Author's Note:
Hey, guys. Here's another chapter. Now there's going to be some scenes involving Jack Manning and some of the other IDA agents towards the end of the chapter and you're probably going to be wondering what in the world is going on. Well, there's going to be an ongoing subplot that will be playing out for at least a few episodes or so and you'll find out what it is and I'm also going to be introducing some new characters I've been wanting to use for a while. So enjoy!
Chapter 13 – All Aboard The St. Anne
The sun was now setting as darkness was beginning to settle over the city. Blaze and Grovyle were panting and gasping in exhaustion while looking quite bruised and battered, having just finished their battle. Nicholas smiled as he took out his Poke Ball and aimed it at Grovyle.
"Grovyle, return!" he yelled as he summoned Grovyle back into his Poke Ball.
"Blaze, return!" Rhonda yelled as she also summoned Blaze back into her Poke Ball.
"Nice work, Rhonda," Nicholas smiled as he went over to shake Rhonda's hand.
"Thanks," Rhonda smiled.
"I would like to take you all out to dinner if you don't mind," Nicholas offered.
"Oh boy, would we ever!" Ash exclaimed excitedly at the mention of food with his tongue lagging lazily out of his mouth and stars popping out of his eyes.
"I'm buying by the way," Nicholas added.
"So where are you taking us?" Misty asked as she and the others began to follow Nicholas.
"I know the best place in town," Nicholas declared with a proud and confident smile.
TLSTLSTLSTLS
The very next morning, the heroes were now leaving the city perimeters as they were walking on a bridge that led straight to the local port.
"Wow, that was a wonderful, restful sleep that I've had last night," Rhonda sighed contentedly.
"Breakfast was also quite amazing," Katie smiled happily.
Ash was busy admiring his latest Gym Badge when he noticed a cruise ship up ahead.
"Wow!" he said.
"Pika…" Pikachu breathed in awe.
"Look at that," Katie whispered softly.
"Beautiful," Misty murmured.
"Oh, man, I'd love to cross the ocean on a ship like this," Ash marveled in awe as he stared at the cruise ship with wonder and intrigue.
"Yeah, just think of all the Pokemon we'd be able to see along the way," Brock replied.
"Oh, for sure," Misty beamed excitedly while clasping her hands together. "Just imagine, sunbathing on a deck all day. Just a nice, long, relaxing cruise."
"We could never afford a cruise like that," Brock hissed discreetly.
"Oh…" Misty's face fell as she became crestfallen and despondent at the thought.
"Reality can really bum you out," Ash groaned as he and his friends walked away with dejected and morose faces and with their shoulders sagging and practically drooping to the floor.
However, they were soon interrupted by a couple of random strangers.
"Congratulations! You guys are way lucky. You can go on a super deluxe sea cruise!" the duo announced.
"A sea cruise?" the heroes chorused in confusion and bafflement.
"What is going on here?" Katie retorted quizzically.
"Is it me or do those girls use an ungodly amount of tan?" Rhonda retorted with a puzzled glare.
"They do look awfully familiar…" Shirley mused suspiciously. "However, for some reason I can't put my finger on it as to why…"
"Well, it's like, you know, we have these incredible, super cool tickets for you," the orange-haired girl explained as she held out some tickets in her hand.
"Cool," the blonde-haired girl cheered.
"What?" Misty balked.
"These are tickets for the biggest party ever, on board the St. Anne cruise liner," the orange-haired girl explained.
"Wow, a party?!" Yuki exclaimed excitedly with her eyes shining brightly. "That sounds awesome!"
"The famous St. Anne?" Ash inquired curiously.
"Cool," the blonde-haired girl gushed with a wide grin.
"The coolest ship on the sea," the orange-haired girl continued. "Everyone's going to be together and, like, have the coolest party.
"Cool!" the blonde-haired girl cooed.
"And the party's for Pokemon trainers only," the orange-haired girl added.
"Cool!" the blonde-haired girl squealed.
"Step this way. It'll be a radical party. All the most radical Pokemon trainers will be there," the orange-haired girl said as she and the blonde-haired girl gestured over in the direction of the cruise ship.
"Do you know anybody who says 'radical' anymore?" Ash whispered to Misty through the side of his mouth, at which Misty responded with a shake of her head.
"That phrase has to be at least 30-some odd years out of date," Rhonda retorted sarcastically at which Katie nodded in silent agreement. "My mama was in high school when it was last in style."
"Okay, dudes, here are your tickets," the orange-haired girl said as she offered the heroes the tickets.
"We'd love to go on the Pokemon trainer cruise, but we really don't have the money to pay for it," Brock apologized sadly.
