-----------------
I'm sailing away,
Set an open course for the virgin sea
'Cause I've got to be free,
Free to face the life that's ahead of me
On board I'm the captian, so climb aboard
We'll search for tomorrow on every shore
And I'll try, oh lord I'll try, to carry on
-- Come Sail Away
Styx
-----------------
Part 2 -- High Seas Hijinks
Mi'ko walked her way out of the Pokemart feeling great. She had spent a good deal of her saved money on supplies, that was true, but, now she had enough items in her back pack to get her to Pallet and on her way to training. Now she just had to figure a way to GET to Pallet without being caught. She pulled a map from the pocket of her coveralls, and opened it up, scanning it over. Without a doubt, the easiest way would be to sail to Cinnibar Islands, and from there, to Pallet. But, the big problem now, was finding someone willing to take her there. It would have to be someone with a surfing pokemon.. preferably a big one. Maybe a Lapras. But the only person she knew in Fuschia who might even have a surfing pokemon was.. "Of course! Laif!" She said, snapping her fingers, as she started runnind down the street, folding the map as she ran. Laif, of course, Laif would know what to do.
-----------------
Laif Osaka stood outside his small hut on the beach, watching the surf as it rose and fell. Being the life guard here was not only boring, but, monotonous. The shallow pools where people swam were easy enough to patrol. But the deeper water, where some foolish water lovers often swam, was infested with Tentacools, and other dangerous water pokemon. He sighed, and muttered. It was time for his shift change, anyway, and his big brother, Cliff, would be getting up soon. And then what? He'd probably head towards the boardwalk to watch the 'chics' who never wanted to pay any attention to him anyway, maybe catch a good trainer fight. He sighed, and whirled around, stalking back and forth from the beach chair on which he often sat to the door of the small hut, taking a moment to glance in the mirror his brother had hung from the unberella pole next to the chair. "Peh. I wish I was Cliff. " The (some would call scrawny) boy said angrilly, as he attempted to look his buffest, by flexing his muscles.
Laif, like his brother, was tanned finely, to the point where you could almost mistake them for 'Indian Boys', were it not for their equally alike bleached blond hair. But that's where the equalities stopped. Laif's brother, Cliff, kept his hair somewhat on the short side, a 'flat top' as it were, while he, Laif, had hair that fell near to the small of his back. He always kept it in a ponytail, too, out of his face, because he was always working. But despite the work he was endlessly tasking at, he was still.. well. A ninety-eight pound weakling, they would say. And did. And he was short, to boot, only about five-six, while his brother was a whopping six eleven. And handsome to boot. Laif was.. well. To put it bluntly, he was often mistaken as a girl in his regiular clothing. Which was baggy jeans, a too big shirt, and a pair of blue colored sunglasses. He loved to dress 'cool', as he thought it was. Right now, however, he was dressed in his 'work' attire. A pair of trunks, and a towel draped across his back, with his blue-tinted sunglasses perched near the tip of his nose. Grumbling, Laif took a look at his water-proof Golduck watch, and grumbled. Stalking over to the door of the hut, he began kicking the door. "CLIFF! CLIFF WAKE UP! CLI-"
"Hi Laif!" The voice was so close to his ear that it made him jump. "YAAAIK!" He wheeled to face his assailent to find himself staring at- "Mi'ko?!" "Laif!" "WHOOOOOOAAAAA! DUUUUDE!" the two called in unision, as he suddenly scooped the shorter (by inches) teen in his arms and swung her laughing about. "Mi'ko, chica! Long time no see!" he said, laughing. "Yeah, I know! Hey, check it, I'm finally out on my own." Mi'ko grinned. One little lie never hurt. "DUUUDE! Really? Whoa, Congrats! So have you got a 'mon yet?" Laif said, eagerly. Hey. Finally, excitement in his day! "Naw, I don't have a 'mon yet, but I'm on my way to Pallet to get one.. " "Pallet, huh? Well, your a little far off, checking here at the beach. " he chuckled.
