A/N: Revised/rewritten. Finally after rewriting both chapters four and five, I can carry on with the story.

Chapter Five

Response

Time had stalled. Everyone froze in the darkness and the only thing moving was the rotating luster from the top of the lighthouse, casting a brief, yet clear illumination in the vicinity before returning to darkness again.

The spinning light was almost taunting, forcing Ash to abandon the belief that he was hallucinating. But he latched onto hope that an explanation was in place. Before him stood a person that he's known since the beginning of his training career.

Yet, this time she looked different. Her short red hair was not tied to the side, but fell around her face. Her green eyes were now dimmed with a cold, foreboding dubiety. And what made it the more shocking was how she stood there clad in black with a flashy 'R' on her attire, a detail that Ash refused to digest at the moment.

With how quiet it got, the darkness and silence became suffocating. Ash kept his eyes locked onto Misty's, with a combined looked of longing and disbelief.

Misty remained where she stood, rigid and rooted to the spot. She watched Ash with an icy stare but her brows were pulled together in slight confusion. This person knew her name, but she didn't know him…did she?

No. She let her mind lapse back into the broken fragments of her memories and did not recall the face nor voice of this boy. And yet, she wasn't completely threatened by him.

"Pikachupi?" Pikachu murmured, mirroring the same look of disbelief as Ash.

"Misty?" Ash echoed but a little impatiently, while taking a step forward. "I—I don't—what's going on…?" Ash stammered, finding it difficult to grasp what to say. With Misty standing before him with Team Rocket, Ash tried his best to suppress the obvious answer to what was going on.

Ash then took another step forward, his eyes entreating. Misty was still anchored to her spot, not budging when Ash came closer, but her eyes narrowed with warning.

Brock noticed this and placed a hand roughly on Ash's shoulder, coaxing him back. "Easy, Ash," he whispered. "I don't think she remembers us…" His words made Ash's heart sink like a stone, affirming what he did not want to accept.

It all felt like a dream, a hallucination. Ash wanted to believe that his exhaustion from the past few months of traveling has just started to overwhelm him. He then tried to convince himself that that Misty was not the one before him but someone who looked eerily similar to her that the darkness was playing tricks on his eyes.

"It's us, Mist," Ash said, offering a rueful smile. "It—it's us. Ash," he said, placing a hand on his chest. "Brock, Pikachu…" his voice lowered as Misty's eyes did not flicker in recognition. Her expression gradually morphed from stoicism to tension. But what hurt Ash the most was the look of ambivalence, as her green eyes continued to watch them in caution as though Ash, Brock and Pikachu were strangers.

Misty was beginning to feel a little tense. She did not know who he was and tried as she might, nothing came up. And his imploring was making it more difficult for her to maintain her cool.

The way Misty watched Ash and stepped back began to severely frustrate him. "What's the matter with you?" he burst suddenly. "Why are you with them? We're not going to hurt you!"

Misty regarded him for a moment, briefly side eyeing Butch and Cassidy who simply shrugged as though they knew not of what Ash was speaking of.

Ash, Brock and Pikachu followed Misty's gaze and discovered who she was looking at.

The three of them were suddenly seized with rage.

"You two!" Ash barked, turning to face them fully.

"What've you done to Misty?" Brock snarled.

"Pika!"

"Never mind them, Misty," Cassidy ensured the redhead with a sardonic smile. "They are just stirring troub—"

"Liars!" Ash hissed.

"Let's take him out already!" Perry suggested in annoyance.

"Mis—" Ash began once more.

Misty straightened her chin, her eyes darkening. "I—don't—know—you," she hissed in a tone that Ash noticed was agitation.

The black haired trainer wilted not only at the words but the vitriol in them. The stubborn part of him didn't believe her. But the rational part of his mind was telling him that Misty really did not remember him. She maintained her distance as though he was a hot flame.

"Something's not right, here," Brock muttered.

Ash's shoulders sagged. His eyes pleaded with Misty, but hers remained cold and uninviting. "What happened to you?" Ash whispered very softly, that no one heard…but Misty. Although still glowering at this stranger before her, she ruminated on his words. Did something happen to her?

But her musings died within her mind when Knox yelled, "C'mon! The longer we linger, the likely we'll get caught by others. Others that are an actual threat," the grunt noted haughtily, causing a few of his cohorts to snicker. But not Misty.

They were all in agreement at Knox's advice and casually began to skirt past Ash but stood before Misty, blocking her way.

"No," he said.

"Out of the way," Misty huffed.