"Oh, whoa, like, you don't understand," the orange-haired girl gushed with a slight giggle.
"Cool!" the blonde-haired girl chirped.
"They're totally free!" the orange-haired girl squealed excitedly. "Totally free! To-ta-lly free!"
"Okay, now I know this has got to be a bloody scam," Jasmine retorted suspiciously with wary eyes. "There is no place on this godforsaken earth that offers a free cruise with no strings attached."
"Maybe, but this also sounds like an awfully good deal," Rhonda mused.
"For free? Why are you giving them away?" Ash asked curiously.
"Well, like, we have to go out with our boyfriends, but we wanted to give our tickets to cool Pokemon fans," the orange-haired girl explained.
"Cool!" the blonde-haired girl squealed.
"We saw you and thought you looked really cool," the orange-haired girl continued. "Just take these and have a really cool time."
"All right, all right; you don't need to oversell it. We'll take the bloody tickets and go on this trip," Rhonda retorted exasperatedly.
"Thanks a lot," Ash said as he accepted the tickets.
"No sweat," the orange-haired girl replied.
"Cool!" the blonde-haired girl squealed.
"Have a nice day, for sure," the orange-haired girl said before she and her friend took off and went running away in the opposite direction away from the cruise ship.
"Finally! That stupid dumb bimbo was really getting on my nerves big time," Katie exhaled sharply with an eye roll.
"Me too," Jasmine concurred.
"All right. This really is cool, isn't it?" Ash quipped as he held up the tickets in his hand.
"Pikachu!" Pikachu chirped.
TLSTLSTLSTLS
The ship's horn was blaring loudly as the heroes were heading up to the ship.
"The St. Anne. Wow!" Brock exclaimed.
"Yeah and that Pokemon Party!" Ash gushed with excitement and joy. "I wonder which one of these ships is the St. Anne?"
"I think that's it," Misty interjected as everyone stopped to look at one particular cruise ship.
"Wow, that's incredible," Brock whispered in amazement.
"It's huge," Misty quipped.
"Pika," Pikachu chirped.
"We did it. We got them," Jessie cheered as she and James were hiding in the bushes while still wearing their disguises.
"Like, wow, don't I make, like, the coolest girl?" James replied while speaking in a stereotypically high pitched, girly voice.
Jessie then let out an irritated and angry growl as she whacked James across the head with a mallet.
"Stop acting like an ignoramus," she sneered as she grabbed James and dragged him away as they both headed to a mysterious lighthouse.
A short time later, Team Rocket was in a top secret dark room as they were standing in front of a computer screen.
"We got a call from the boss," Meowth said as he pushed on a button.
Moments later, an image flickered on the screen and revealed a mysterious and sinister-looking man slightly concealed in shadow and wearing a red outfit.
"Greetings, sir," Meowth piped in nervously as he and his comrades stared at the computer screen.
"So the team is all there," the mysterious man declared while speaking in a largely distorted and eerie robotic voice.
"Sir," Team Rocket chorused.
A Persian walked over to the mysterious man and nuzzled him softly.
"Meow! What's with the Persian?!" Meowth stammered in horror and disbelief. "Hey, boss, what about Meowth? Ain't I your favorite anymore?"
"I'm totally disgusted watching you fail me when I expect total perfection," the mysterious man growled contemptuously while continuing to pet the Persian. "Purr-fection like this beautiful Persian."
"But Meowth…" Meowth stammered nervously while tapping his fingers together.
"If you want to make me happy, you can make sure our latest plan succeeds," the mysterious man growled menacingly.
"Meowth!" Meowth exclaimed.
"Have you handed out all of the tickets to the St. Anne cruise?" the mysterious man demanded.
"Yes," Jessie answered. "All of the Pokemon trainers were delighted to take them."
"Was it really all right for us to give out all those tickets for free?" James questioned their boss curiously.
"A small price to pay for what I'll get in return," the mysterious man replied with a cruel, sinister smile.
"Oh," James and Jessie gasped with understanding expressions on their faces.
"My men have already secretly boarded the St. Anne. When I give them the signal, they will take the Pokemon from all of the trainers we tricked into boarding the ship," the mysterious man explained.
"That's the boss for you, a real genius," Meowth beamed proudly.
"This time, failure is out of the question," the mysterious man declared darkly.
"Aye, aye, sir!" James and Jessie chorused while standing upright.
"We can do it!" Meowth cheered confidentially.
The mysterious man then chuckled evilly at his words.
TLSTLSTLSTLS
"What an awesome ship!" Ash beamed as he and his friends were boarding the ship.