Suddenly, the door wang open, whacking him in the back as Cliff, grumpile, stuck his head out. "WHAT IS IT NOW YOU-Hey, where'd you go? Laif? Laif.. Oh. You must be BEHIND the door. " he peered around the door at his younger brother, and blinked. "Mi'ko? Is that you?" He grinned, and stepped his way out of the hut, almost stepping on his brother's feet. Laif was so stunned he was speechless. "Dude. You sure have grown, squirt. " The older boy grinned. Suddenly, his watch began beeping. "Hmm? Oh, Sorry! Gotta catch the waves. Life Guard's work is never done!" He said, giving the friends a thumbs up as he took off jogging towards the shore. Mi'ko blinked, and looked from the departing Cliff to the still rather stunned Laif. "Laif, let's go inside, we have a lot to catch up on!" she said, cheerily, as she took his hand, and lead him into the hut.
-----------------
"So your saying.." Laif said, as he enjoyed the quick meal of rice he'd prepaired for themselves, with a pair of chopsticks, "You need a ride to Cinnebar, and then to Pallet? Over the water?" Mi'ko, digging at a bowl of rice hungrilly with a pair of chopsticks herself, nodded. "I thought maybe you could help, since you and your brother are, well.. " She began, trying to find an.. articulate.. way to say it. "Sea-Freaks." Laif finished, grinning. "S'all right, Mi'ko, chica, you can say it." He grinned, setting his bowl to the table top upon which he sat. "Y'know, your just in luck. We DO have a surf-going Pokemon now. And he's fairly big. Ever hear of something called a Lapr-" "Lapras. Huge water pokemon. Their nifty. " she finished, grinning. Yes, this was perfect! If Laif could take her to Pallet, then she would be sure she'd have a safe ride. And, a friend to talk to. "Well. " blink blink. "OKay, so you know what a Lapras is. " Laif said, grinning sheepishly. What was he thinking?! Of COURSE Mi'ko'd know what a Lapras is. She's the original Poke-Maniac. Or, so Laif thought to himself quietly.
"Silly, yes I do. So, when can we leave?" Mi'ko asked, hopefully. "In an hour?" "Whoa whoa, you wanna leave already? Chica, for one thing, you look bushed. You need sleep. For another, it's Cliff's Lapras. I'd have to trade him one of mine. And the only 'mon I got he'd want is my baby-girl. " he said, pointing to a picture of a Vaporean on the wall. Mistique, the pokemon in question, was currently curled up under the table happily sleeping. Being a vaporean, she had the odd ability to survive on land and in water. Though she did constantly need to be sprayed with water when she got too hot. Mi'ko frowned. "Well, you could get her back, right?" She said, biting her lip as it seemed the sailbaot of dreams was suddenly taking on water.
Laif sat there in thought for a moment, chewing. Mi'ko, frowning, turned on the only girlish skill she had mastered -- the pout. "Please, Laif? It would mean so much to me.. " She pleaded, eyes looking near to tears. Laif, frowning, sighed. "Okay okay, I s'pose so. But we have to be careful out there. There's some nasty Tentacools out there in those waters. And you have to take a nap while I gett'er ready. I can't have you falling off because you fall asleep." Mi'ko brightened, and hopped to her feet, hugging him. "Thank you! Oh thank you Laif! I knew I could count on you!" "Uhh.. yes.. Of course. " The stunned boy said, blinking.
-----------------
She was bound to the floor in chains. Had been beaten beyond recognition by the guards of her cell. They had done the unimagineable to her. "Misfit!" They declared. "Runaway!" They shouted. She looked up, her eyes searing with the pain of tears against swollen puffy cheeks. Punched. Brutalized. -Punished-. The guards of her cell laughed. The guards.. who were her parents. "You'll never understand!" her father decreed mockingly. "We don't want to hurt you... Much!" Mocked her mother from the shadows, mocking with laughter so cold that she shivered. She wrapped her arms about her as best she could, her wrists and ankles shackled, trying to comfort herself without much success. And all around her, besides their mocking, pointed laughter, was the laughing of many voices. Voices that made their way out of the woodworks as evil looking pokemon crept their wat forth from the shadows, their normally soulful eyes blazon red as blood, or burning embers. Shadowy ghosts with malintent.. who surrounded her. Threatened to engulf her. And she fought. she shook. She tried to rip herself free, as the sobbing broke from her throat, just before the largest fo them number came flying for her, it's fangs bared to--