"No," Ash said. Misty's feet shuffled to the side, but Ash moved with her, trying to cut her off from Team Rocket.

"I can't let you go with them," Ash explained.

"That's not your decision to make," snapped a voice and suddenly Ash was pulled back and tossed to the ground.

The boy grunted and immediately got up, finding that it was Butch who pulled him away. Ash remained persistent, motioning towards Misty again and this time Misty had none of it. She brandished a Pokéball and let it drop to the ground, and bursting forth came out the large, imposing figure of a very fearsome looking Crawdaunt.

The crustacean brandished its large pincers in a threatening manner. The glint in its eyes were frightening and its, glossy red shell looked as sturdy as armor.

Ash stumbled back a bit. Misty gave him no time to create enough of a gap between them, ordering Crawdaunt, "Crabhammer."

Within a second of the command, the crustacean, propelled itself towards Ash, one large pincer, closed and reared back ready to strike him. Ash shielded himself with his arm, awaiting the blow that would sure come.

But it never came. Inches from his body, Pikachu deflected the crab hammer with an iron tail. Its strength matching that of Crawdaunt's as the two Pokémon tried to get the other to surrender.

"Pikachu," Ash said, a hand outreaching for his partner.

"Pi…ka—chu!" Pikachu shrilled, using its strength to push the Crawdaunt away but when the crab put more pressure on its pincer, Pikachu repelled it with a light thunder shock.

Crawdaunt scurried back from the shock but otherwise was not hurt.

"Misty, I'm not going to battle you!" Ash yelled. "Why won't you listen to us?"

Ignoring Ash's renewed pleas, she commanded her Crawdaunt to attack once more. "Bubble beam!"

Jets of of swift bubbles tore from Crawdaunt's pincers, aimed directly at Ash. Brock was quick to see this and yanked Ash away from the attack. "Look out!" he shouted.

"Chuuuuu!" Pikachu cried out, sending another electric attack at Crawdaunt. This time the crab crossed its pincers in front of its face, easily bouncing the currents off, having no effect on the water type.

And in no time, the Crawdaunt is on the move again, showing no mercy for either Ash, Pikachu or Brock. Misty orders another bubble beam and one after another, strikes of water are shooting at them.

Pikachu did its best to counter the bubble beams with electric attacks and even an iron tail. While Ash and Brock ducked here and there, not always able to dodge the attacks unfortunately.

After another bubble beam sprayed forcefully at Ash and Brock, they were drenched and sent back. The blow of the bubble beam stunned them as to how much brute strength it enacted. The boys were certain bruises would begin forming in no time, all due to the water and not to hitting the ground.

"Stop!" Brock yelled, wincing. "Misty, don't!"

As another bubble beam was aimed towards Ash and Brock, Pikachu leapt in front, using its stamina to produce another iron tail, hoping it to be strong enough to counter and send it flying back towards Crawdaunt.

Unfortunately, the Crawdaunt's attack exceeded Pikachu's strength and the bubble beam sent the mouse flying back, colliding with Ash and Brock.

"Urgh…you two okay?" Brock grunted, getting back up, his clothes clinging to his battered body.

Ash nodded and turned his attention to Pikachu. "What about you, Pikachu?"

"Pi…ka," the rodent replied, exhaustion weighing it heavily. "Cha…"

And while they struggled to get back up, Team Rocket, along with Misty began to flee.

Loud and hasty footfalls filled Ash's ears and darting his eyes he saw Team Rocket escaping down a path.

"Wait!" he shouted, ignoring the pained protests from his body and he bolted after them. "Stop!"

"That kid has a death wish," Cassidy breathed. "We need to take care of him."

"But we'll only be wasting more time," Knox convinced, running alongside Cassidy. "He's just a kid."

"Says you," Butch grumbled, but it was decided that they all continue to run.

Pikachu and Brock had followed in pursuit behind Ash. Despite how beat Pikachu felt, it managed to surpass both Ash and Brock and took the lead in the chase. But even with Pikachu's agility, Team Rocket had the upper hand, not being as tired as they were.

The path led them further and further away from the lighthouse and from the precipice.

But the further they ran, the harder it was to spot them. The beams from the lighthouse would soon be unable to reach Team Rocket. Their dark attire blended in easily with the darkness.

This did not discourage Ash and his friends, however. Onwards they bolted, despite the encompassing darkness that loomed around them. Even then they continued to run, blindly after Team Rocket.

Casting a look over his shoulder, Butch managed to see the trio still on their tail. "We can't let them follow us. We got to lose them," he shouted to the others.