"I'd like to travel around the whole world in this," said Misty.
The heroes then approached a young man as Ash showed him the tickets.
"Welcome aboard the St. Anne," the man greeted them with a bow as he gestured over to the entrance. "This way."
The heroes then entered the ship as they arrived at the dining hall, which was completely packed and bustling with all kinds of people.
"Wow! Look at this!" Ash exclaimed in amazement.
The heroes then strolled through the area as they noticed that there were many people chatting with each other while holding their Pokemon and some of them were even visiting the vendors and buying all kinds of souvenirs.
"It's like a giant Pokemon convention," Ash remarked as he surveyed his new surroundings intently.
"A sailing convention on a ship," Rhonda interjected sardonically.
"Everyone's a Pokemon trainer," Misty replied.
"Take a look at the smooth skin on my Charmander," one boy said to another while holding a Charmander in his arms. "That shows how healthy it is."
"Look at the flames on my Charmander," the other boy replied while showing off his Charmander's flaming tail. "There's orange mixed in with the red. Cool, huh? Check it out!"
"Wait, look how hard the shell is on my Squirtle!" another boy chuckled as he rushed over to them. "Tough, huh?"
"My Squirtle and my Charmander are much better than theirs are," Ash bragged while watching the playful interaction between the younger trainers.
"All right, bring them on," a male voice announced as Ash soon turned his attention over to a sophisticated-looking man with black sunglasses, a black tuxedo suit and a black top hat as he was busy battling a Starmie with a Raticate.
"Raticate, a jump kick!" the older sophisticated man ordered.
Raticate then jumped into the air as it lunged right at Starmie with a sharp hiss.
"All right, Starmie, spinning tackle," the young boy ordered.
Starmie then leaped into the air as it hurtled right at Raticate while spinning wildly in midair before the two Pokemon clashed.
Ash and Pikachu then squeezed in through the crowd anxiously as they soon joined in on the growing spectacle.
"All right, they're having a battle!" Ash cheered.
"Pikachu!" Pikachu squealed.
"Raticate, super fang attack, now!" the older sophisticated man ordered.
Raticate then lunged right at Starmie again before clamping down its long and sharp fangs on its jewel core, shattering it.
The young boy gasped in horror as Starmie then collapsed onto the floor, defeated. The older sophisticated man smirked triumphantly as he pointed his cane at a sign saying "Win" that was blinking bright orange.
"Are you okay, Starmie?" the young boy whimpered softly while hugging it gently.
"Ah, don't feel too badly, young man," the older sophisticated man reassured him gently. "It was only a practice match anyhow, and I just happened to be lucky."
"My, how gracious," a gorgeous redheaded woman declared as she walked over to the older sophisticated man and smiled at him coyly.
"Heh, not at all, miss," the older sophisticated man replied affectionately as he then turned his focus back to the young boy.
"Keep working on building your Starmie's strength there."
He then gestured over to the surrounding crowd while addressing them.
"Well, now, is anybody else brave enough to challenge my Raticate?"
"I will!" Rhonda announced as she walked over to him and faced him down with a courageous and determined glare.
The older sophisticated man then broke out into raucous laughter at the sight of the young girl.
"My, my, aren't you brave? So do you wish to challenge me, young lady?"
"Yeah, I wish to battle your Raticate with my Charmeleon!" Rhonda declared boldly.
"As you wish," the older sophisticated man chuckled wryly.
"Boy, I really hope Rhonda knows what she's doing," Katie sighed worriedly.
"Me too," Yuki concurred.
Meanwhile, Team Rocket strolled into the dining area while disguised as waiters and carrying trays of food.
"Say, Jessie, this place is packed," James observed.
"Yes, and packed with Pokemon," Jessie smirked evilly.
"And soon all these Pokemon will be ours," James declared as he watched all of the guests interact with their Pokemon happily while going about their day. "All for us."
"Shut up. They're not for us," Jessie growled irately. "They're for the boss."
"I forgot," James sighed sadly with a crestfallen expression.
"Blaze, go!" Rhonda yelled as she summoned Blaze out of her Poke Ball.
"Charmeleon!" Blaze growled.
"Raticate, a jump kick," the older sophisticated man commanded.
Raticate then leaped right into the air as it lunged right for Blaze.
"Blaze, use Metal Claw!" Rhonda ordered as Blaze unsheathed his claws and charged right for his opponent with his claws shining brightly with a metallic gleam.
Blaze and Raticate then spent the next several minutes trying to attack each other as Blaze kept on swinging his claws at Raticate repeatedly, only for Raticate to continuously dodge and evade its attack as Blaze also dodged its jumping kick attack.