"Mi'ko!" She was being shaken, the dream was shattering, she was waking. "Mi'ko wake up, Gosh, Mi'ko, you had me so scared, you were tossing and turning and-" She forced her eyes open slowly, unsure if the dream had ended entiredly, as her bleary gaze fell upon a mishapen face.. A face that slowly took the shape of Laif's as her vision cleared. "Wuh?" She asked still groggy, still unsure. "Laif?" She blinked a few more times, before bringing her hands to her eyes, and rubbing away the sleep. "Mi'ko, are you all right? You were crying, in your sleep, and kept saying no to someone, it had me so scared, I thought you were going to fall off Laplace, and I'd have to jump in after you!" As Mi'ko coughed, and blushed, "MMm, it was just a nightmare.. Thanks for waking me. How long have I been asleep?" She said. "Ever since we shoved off. See? We're in the deep water, now. "
And indeed, they were. She remebered, only vaguely, the manuevering of the large animal into the water. Having had trouble sleeping during the time it took them to prepare Laplace, for that was the Lapras' name, Cliff had given her some herbal tea, that was supposed to make her drowsy. The boys were heavy into herbal teas, because before they had come to the big city they had lived with their parents on a small island just off shore. Their parents, 'Junebug' and 'Ace' (Those were not their real names, but, it had been so long since anyone called them anything else that that was simply how they were known) had been (and were) naturalists, choosing to study wild pokemon in their natural habitats, and were very strict on using nothing that wasn't straight from nature. The tea had quite apparently worked, for she had slept through what Laif called the roughest of the ride -- leaving port. Now they were were peacfully sailing along the placid blue water. So far, there had been no attacks, but, then, Laif and Cliff had supplied the sea-farers with Max Repels to keep everyone safe. And, a blessing, Cliff had taken a Psyduck off Laif's hands, instead of the Vaporean that was now sleeping at their feet upon the back of the giant lapras. Mi'ko had watched the bargain closely, while trying to sleep. And believed it was more Cliff's care over his brother 'The Twirp' then it was 'Aw she's no good if she only likes you..'
"Hmmf.. A storm's brewing." Laif said, looking to the horizon, breaking her thought concentration. She looked towards where he was pointing, and frowned. The sky had turned a sickly black, and the wind was beginning to pick up, sending the water around them arching in small waves. "We better hold onto Laplace pretty tight. Mistique, Return!" he said, returning the Vaporean to her pokeball, and clipping it back onto the necklace holder he kept it in when swimming. Couldn't get it wet, after all. He was, she noted (as she hadn't been very much awake to earlier) wearing an odd getup, a long, baggy sleeved tie-dyed shirt, a pair of belbottem jeans, and a large rainbow colored hat that kept his hair from getting tangled, with his pony-tail hidden under it. She had to stifle a laugh. He looked at her as, standing, he took the time to sling his backpack onto his back, and hand her hers, from over the rims of his blue-tinted sunglasses. "yes? Is there somethign wrong with me?" "Hmm.. No.. No Laif. I was just admiring your-- " "Articulate taste in fashion." he finished, grinning wryly. "Go ahead and laugh.. Mudshark. " he grinned, at her, from the corner of his eye, as she chuckled. They did this often, the play fighting. It was friendship. The main body of the storm was far enough away that they would have time to prepare for it. And preparation was what they hurried now to complete. She slung her backpack over her back, and, with him, helped 'batton down the hatches' by winding a rope around the lapras' sturdy chest like a seatbelt for the two of them. The clouds were billowing thickly around them as Laif started working on tying a knot in the rope. Almost as soon as they were safely tucked against Laplace's back, the storm, with a crashing like a train wreck, hit. "WHEN WE REACH THE EYE OF THE STORM, WE SHOULD BE SAFE FOR A WHILE!" Laif yelled, over the roar of the waves and wind about them. They were rough, the waves, and they could quite easily feel the slamming of the lapras' body in the waters. Mi'ko hugged tight against the pokemon's neck, while at the same time clinging roughly to Laif's hand. The waves slammed and rocked them, and, at times, even the lapras seemed afraid. And then, just as suddenly as the whirling mass of wind and waves had started pummeling them, it was over. "I think we're in the eye of the storm.. " Laif meekly said to her, softly, as he squeezed her hand reassuringly. "That's good.. " Mi'ko said, with a gasp. She was soaked, out of breath, and had almost lost her back pack... and was sure everything in it had been waterlogged. "At least we're out of trouble now. " she said.
"I wouldn't quite say that, m'dearie." A rich booming voice called from above them, as the two wrenched their eyes open.. and to their dismay found themselves staring at a pirate ship, flying a Team Rocket flag.