The chase carried on. Each turn Team Rocket made, Ash, Brock and Pikachu followed , though a gap between both parties was expanding by the minute.

Pikachu was even beginning to get worn out but still held enough stamina to keep going. Ash and Brock were growing tired; stitches throbbed at their sides, their legs seizing up with stiffness, their ankles constantly threatened by the uneven surface to get sprained and their hearts palpitating so violently in their chests, it might explode at any second.

The distance is much farther now, and Team Rocket is practically out of sight but Ash can still hear them up ahead. By this point, they have all abandoned the top of the cliff, away from the lighthouse and now down to where the main path led to the beach. The salty air, did nothing to curb Ash's exhaustion.

"Pika?" Pikachu said suddenly, slowing down a bit.

Ash and Brock are left little time to react as a thick shroud of toxic smoke bound them.

Already panting form exhaustion, the stifling smoke entered their lungs with ease as Ash, Brock and Pikachu were desperate to breathe.

"Wh—what is th—this?" Ash coughed, shielding his mouth from inhaling any more.

After a few minutes, their senses gradually dulled. Their limbs weakened and their eyes grew heavy. The three of them dropped to the ground, struggling to remain conscious but the smoke was quickly overwhelming them.

Ash tried to get back on his feet, only to collapse a moment later into a stupor.

Squadron Two stood before Giovanni in his office. The man said nothing when they announced their arrival. He simply allowed them access into his office, watching his subordinates with a scowl from his desk.

They had just returned to HQ and were able to shake off Ash, Brock and Pikachu, thanks to Perry's idea to subdue them with an ambush. Ultimately, Cassidy sent out her Parasect, having it use a stun spore, before finishing them off with a sleep powder.

Giovanni waited with thinly veiled patience for Squad Two to report to him whether the mission was a success, along with presenting him with what he demanded.

"Well?" he drawled.

"We have returned with the stone, sir," Butch announced.

"Is that right?" Giovanni said. "Hand it over then." His tone although rude was something that the agents were not going to defy.

Misty held the stone in both her hands and bravely walked towards the desk, handing it directly to Giovanni.

Giovanni took it with delicate fingers. He marveled at it, eyes scanning between the stone and his ring. Both gleamed with the blend of colors, and both bearing the unmistakeable sigil.

"Indeed this is the stone," Giovanni confirmed, still ogling the gem in his hands, which only stirred his dark intentions of it. "I'm pleased, but not as much you will be to hear that you've done well, all of you. I have nothing more to say on the matter. You're all dismissed. Enjoy the rest of your evening." The last part sounded forced but the agents all felt relief and turned to make their exit.

Expecting a thanks was wishful thinking, something that all agents knew too well. And as they began to shuffle out, Giovanni had called out to Butch and Cassidy specifically to stay behind.

It was starting to become more and more unnerving being alone with Giovanni in his office. And Butch and Cassidy have had far too many encounters in here in the past few days than in their entire career as criminals.

The door shut, softly behind them and Butch and Cassidy turned to face Giovanni once more, doing their best to look indifferent.

"I can see that the heist was a success," Giovanni began. "But I'd like to know from you two how our newest edition did."

Butch and Cassidy looked at each other as if gauging who would be the one to speak.

"She d—did fine, sir," Butch stammered finally. "She's the one who found the stone…" he grumbled, his voice colored with bitterness.

Giovanni managed to hear him though, chortling darkly. "She did, huh? Well, Butch some people all have their stroke of dumb luck. Perhaps tonight was hers." His words although cutting could pass as some sort of twisted affection for his seasoned agents.

"Well that's all I wanted to know," Giovanni finished. "Unless you two had anything else to add?" He looked at them with hooded eyes.

Butch and Cassidy gulped, their nerve becoming tense as they recalled their run-ins with Ash and Brock. But no one else made a mention of their trouble, and they managed to get away so why bother telling him?

But that was another bridge they'd cross…much later, so long as Giovanni did not know about it. So the agents before him, remained tight-lipped, nothing shaking their heads.

Giovanni's eyes penetrated them for the longest time as if burning through a barrier. But thankfully he didn't press on. "Very well. As you were," he concluded, beckoning for them to exit with his hand.

And Butch and Cassidy felt their worries drain as they made their way out of the office.

"You think we should have told him about the twerp?" Butch whispered, despite being out of earshot.

Cassidy looked around cautiously to make sure no one unbidden was around to eavesdrop.