"Does Rhonda's Charmeleon even stand a chance against that Raticate?" Misty frowned worriedly.
"Sure. It's a good match, really," Brock replied with a confident smile.
"Finish it, Raticate. Hyper Fang attack!" the older sophisticated man ordered as Raticate lunged right for Blaze again.
However, Blaze was able to dodge its attack again as he somersaulted into the air and landed on the other side.
"All right, Blaze… use Fire Fang!" Rhonda roared.
Blaze then charged up a small ball of flames from his mouth as he ended up rushing right at Raticate and biting it on its side, causing it to scream out shrilly in pain.
"All right, buddy! Now use Flamethrower!" Rhonda cheered.
Then as Blaze was about to unleash his Flamethrower attack, Rhonda was surprised and taken aback when the older sophisticated man grabbed Raticate and picked it up in his hands.
"Well, that's enough."
"Huh?" Rhonda gawked in confusion as she stared quizzically at her opponent.
"What in the blazes is going on? Whatever is the meaning of this?"
"Why don't we just call it a draw?" the older sophisticated man suggested before he turned around and walked away.
Rhonda just stared at him with a frustrated scowl as she watched him leave with his Raticate.
"But I was gonna beat him."
TLSTLSTLSTLS
Meanwhile, James was taking a leisurely stroll through the ship when he heard a male voice call out to him.
"Boy, boy. Hey, you boy. Come here."
James then turned his head in the direction of the voice and walked over to a nearby vendor where a man was hurriedly waving over to him.
"Are you addressing me?" James asked.
"I want you to have a look at this Pokemon," the man said while pointing inside the fish tank.
"Huh? What is this thing?" James inquired curiously as he bent down to see a Magikarp staring blankly at him inside the fish tank.
"The king of all carp. A Magikarp," the man replied.
"What do I do, eat it?" James quipped while quickly standing upright.
"See how healthy it is," the man chuckled wryly while lifting the Magikarp right out of the fish tank and holding it in his hands before handing it over to James.
"Oh! It certainly is lively," James exclaimed in a startled voice as he felt the Magikarp jump and bounce around wildly in his hands.
"Just between you and me, this Magikarp is like a Pokemon gold mine," the man whispered softly to James in a low and quiet voice so no one could overhear them.
"Gold mine?" James's eyes widened in surprise and amazement.
"Right. A Magikarp lays 1,000 eggs at a time. Each of those 1,000 baby Magikarp lay 1,000 more. One thousand times 1,000 makes one million," the man continued as James listened more intently to his words. "Every one of those one million lays another 1,000. That's a billion Pokemon."
"A billion?!" James gasped in astonishment.
"You can sell one Magikarp for $100. In three generations, you have tons of money. Billions and billions," the man added.
"B-Billions?!" James stammered in shock and awe.
"You'll be so rich, you can go on a Pokemon shopping spree," the man added.
"Rich! Rich!" James gushed excitedly at the prospect of making tons of money as dreams of untold riches swirled in his mind.
"I normally charge $100, but for you, I'll throw in an egg-laying set, childcare set, and an education set for only $300. How about it?" the man said while slapping down a folded piece of paper repeatedly on the table before offering it to James.
"I'll take it," James declared affirmatively while holding the Magikarp in his hands.
"I can tell," the man replied with a bright smile and a chuckle. "You're going to be a very rich man. A very rich man."
James then let out a crazed fit of laughter as he was now excited and giddy at the prospect of being a brand new owner of a Magikarp.
TLSTLSTLSTLS
Meanwhile, back in the dining area, the heroes were having their fill of delicious and tasty food as they were feasting on a full course meal, with Ash, Pikachu, and Luthor munching on some chicken legs while Misty, Jasmine, Yuki, Shirley and Rhonda were eating a wide variety of seafood, including shrimp, crab, lobster and even octopus. Everyone else was treating themselves to some sandwiches and even some seafood on the side.
"So, are you having yourself a good time?" the older sophisticated man inquired as he and his lady friend approached the table.
"Yes, sir, we're having a great time," Ash replied while holding up two chicken drumsticks.
"This is some really good stuff," Marni said while munching on some lobster and sipping on a glass of red wine.
"Delish," Avis beamed happily while holding a champagne flute in her hand.
"You know, that Charmeleon of yours is quite extraordinary," the older sophisticated man informed Rhonda.
"It's incredible," the sophisticated lady replied with a dazzling smile.
"Wow, she's actually beautiful," Rhonda giggled softly as she gazed at the older woman adorningly.
