbed her back.

Her attitude totally changed once she realised these are ruins. At least she's smiling, Lucca remarked, and glanced at her. "You've done more than enough, anyway."

"How about we don't get sappy and all just go together?" Ruby said.

"I'm just going to check how long this goes on for. If it's too long, then—" Lucca reasoned.

"Then someone's gonna drown. We've all gotta go there either way, right? Let's stop arguing about it and just go," Ruby complained. The group exchanged glances again, and shook their heads.

"She… is kind of right this time," Azu admitted.

"Please don't actually go!" Esther cried. "I-I can't. I definitely won't make it!"

"Esther, you need to not panic. Just take a deep breath and hold for as long as you can. I'll even carry you so I can swim fast. We'll be first out," Lucca explained, but she kept shaking her head. She sounded like she might cry, and clenched Mimia hard. "You have to try. You have to try your best."

"Uh uh! Dumb weird air bubble is one thing, now you're askin' me to do this? When you guys might die, too? I can't, I won't!" Esther cried.

I can't force her… what do we do about this? C'mon, think Lucca, think! The Brionne growled and rubbed his chin.

"Erm, Lucca is the only one who has used a Pokémon attack today, hasn't he?" Shelly spoke up. "Then we don't have to hold our breaths. We can just use Angel to neutralise the area."

"Holy crap, you little genius!" Ruby gasped.

"Angel, will that actually work?" Crystal asked, holding her amulet forward.

"You guys are on the right track," Angel replied. The amulet glowed with her words. "At my strength, I could neutralise the area for a grand total of five seconds. That'd be all your Bestia for the day, too."

"Well that sucks," Ruby slumped.

"But if you guys could think of a move or ability in your arsenal that could get you through, I could provide that for far longer," Angel added. "Say… Crystal using Aqua Jet to boost everybody through? Then you'd only need to hold your breaths for five seconds."

"Right. We'd be in and out of the region in a flash," Lucca cheered. "Let's give it a go!"

"E-erm… I-I don't know how to use Aqua Jet," Crystal admitted, playing with her flippers. "I never really learnt any Pokémon attacks. Suzie stopped me from learning anything combat related."

"Argh, great. You're useless!" Ruby kicked the water.

"I'd be doing it if I hadn't already used my attack for the day," Lucca said.

"Aqua Jet? I'm guessing you guys spoke to the guardian Angel again," Azu said, going quiet. She faced the black water, and then the group. "We link paws, and all shoot forward in one big Aqua Jet attack? That sounds like a wild plan that'd actually work."

"Erm, I can do it!" Shelly announced, and then shrunk when all eyes turned to him. "I-I know how to use Aqua Jet. I did it by accident once when training a few years ago… b-but I never really forgot."

"You never forgot because it's in your body. You're a Pokémon, you're all built to use your attacks and powers!" Angel remarked. "Believe in yourself and go for it."

"Okay!" Shelly chirped. "… Erm, how do we do this?"

He shifted awkwardly when Ruby huddled up to him and linked their paws. "Don't get any big ideas. Just focus on the move."

"If we all stay close enough to each other, it just might work," Lucca mumbled, huddling close, too. He took a shivering Esther from Mimia's back, letting her hug him instead. "Azu, you get Mimia. Shelly, you're small enough to hold Ruby and Crystal, right?"

"Uh uh uh!" Ruby pushed her way between Shelly and Crystal. "Don't think you're getting a free pass. Crystal holds my hand."

"What's your deal?" Crystal rolled her eyes.

"I wasn't going to try," Shelly mumbled. "Shouldn't I be in the middle, though?"

"We do it like this, or we don't do it at all," demanded Ruby.

Even though he was confident, Lucca's heart raced. He'd never had to battle with environment that stole his breath before. Only now that he was faced with the situation did he learn how privileged he was, being a water type.

Lucca, Mimia, and Azu positioned themselves behind Shelly and the smaller group, and linked flippers, paws, and hands. The moment they did, Angel appeared behind them and gave her wings a great flap, bathing the group in a pretty swirl of blue light. The moment that light came, all air bubbles the group had popped, and they had to hold their breaths. Shelly promptly started, tensing up to surround them all in a current, and then they were off like a rocket.

Lucca concentrated just as hard as when they started this awful trip. The moment they hit the black water, he felt the strain Azu had warned them about. Even though they were surrounded by the water from Shelly's Pokémon move, a dull chill surrounded him, while some sort of pressure caused his chest to tighten. He faced forward through it all, kicking his tail as if to help boost them forward faster.

It wasn't clear how long they had swam for, but five seconds was a clear underestimation. What was clear was that strain was starting to get to him, yet it was clear they weren't getting out of the black water anytime soon. The further on they went, the duller and duller the scenery became, and the more and more he felt an urge to open his mouth. He grunted a little. The sight of bubbles escaping him and the group made his heart race, and he feared he might give in.

Hold it together Lucca… just hold it, hold it! He repeated to himself, soon clenching his eyes shut, too. He wasn't used to holding his breath at all. He thought this would be easy, but instead it was filling him with anxiety that he might have actually screwed up. Surely a minute had passed, and they were still there, speeding through the black water and unable to breathe.