"I don't recall the others saying anything," Cassidy pointed out in defense. "Even Misty didn't say anything."

"But why should she?" Butch countered. "She's the one with amnesia among us."

"And what of Perry and Knox?" retorted Cassidy, irruption tugging at her brows. "If they said nothing, then why should we mention those brats?"

Butch twiddled with his thumbs, walking alongside his cohort. "Because the boss asked us specifically how she did… Maybe he suspects something."

"Not this again, Butch," Cassidy hissed. "He only asked us because we're the ones who kidnapped her and brought her here. And the only ones who know the truth about her 'amnesia'."

"Exactly, so it's our fault if anything goes awry," Butch argued.

"You're overthinking it," Cassidy said, but inwardly agreed with Butch's musings.

Judging by their past encounters with Ash, the trainer has proven to be stubborn, beyond the point of foiling their plans in the past.

But they got away from him this time. And he was only just a kid. Truthfully it wasn't Ash they were worried about. Cassidy was beginning to understand what Butch was alluding to without saying it. They both shared their doubts about Misty's newfound loyalty to Team Rocket. What if her true memories began to resurface?

A few hours had past in the night, and the entire base was mostly quiet. A few agents that operated and trained during the night were still awake, but the others were all tucked away in their dorms, sleeping soundly until morning arrived and they were due to get back to work.

Giovanni was still awake, evading sleep for a little while longer. He sauntered through the facility, alone, with the newly attained Mega Stone in hand, which was tucked into the pocket of his black blazer.

He was eager to see this performed before his eyes. When Mega Evolution came to his attention a while back, Giovanni was a bit of a skeptic. Having not been familiar with this form of evolution, the criminal was still curious.

Overtime, through his trips to Kalos and agents working in that region, collecting information and data, Giovanni was no longer a skeptic but still had yet to witness the transformation that is Mega Evolution.

What further sated his curiosity were the existence of various stones. After some bargaining in Kalos, Giovanni came into the possession of the keystone, which he wore as a ring.

He stopped in front of a pair of black doors, which were tightly shut and armed. Next to the doors was a computer terminal. The man entered the code for entry and the doors swung open. And beyond those doors was a room full of tanks, all harboring the water Pokémon within the facility, some his, some his agents and some that were stolen.

One tank in particular was the one that held Misty's stolen Gyarados. Upon seeing the serpentine creature move in its tank, the grip on the Mega Stone tightened in anticipation.

Approaching the tank, Giovanni boasted a pleased grin on his face. Gyarados reacted with a strong hiss but not concussive enough to shatter the partition between it and Giovanni.

Although Giovanni admired its defiance, it did nothing to scare the man, it only amused him further. He pulled out the stone, which began to emit a dull glow.

Gyarados made no response to the stone, but only continued to glower fiercely at the man holding it captive.

"I reckon you don't know what this is?" the criminal asked, holding the stone up to the glass. "Let's find out together…"

Misty's eyes peeled open slowly. She wasn't surprised to find that it was still night. How long had she been asleep? She wasn't sure. Once again she struggled to fall asleep and even worse stay asleep.

The events from just a few hours ago still replayed in her head, but she tried to will it away in order to get some sleep. But still she remained awake, lying in her bed.

Misty couldn't help but feel like every night since waking up in the infirmary had been the same. The routine of trying to get shut-eye resetting each night. At least she did not stay awake for every minute of the night.

When sleep was kind enough to claim her, even if just for a little bit, Misty had the same recurring, ominous dream. The most she can recall from the dream was a shadowy, yellow silhouette, blurred beyond recognition accompanied with a low trilling hum that went on endlessly. Misty was convinced that when she was asleep the image was much clearer, but whenever she awoke, she was unable to latch onto its clarity.

It was the same dream for the past two nights. It had to mean something to her but because the image would become distorted the moment she woke up, Misty could not properly assess what its significance was.

And now that she was awake, Misty remained on her back, waiting for sleep to come again, lulling her back to witness the same image over and over again. It was taunting, but she tried to heed Dr. Reiko's advice of remaining as patient as possible; a feat that was becoming increasingly difficult.

With nothing but her own thoughts to keep her company, Misty's mind detoured back to the events at the lighthouse. The black haired boy's voice, entreating her, but she didn't know what to say, how to react. This boy was a total stranger to her, along with the other boy. Yet they knew her name.

Misty was beginning to doubt her own sanity. But even with these newfound doubts, the redhead remained certain that she had to trust her comrades here. Team Rocket was her ally, Giovanni was someone she trusted.