Brock also seemed to be quite taken by the entrancingly beautiful redheaded woman.
"She's beautiful," he stammered softly with his face flushing bright red.
"Hello in there," Misty smirked teasingly as she waved her hand in front of Brock's face to wake him out of his stupor.
"Beautiful…" Brock drawled softly, still mesmerized.
"Here we go again," Misty sighed with a shrug.
"Well, if you must know, I put a lot of work into raising it," Rhonda explained as she wiped her mouth with a napkin while taking a sip of water. "However, it's a long ways away from becoming a Charizard."
"What do you think of my Raticate?" the older sophisticated man inquired curiously.
"It's all right," Rhonda shrugged nonchalantly. "I don't particularly care for it since it's not my favourite, but it's all right."
"Well, I'll make you a direct offer anyway," the older sophisticated man said. "Why don't we trade?"
"Excuse me?" Rhonda nearly choked on her water as she shot a bewildered glance at him. "Did you say, trade Pokemon?"
"Yes, trade. When two people find that they each like the other's Pokemon, they trade," the older sophisticated man explained. "It's quite a common practice everywhere."
"Really?" Rhonda raised an inquisitive eyebrow.
"Everywhere?" Ash quipped.
"You see, friends who trade then trade with their other friends and so friendships grow deeper and continue to spread wider and wider," the older sophisticated man continued to explain while placing a gentle hand on Rhonda's shoulder. "Trading and making new friends is one of the best things about having Pokemon. That's how Pokemon friendships get to spread all around the world."
"Friendship is wonderful, isn't it?" the redheaded lady beamed widely with pride.
"Yeah, why don't you and I start a friendship right now?" Brock gushed excitedly while holding up his fists with an infatuated and besotted grin.
"That's a very nice sentiment, mate, but I'm not interested," Rhonda retorted tersely with narrowed eyes. "However, you could talk it over with my friend Ash over there. He might bite."
"Very well then, if you insist," the older sophisticated man sighed. "I do hope that you change your mind eventually."
He then turned to face Ash. "How about it, young man? Want to engage in some trading?"
"You really mean it?" Ash stammered in surprise as he then turned to Brock for some encouragement and reassurance.
"Should I trade, Brock?" he asked.
"Oh, yeah. You got to trade," Brock nodded eagerly, not really paying any attention to what Ash was saying. "Everybody should trade. Let's start trading."
"Well, okay," Ash replied uncertainly, not really sure that he actually wanted to trade any of his Pokemon to some stranger.
A short time later, Ash and the older sophisticated man were standing in front of an unusual machine as they were holding their Poke Balls. The two then placed the Poke Balls in the machine as the older sophisticated man was getting ready to activate the machine.
"Here we go," he said.
Ash then nodded silently as he pushed on a button before the machine turned on and the Poke Balls were transferred to their new trainers.
"Well, that's all there is to it," the older sophisticated man declared. "Raticate is your new Pokemon."
Ash just stared at his new Pokemon wistfully, a part of him wondering if he had even made the right decision.
TLSTLSTLSTLS
"You idiot! Can't you see that you were tricked?!" Jessie shrieked indignantly as she was livid at the fact that James had somehow come into possession of a Magikarp.
"What a dope!" Meowth growled in annoyance.
"But you don't understand," James insisted in a pleading voice. "Magikarp is a gold mine. Even its Poke Ball is solid gold."
"It's just gold-plated!" Meowth scowled furiously while slashing right at the golden Poke Ball, causing James to scream out in dismayed horror.
"Magikarp is a no talent Pokemon that can't do anything but flop around. How could you possibly expect to sell it?" Jessie rebuked him sternly with an incredulous eyebrow.
"I was tricked," James whined sadly, having now realized his folly.
"How did you get the money for it?" Jessie asked curiously.
"Well, the advance on my salary didn't quite cover it, so I…" James replied hesitantly while staring at the golden Poke Ball.
"So you did what?" Jessie inquired curiously.
"I used the advance on your salary," James answered with a bright grin.
Jessie then exploded into a furious fit of rage as she socked James right in the mouth, causing a tooth to pop out.
"You go return that fish and get my money back right now!"
TLSTLSTLSTLS
Meanwhile, the ship's horn was blaring loudly in the air as Ash was standing by the window by himself while staring at his Poke Ball wistfully.
"What's the matter, Ash? You look so serious," Misty asked as she looked over at him.
"Uh, I was just thinking. I wonder if that guy is going to take good care of my Butterfree," Ash replied wistfully.
"Oh…" Misty's expression quickly changed as she soon realized what Ash was saying.