I'm sailing away,
Set an open course for the virgin sea
'Cause I've got to be free,
Free to face the life that's ahead of me
On board I'm the captian, so climb aboard
We'll search for tomorrow on every shore
And I'll try, oh lord I'll try, to carry on
-- Come Sail Away
Styx
-----------------
Part 2 -- High Seas Hijinks
Mi'ko walked her way out of the Pokemart feeling great. She had spent a good deal of her saved money on supplies, that was true, but, now she had enough items in her back pack to get her to Pallet and on her way to training. Now she just had to figure a way to GET to Pallet without being caught. She pulled a map from the pocket of her coveralls, and opened it up, scanning it over. Without a doubt, the easiest way would be to sail to Cinnibar Islands, and from there, to Pallet. But, the big problem now, was finding someone willing to take her there. It would have to be someone with a surfing pokemon.. preferably a big one. Maybe a Lapras. But the only person she knew in Fuschia who might even have a surfing pokemon was.. "Of course! Laif!" She said, snapping her fingers, as she started runnind down the street, folding the map as she ran. Laif, of course, Laif would know what to do.
-----------------
Laif Osaka stood outside his small hut on the beach, watching the surf as it rose and fell. Being the life guard here was not only boring, but, monotonous. The shallow pools where people swam were easy enough to patrol. But the deeper water, where some foolish water lovers often swam, was infested with Tentacools, and other dangerous water pokemon. He sighed, and muttered. It was time for his shift change, anyway, and his big brother, Cliff, would be getting up soon. And then what? He'd probably head towards the boardwalk to watch the 'chics' who never wanted to pay any attention to him anyway, maybe catch a good trainer fight. He sighed, and whirled around, stalking back and forth from the beach chair on which he often sat to the door of the small hut, taking a moment to glance in the mirror his brother had hung from the unberella pole next to the chair. "Peh. I wish I was Cliff. " The (some would call scrawny) boy said angrilly, as he attempted to look his buffest, by flexing his muscles.
Laif, like his brother, was tanned finely, to the point where you could almost mistake them for 'Indian Boys', were it not for their equally alike bleached blond hair. But that's where the equalities stopped. Laif's brother, Cliff, kept his hair somewhat on the short side, a 'flat top' as it were, while he, Laif, had hair that fell near to the small of his back. He always kept it in a ponytail, too, out of his face, because he was always working. But despite the work he was endlessly tasking at, he was still.. well. A ninety-eight pound weakling, they would say. And did. And he was short, to boot, only about five-six, while his brother was a whopping six eleven. And handsome to boot. Laif was.. well. To put it bluntly, he was often mistaken as a girl in his regiular clothing. Which was baggy jeans, a too big shirt, and a pair of blue colored sunglasses. He loved to dress 'cool', as he thought it was. Right now, however, he was dressed in his 'work' attire. A pair of trunks, and a towel draped across his back, with his blue-tinted sunglasses perched near the tip of his nose. Grumbling, Laif took a look at his water-proof Golduck watch, and grumbled. Stalking over to the door of the hut, he began kicking the door. "CLIFF! CLIFF WAKE UP! CLI-"
"Hi Laif!" The voice was so close to his ear that it made him jump. "YAAAIK!" He wheeled to face his assailent to find himself staring at- "Mi'ko?!" "Laif!" "WHOOOOOOAAAAA! DUUUUDE!" the two called in unision, as he suddenly scooped the shorter (by inches) teen in his arms and swung her laughing about. "Mi'ko, chica! Long time no see!" he said, laughing. "Yeah, I know! Hey, check it, I'm finally out on my own." Mi'ko grinned. One little lie never hurt. "DUUUDE! Really? Whoa, Congrats! So have you got a 'mon yet?" Laif said, eagerly. Hey. Finally, excitement in his day! "Naw, I don't have a 'mon yet, but I'm on my way to Pallet to get one.. " "Pallet, huh? Well, your a little far off, checking here at the beach. " he chuckled.