Eventually she forced her mind to become blank again, only counting down the seconds before sleep would come and claim her once more.

"Where do you think they went?"

"I don't know, Ash," Brock told his friend, grimly. "They got away from us, and I doubt they'll return to the lighthouse."

"Then what do we do now?"

"Pikachu," Pikachu said softly in concern.

Ever since waking up near the beach, Ash, Brock and Pikachu were at a lost as to where Team Rocket had fled to. It was still dark out, but the sky was growing pale, which meant that daybreak was imminent.

Ash was undecided between denial and shock. He had tried explaining to Brock that maybe it wasn't Misty they really saw. He claimed that the darkness and exhaustion were messing with their eyesight.

Brock saw the hope, brimming desperately in his friend's eyes. But the reality was that it was Misty that night. They had tried searching the area, sending out Hawlucha and Crobat to help them out, but their Pokémon were unable to find any traces of Team Rocket anywhere, which led them back to where they fainted.

"Brock?" Ash asked, a meek voice, a sheer contrast to his vigilant desperation to find Misty.

"Hm?" Brock responded.

"Is it possible to get brainwashed?" came Ash's question.

Brock knew what Ash was alluding to. Although the two did not openly discuss it yet, it was something that weighed heavily on their minds. Something was not right about Misty when they saw her. Other than working alongside Team Rocket, she did not recognize them. Her voice echoing in their heads, "I—don't—know—you."

It was clear that Misty was under some sort of influence, a strong one at that.

"I've heard of people getting brainwashed, but it's usually overtime," Brock answered.

"Is there a chance a Pokémon could have done it?" Ash went on, curious to know more.

"You mean to brainwash somebody? I'm not sure… I know Psychic types have the ability to hypnotize other Pokémon, and can have an effect on the minds of humans but I'm not sure how strong…"

"But don't you remember when Misty was in that weird trance when we were in Hophophop Town?" Ash asked.

Brock indeed remembered but even then that was a stupefying incident. "Yes."

"Then maybe it happened again, only this time much stronger," Ash theorized with hope that he was getting an answer. Though all good it could do at the moment was very little, since Misty was gone.

"Maybe…" was all Brock was able to say.

"Pikachupi," Pikachu mused sadly.

"We need to find her," came Ash's next words, a fiery resolution burning in his gut.

The atmosphere of Cerulean City was uninviting. Sure it was still early and dark out but everything felt dead and eerie, like a ghost town.

What made the mood even more ominous were the cop cars driving around, very slowly almost intent on finding something.

As one cop car passed, three figures loomed discreetly in an alley.

"Sheesh, who died?" asked Meowth, scanning the area before stepping out of the alley, followed by its two comrades.

"Seriously, why does it feel so glum, I thought this was supposed to be a populous city," James commented, walking down a desolate sidewalk.

"More importantly, what's with the cop cars every five minutes?" Jessie pointed out.

"I think this might have something to do with it," Meowth said, stopping to pick something up from the ground. The cat looked over the crumpled flyer and read it aloud. "'Stamp out thievery and make the city a friendlier, more cheerful place! Cerulean Police'."

"Who knew there were thieves in Cerulean City," Jessie said in a bored tone.

"I guess there are other rotten people out there like Team Rocket," James guessed. "We can't let these people out-thief us."

"It doesn't look we have any competition, Jimmy," Meowth said, now picking another flyer up from the ground, this time a crumpled up WANTED poster.

Jessie's eyes widened, snatching the paper out of Meowth's paws. "Give me that." She inspected the poster while James leaned over to get a glimpse.

"That's Bu…Buddy?" James asked unsure, referring to the green haired male in the poster. "And…"

"Cassidy," Jessie snarled, crumpling the poster into a ball and tossing it. "It seems that they've been around here, then."

"I guess so," Meowth agreed. "Apparently while we were in Kalos, the others have been busy here in Cerulean."

"Too bad for them," Jessie said arrogantly. "Judging by that poster, they aren't doing a good job covering up their tracks."

"Heads up," Meowth whispered as another cop car turned the corner. The three of them tucked themselves in another alley, watching the cruiser disappear.

"This might take a while," James whined.

"We could always stop and take a catnap in this cozy alley," Meowth suggested.

Jessie and James shot him a look of befuddlement. But as another cop cruiser turned up, the Team Rocket trio retreated further into the alley.

With the police roaming the streets, Jessie, James and Meowth had no choice but to hideout in the alley until it was safe for them to come out. Yet, how long that would take, remained unknown.

TO BE CONTINUED…