"I traded my Butterfree to some guy I don't even know just because he seemed to like trading so much. I really don't even know if he'll take care of it the way I did," Ash explained.
"Look on the bright side, you got a Raticate," Misty reassured him with a smile.
Ash sighed sadly while glancing at his Poke Ball briefly before turning his focus to the window again.
"It's just that when I was trading it away, I remembered the time when it evolved into Butterfree."
"Pika," Pikachu chirped at him sympathetically.
TLSTLSTLSTLS
Meanwhile, the mysterious man was doing surveillance on the St. Anne as he was preparing to initiate his dastardly plan.
"It won't be long now," he chuckled evilly while petting his Persian.
Persian then let out a sharp yowl with its eyes glowing red.
Suddenly, the doors swung closed as a loud alarm began ringing loudly.
"Hey!" Ash exclaimed.
There were confused and puzzled murmurs from the guests as the Team Rocket grunts ripped off their disguises and then revealed themselves.
"Oh my God! Team Rocket!" Katie gasped in horror.
"What are they doing here?" Rhonda quipped in an alarmed voice.
"I think we've been had, guys!" Shirley exclaimed in a fearful voice.
"Goddamn it!" Luthor exclaimed angrily, not liking the fact that they've been somehow tricked by Team Rocket.
"Who are they?" a male voice from the crowd asked.
"Hey, hombre, I want my… my money back!" James whimpered timidly as he scanned the crowd in search of the vendor that sold him the Magikarp.
"Are you crazy?!" Jessie snarled as she grabbed James and pulled him away to an isolated corner where no one could see them.
"But I…" James protested.
"We've got work to do!" Jessie barked in an authoritative voice.
Just then, the entire ship plunged into darkness as James and Jessie were standing on a table with the spotlight shining on them.
"To protect the world from devastation…"
"To unite all peoples within our nation…" James sniffled in a sad and tepid voice.
"To denounce the evils of truth and love…"
"To extend our reach to the stars above…"
"Jessie…" Jessie smirked evilly.
"James…" James wailed pathetically.
"Team Rocket. Blast off at the speed of light…"
"Surrender now or prepare to fight…"
"Meowth, that's right!" Meowth cheered as he somersaulted in between James and Jessie.
"What's with him?" Luthor asked with a quizzical yet perplexed expression as he stared at James.
"He's not his usual cocky and arrogant self," Yuki observed.
"Eh, he's probably just having an off day. We all have one," Shirley shrugged nonchalantly.
"Team Rocket will now take possession of your Pokemon," Jessie announced as she and James appeared to be armed with what looked like portable vacuum machines on their backs.
"My Pokemon?"
"They can't do that!"
"What are they talking about? Our Pokemon?"
Just then, a large group of Team Rocket grunts arrived as they began to steal away hundreds of Pokemon with their devices.
"Give me your Pokemon," one of the Team Rocket grunts demanded as he walked over to Misty.
"No way," Misty growled.
"Don't make me take them," another Team Rocket grunt growled threateningly.
"Piss off, you dumb wanker," Rhonda growled viciously with narrowed eyes.
"Don't come any closer," Rebecca ordered as she and her team drew out their weapons and pointed them at the Team Rocket grunts.
"By the order of the IDA, stand down!" Avis bellowed while pointing her gun in the air.
"Pikachu!" Ash yelled as Pikachu unleashed a powerful Thundershock attack, causing the Team Rocket grunt to be severely electrocuted.
"If they're going to try to rob our Pokemon, we might as well make it a battle," Ash declared.
"Yeah, we can't just surrender!" a man agreed.
"Let's fight back," another man suggested, prompting the whole entire crowd to cheer.
"Yeah! Let's go kick some Team Rocket ass!" Luthor cheered determinedly.
It was then that all of the passengers began to toss out their Poke Balls as they summoned all of their Pokemon in a concerted effort to fight off Team Rocket.
"Suck them up, suck them up, suck them all up!" Jessie cackled as she continued to steal hundred of Poke Balls.
"Attaway to go, guys! Keep sucking them up," Meowth cheered enthusiastically. "Make sure you get every last one."
"Squirtle, go!" the older sophisticated man commanded as he summoned his Squirtle.
"Squirtle!" Squirtle squeaked.
"We got to fight them together," Brock declared boldly.
"Pikachu, go!" Ash ordered.
All of the Pikachus then made a pyramid formation as they unleashed a powerful electric attack that sent all of the Team Rocket grunts flying into the air.
"Charmander, I choose you!" Ash ordered as he summoned his Charmander.
"Char!" Charmander growled enthusiastically.