Suddenly, the door wang open, whacking him in the back as Cliff, grumpile, stuck his head out. "WHAT IS IT NOW YOU-Hey, where'd you go? Laif? Laif.. Oh. You must be BEHIND the door. " he peered around the door at his younger brother, and blinked. "Mi'ko? Is that you?" He grinned, and stepped his way out of the hut, almost stepping on his brother's feet. Laif was so stunned he was speechless. "Dude. You sure have grown, squirt. " The older boy grinned. Suddenly, his watch began beeping. "Hmm? Oh, Sorry! Gotta catch the waves. Life Guard's work is never done!" He said, giving the friends a thumbs up as he took off jogging towards the shore. Mi'ko blinked, and looked from the departing Cliff to the still rather stunned Laif. "Laif, let's go inside, we have a lot to catch up on!" she said, cheerily, as she took his hand, and lead him into the hut.
-----------------
"So your saying.." Laif said, as he enjoyed the quick meal of rice he'd prepaired for themselves, with a pair of chopsticks, "You need a ride to Cinnebar, and then to Pallet? Over the water?" Mi'ko, digging at a bowl of rice hungrilly with a pair of chopsticks herself, nodded. "I thought maybe you could help, since you and your brother are, well.. " She began, trying to find an.. articulate.. way to say it. "Sea-Freaks." Laif finished, grinning. "S'all right, Mi'ko, chica, you can say it." He grinned, setting his bowl to the table top upon which he sat. "Y'know, your just in luck. We DO have a surf-going Pokemon now. And he's fairly big. Ever hear of something called a Lapr-" "Lapras. Huge water pokemon. Their nifty. " she finished, grinning. Yes, this was perfect! If Laif could take her to Pallet, then she would be sure she'd have a safe ride. And, a friend to talk to. "Well. " blink blink. "OKay, so you know what a Lapras is. " Laif said, grinning sheepishly. What was he thinking?! Of COURSE Mi'ko'd know what a Lapras is. She's the original Poke-Maniac. Or, so Laif thought to himself quietly.
"Silly, yes I do. So, when can we leave?" Mi'ko asked, hopefully. "In an hour?" "Whoa whoa, you wanna leave already? Chica, for one thing, you look bushed. You need sleep. For another, it's Cliff's Lapras. I'd have to trade him one of mine. And the only 'mon I got he'd want is my baby-girl. " he said, pointing to a picture of a Vaporean on the wall. Mistique, the pokemon in question, was currently curled up under the table happily sleeping. Being a vaporean, she had the odd ability to survive on land and in water. Though she did constantly need to be sprayed with water when she got too hot. Mi'ko frowned. "Well, you could get her back, right?" She said, biting her lip as it seemed the sailbaot of dreams was suddenly taking on water.
Laif sat there in thought for a moment, chewing. Mi'ko, frowning, turned on the only girlish skill she had mastered -- the pout. "Please, Laif? It would mean so much to me.. " She pleaded, eyes looking near to tears. Laif, frowning, sighed. "Okay okay, I s'pose so. But we have to be careful out there. There's some nasty Tentacools out there in those waters. And you have to take a nap while I gett'er ready. I can't have you falling off because you fall asleep." Mi'ko brightened, and hopped to her feet, hugging him. "Thank you! Oh thank you Laif! I knew I could count on you!" "Uhh.. yes.. Of course. " The stunned boy said, blinking.
-----------------
She was bound to the floor in chains. Had been beaten beyond recognition by the guards of her cell. They had done the unimagineable to her. "Misfit!" They declared. "Runaway!" They shouted. She looked up, her eyes searing with the pain of tears against swollen puffy cheeks. Punched. Brutalized. -Punished-. The guards of her cell laughed. The guards.. who were her parents. "You'll never understand!" her father decreed mockingly. "We don't want to hurt you... Much!" Mocked her mother from the shadows, mocking with laughter so cold that she shivered. She wrapped her arms about her as best she could, her wrists and ankles shackled, trying to comfort herself without much success. And all around her, besides their mocking, pointed laughter, was the laughing of many voices. Voices that made their way out of the woodworks as evil looking pokemon crept their wat forth from the shadows, their normally soulful eyes blazon red as blood, or burning embers. Shadowy ghosts with malintent.. who surrounded her. Threatened to engulf her. And she fought. she shook. She tried to rip herself free, as the sobbing broke from her throat, just before the largest fo them number came flying for her, it's fangs bared to--