Not long after he started to grumble and tense a bit did they come to a sharp stop. Lucca slammed face first into something so hard he flipped several times as he recoiled, and coughed out a chunk of air in the process. He scrambled and thrashed to get a hold of himself, quickly realising that the water around him was blue again.

"Wait we're… air bubbles!" he hissed, breathing normally. He had to look for Esther and Mimia who had scattered during the crash, both of which didn't look much better than he felt earlier. Their cheeks looked like they were going to burst until he gave them air bubbles, and they each had gasping fits once they could. Ruby was once again unbothered by it all, however.

"Ow… what happened?" Shelly groaned, rubbing his head.

Rocky wall loomed before them, with a large cave entrance in the middle. It didn't take a minute for Lucca to realise that this was the island they were heading towards, and he smiled excitedly. "Isn't this… we made it!"

"That was close, though… I don't know about you, but that kind of pushed me," Azu admitted. "We're definitely going to need a better way coming back."

"You're telling me. Is this really what it's like to hold your breath? It feels awful!" Crystal added. "My chest felt like it was on fire."

"This is why I told you not to!" Esther cried. "My tummy feels all pruned and twisted. I could throw up!"

"Aww stop complainin'. We made it, didn't we?" Ruby said, smiling cheekily.

"We did, but… what's this?" Shelly wondered, still rubbing his head. He was staring at the cave, which was so dark inside they couldn't see a thing. He wandered closer, and then flinched as a high pitched cry rang through the water.

"Argh!" Lucca grunted and grabbed his head. It was the familiar siren cry from the Wishiwashi earlier, only so loud and high pitched that it pierced his thoughts. That very Pokémon soon appeared before Shelly, five of them this time, each with red eyes that stared right into his.

"Wah!" squealed the Oshawott as he flew back into the group.

"You guys again," Azu said, taking the lead with Lucca.

The Wishiwashi kept squealing, this time no longer in sync with one another, almost like a flock of birds and their shrill chirps. More Wishiwashi began to show up from all around however, small schools just like the five before them. Soon there was fifteen, then twenty-five, and then more than Lucca could count, all gathering into this one spot to guard the cave.

"Uh," Lucca said, and swam back a bit.

"Guys, we need to get out of here! Now!" Azu warned in growing panic. The duo turned around, surprised to find that Mimia and the group's air bubbles had popped, likely a result of the noise from the Wishiwashi. "Oh no…"

"Just grab 'em and go!" Lucca ordered, making sure Esther was still holding onto him.

Azu took Mimia in the meantime, while Crystal and Ruby linked hands, with Shelly not far behind. The group made for the surface as fast as they could, finding themselves fighting a strong current that attempted to pull them down. A low, earth-shaking grumble came from behind, and their surroundings darkened slightly.

"What?" Lucca whispered, glancing back.

Below him, whatever the Wishiwashi were becoming, he could tell it was trouble. They were obscured by the darkened water, but the silhouette of an enormous monster with a gaping maw and faded, blurry red eyes was unmistakable. The monster looked like it was inhaling water strong enough to devour the group entirely, and all around them the water swirled to trap them in place.

Before he could try a new plan, the current changed directions. A whirlpool suddenly formed below the group, which punched them straight upwards. Lucca felt himself black out for a moment, and then roared as his body was swung around like a feather in a hurricane. He lost track of his surroundings or whether Esther still held him or not. Everything just spun, flipped, and kept him dizzy enough to throw up.

With a dry cough and a grunt, he landed smack on cold, soft ground. It was soft, but wet enough to feel like a punch to his front and his flippers. It was also muddy enough that he reflexively spat out and scrambled to get up, having to wipe mess off his face.

"Ow," Lucca groaned. "What just happened?"

"Urgh," Azu groaned beside him.

"Azu!" Lucca came to her aid. She was reluctant, but accepted his flipper to stand. "That was some whirlpool. At least that thing didn't decide to eat us."

"That could've gone a lot worse," Crystal added.

The group shook themselves and got up, and Mimia's barking made them realise where they were. Outside of the water at last, but surrounded by Pokémon clothed in armour and equipped with weapons, all lances pointed at them.

"Aww enough for one day already!" Azu cried and threw her arms up.

"Silence! Don't move!" one of the Vileplume soldiers commanded.

Wait, they're not the same as the knights, or are they? Lucca asked himself, focusing. Every single one of these soldiers was an identifiable species that only had enough armour to protect vital areas. Each one was grass type too, from Vileplume to Decidueye. Behind them were more grass type Pokémon, but they appeared more like ordinary civilians, muttering amongst each other as they observed the scene.

"Somebody coulda warned us the island had knights on it, too," Ruby complained.

"Wait, don't hurt them!" Shelly cried as he pushed his way through to the front. The soldiers were aggressive until they noticed something, and their eyes widened. "Don't… hurt them. Please. It's me."

"Your Highness Prince Shelly?" Vileplume gasped.

"Prince Shelly?" the others gasped as well.