All of the Charmanders on the ship then created a pyramid formation before unleashing a powerful flamethrower attack that knocked away the Team Rocket grunts.
"Pidgeotto, go!" Rhonda ordered as she summoned out her Pidgeotto.
All of the Pidgeottos then formed a pyramid before unleashing a powerful gust of wind that sent more of the Team Rocket grunts flying.
"Weepingbell, go!" Rhonda yelled.
"Waldo, go!" Katie bellowed. "Espeon, go!"
"Jolteon, Growlithe, go!" Yuki cried.
"Bubba, Graveler, go!" Luthor ordered while pumping his fist in the air.
"Golbat, go!" Jasmine hollered.
"Butterfree, go!" Shirley yelled.
All of the aforementioned Pokemon then created pyramid formations together before unleashing all of their respective elemental attacks that sent more Team Rocket grunts flying.
"Geodude, go!" Brock yelled as he summoned his Geodude.
All of the Geodudes then began spinning rapidly in the air while holding hands together and forming a circle as they also knocked away all of the Team Rocket grunts at once.
All of the Bulbasaurs also joined together in a pyramid formation as they all whipped and struck the Team Rocket grunts repeatedly with their vines.
"Now it's my turn. Go Butterfree!" Ash declared as he then tossed his Poke Ball into the air and summoned his Pokemon.
However, to his great surprise and disappointment, Raticate appeared.
"Ash, you traded it, remember?" Misty quipped.
"Oh, yeah," Ash replied dumbly.
He then glanced down at the ground sadly as he soon remembered how Butterfree had evolved from Metapod back in the Viridian Forest and how Butterfree had also fought Misty's Staryu back in Cerulean City.
"I raised that Butterfree all by myself," Ash murmured softly to himself. "I have to get Butterfree back."
"Hand over the Poke Balls!" a Team Rocket grunt ordered.
"Pidgeotto, I choose you!" Ash yelled while throwing out his Poke Ball and summoning Pidgeotto.
"Pidgeotto, group gust!" Ash ordered.
All of the Pidgeottos then gathered together while unleashing a powerful blast of wind that swept many of the other Team Rocket grunts into the air.
"Pikachu, all together, Thunderbolt!" Ash hollered.
All of the Pikachus then made a pyramid formation again as they released a powerful and devastating blast of electricity that sent the last of the Team Rocket grunts flying right out of the ship.
"We did it! Great job!" Ash cried as everyone erupted into enthusiastic cheers and applause. "I think we should all be very proud of our Pokemon. And we taught Team Rocket a lesson they'll never forget."
"I can't wait to get out of this lousy bucket," Jessie groaned dejectedly as she, James and Meowth staggered out into the hallway.
Just then, a huge wave smashed into the side of the cruise ship, causing James, Jessie and Meowth to fly into the air as James lost his grip on the golden Poke Ball.
"Wait, there goes my salary advance!" James exclaimed as he raced after the golden Poke Ball in a desperate panic.
"There goes my money too!" Jessie wailed as she and Meowth dashed after James.
Just then, another powerful wave crashed onto the ship as it began to rock and sway unsteadily.
"I don't like the looks of this," Rhonda stammered nervously.
"It looks like we're caught up in a very nasty storm," Katie surmised.
"Oh, no, it's a big storm," Misty whimpered fearfully as she looked out the window.
"It'll be tough to get back with waves like this," Brock said.
"What?" Misty gawked in horror as she then looked around and noticed that Ash wasn't around.
"Hey, where's Ash?"
"He probably went to go find that trainer to beg him to give him his Butterfree back," Rhonda informed Misty.
"Well, what are you waiting for then? Let's go!" Misty snapped as she and the others ran off to find Ash.
"So you want to go back on our trade?" the older sophisticated man asked quizzically, not understanding why Ash had suddenly changed his mind about the trade.
"Butterfree was the first Pokemon I ever captured," Ash explained empathetically. "I worked very hard training and raising it. Please, can I have it back?"
"You leave me no choice," the older sophisticated man sighed deeply.
"I'm sorry," Ash apologized sadly.
The older sophisticated man then pushed a button as he prepared to trade Butterfree back to Ash.
"These high seas have just pushed us a little off course," the captain tried to reassure the passengers calmly as a small crowd gathered around him.
"A little off course?"
"There's nothing to worry about," the captain chuckled nervously. "We're heading for port now, and besides, this ship is unsinkable. There's absolutely no need for alarm."
"Yeah, that's what they said about the Titanic," Rhonda retorted sarcastically while shooting a pointed glare at Katie.
Just then another wave crashed onto the ship as it began to rock and sway a lot more violently, causing the passengers to gasp out in horror and panic.