"Mi'ko!" She was being shaken, the dream was shattering, she was waking. "Mi'ko wake up, Gosh, Mi'ko, you had me so scared, you were tossing and turning and-" She forced her eyes open slowly, unsure if the dream had ended entiredly, as her bleary gaze fell upon a mishapen face.. A face that slowly took the shape of Laif's as her vision cleared. "Wuh?" She asked still groggy, still unsure. "Laif?" She blinked a few more times, before bringing her hands to her eyes, and rubbing away the sleep. "Mi'ko, are you all right? You were crying, in your sleep, and kept saying no to someone, it had me so scared, I thought you were going to fall off Laplace, and I'd have to jump in after you!" As Mi'ko coughed, and blushed, "MMm, it was just a nightmare.. Thanks for waking me. How long have I been asleep?" She said. "Ever since we shoved off. See? We're in the deep water, now. "
And indeed, they were. She remebered, only vaguely, the manuevering of the large animal into the water. Having had trouble sleeping during the time it took them to prepare Laplace, for that was the Lapras' name, Cliff had given her some herbal tea, that was supposed to make her drowsy. The boys were heavy into herbal teas, because before they had come to the big city they had lived with their parents on a small island just off shore. Their parents, 'Junebug' and 'Ace' (Those were not their real names, but, it had been so long since anyone called them anything else that that was simply how they were known) had been (and were) naturalists, choosing to study wild pokemon in their natural habitats, and were very strict on using nothing that wasn't straight from nature. The tea had quite apparently worked, for she had slept through what Laif called the roughest of the ride -- leaving port. Now they were were peacfully sailing along the placid blue water. So far, there had been no attacks, but, then, Laif and Cliff had supplied the sea-farers with Max Repels to keep everyone safe. And, a blessing, Cliff had taken a Psyduck off Laif's hands, instead of the Vaporean that was now sleeping at their feet upon the back of the giant lapras. Mi'ko had watched the bargain closely, while trying to sleep. And believed it was more Cliff's care over his brother 'The Twirp' then it was 'Aw she's no good if she only likes you..'
"Hmmf.. A storm's brewing." Laif said, looking to the horizon, breaking her thought concentration. She looked towards where he was pointing, and frowned. The sky had turned a sickly black, and the wind was beginning to pick up, sending the water around them arching in small waves. "We better hold onto Laplace pretty tight. Mistique, Return!" he said, returning the Vaporean to her pokeball, and clipping it back onto the necklace holder he kept it in when swimming. Couldn't get it wet, after all. He was, she noted (as she hadn't been very much awake to earlier) wearing an odd getup, a long, baggy sleeved tie-dyed shirt, a pair of belbottem jeans, and a large rainbow colored hat that kept his hair from getting tangled, with his pony-tail hidden under it. She had to stifle a laugh. He looked at her as, standing, he took the time to sling his backpack onto his back, and hand her hers, from over the rims of his blue-tinted sunglasses. "yes? Is there somethign wrong with me?" "Hmm.. No.. No Laif. I was just admiring your-- " "Articulate taste in fashion." he finished, grinning wryly. "Go ahead and laugh.. Mudshark. " he grinned, at her, from the corner of his eye, as she chuckled. They did this often, the play fighting. It was friendship. The main body of the storm was far enough away that they would have time to prepare for it. And preparation was what they hurried now to complete. She slung her backpack over her back, and, with him, helped 'batton down the hatches' by winding a rope around the lapras' sturdy chest like a seatbelt for the two of them. The clouds were billowing thickly around them as Laif started working on tying a knot in the rope. Almost as soon as they were safely tucked against Laplace's back, the storm, with a crashing like a train wreck, hit. "WHEN WE REACH THE EYE OF THE STORM, WE SHOULD BE SAFE FOR A WHILE!" Laif yelled, over the roar of the waves and wind about them. They were rough, the waves, and they could quite easily feel the slamming of the lapras' body in the waters. Mi'ko hugged tight against the pokemon's neck, while at the same time clinging roughly to Laif's hand. The waves slammed and rocked them, and, at times, even the lapras seemed afraid. And then, just as suddenly as the whirling mass of wind and waves had started pummeling them, it was over. "I think we're in the eye of the storm.. " Laif meekly said to her, softly, as he squeezed her hand reassuringly. "That's good.. " Mi'ko said, with a gasp. She was soaked, out of breath, and had almost lost her back pack... and was sure everything in it had been waterlogged. "At least we're out of trouble now. " she said.
"I wouldn't quite say that, m'dearie." A rich booming voice called from above them, as the two wrenched their eyes open.. and to their dismay found themselves staring at a pirate ship, flying a Team Rocket flag.