"Now, there's no reason to panic. I just thought I'd test out one of the lifeboats," the captain continued as he was sitting in one of the lifeboats dangling in front of the ship's exit.
The passengers then chuckled nervously as they all broke into a panic and made a mash dash for the lifeboat. Everyone then jumped into the lifeboat in a desperate bid to escape the sinking cruise ship.
"Hey! Got to get off the ship!"
"Come on, Ash, we got to go. The ship is sinking," Misty announced in an urgent voice as she and the others arrived in the room where Ash was.
"Hold on," Ash said as the trading machine swapped the Pokemon back to their original owners and he got back his Butterfree.
"Butterfree, please forgive me," he said while clutching the Poke Ball tightly in his hand.
"Now let's get the hell out of here before this ship drags us all down to a watery grave!" Rebecca bellowed in a panicked and terrified voice.
"I don't want to die!" Nuka wailed in terror.
"Don't worry, buddy; it's going to be okay," Nicholas replied while giving him a reassuring smile.
Just then, another wave slammed onto the side of the ship as the resulting rocking motion caused Ash to lose his grip on his Poke Ball as it bounced and rolled away from him.
"Butterfree!" Ash yelled as he raced after it.
"Ash!" Misty cried as she and the others quickly followed after him.
"Wait, there goes my next paycheck!" James wailed as he followed the rolling golden Poke Ball into the kitchen.
"Who cares about your paycheck? What about mine?" Jessie snapped as the trio raced around the kitchen wildly.
"We got to get out of here!" Meowth wailed.
Meanwhile, the people on the lifeboats saw another wave smash onto the ship as it tilted precariously onto its right side and was about to sink.
"Oh, what are we going to do?"
"Oh no!"
Back on the ship, Ash and his friends were racing down the corridors as Ash finally managed to grab his Poke Ball.
"I got you!" he yelled as he held it in his hand.
However, the ship was soon rocked with another violent shaking motion as Ash and his friends were somehow swept off their feet and sent careening into the nearest room.
As for James, Jessie and Meowth, they were still in the kitchen when James also managed to grab his golden Poke Ball in the nick of time. However, they were soon sent flying to the other side as they crashed straight into the wall.
The remaining passengers could only watch helplessly as the ship finally collapsed onto its right side and then flipped upside down as it began sinking into the ocean waves.
"Look, there goes the ship! It's sinking!"
"May I have your attention!" the captain announced with his arms outstretched. "Anyone who didn't leave the ship safely, please say aye."
When no one said anything in response, the captain then put his hands into his pockets with a satisfied smile.
"Good. Well done. Everyone's safe then."
However, unbeknownst to the captain, the heroes were trapped inside the sinking ship as they were lying unconscious on the floor along with Team Rocket. And it appeared that they might as well be doomed to suffer a cruel, miserable fate by drowning at the very bottom of the ocean, never to be seen or heard from again.
TLSTLSTLSTLS
Meanwhile, back in London, England, Jack Manning was standing in the conference room as he saw several red dots blinking rapidly on the screen before suddenly disappearing altogether.
"Goddamn it…" Jack muttered to himself with a disappointed shake of his head. "We lost some really good men and women out there. There's one thing left to do. Agent Channing!"
A middle-aged Caucasian woman with an attractive and beautiful face, large, round cheeks, dark blue eyes and long, wavy and straight black hair walked into the room and saluted to Jack.
"Sir!" she addressed him in a distinct British accent.
She was also accompanied by a much slender younger woman with short, wavy and straight black hair, dark blue eyes, and a much more staunched, angular and oval-shaped face.
"I know that Agent Nolan is a recent transfer from the Intelligence Defense Agency and I also know that you Agent Channing have also worked for MI-6, but I need you and your fellow colleagues to form a new task force to replace the agents that we have lost. We still got a job to do," Jack explained.
"Sir? Shouldn't we try to track down the lost agents? Surely they must be out there somewhere," Agent Nolan questioned him with a raised eyebrow.
"No, it's impossible to recover them especially if they are stuck at the bottom of the ocean inside a sinking ship," Jack shook his head vehemently.
"But sir! We have countless amounts of resources! We have the technology! If we can just go there and try to find them and recover their bodies in order to give their families some closure and peace, we…" Agent Nolan interjected.
"That is a direct order, Agent Nolan! Do you understand me?!" Jack snarled furiously at her with a vicious scowl, his good eye narrowing. "Don't ever question my authority again! We won't discuss this matter anymore!"
Agent Nolan then quickly stepped back in surprise as she was taken aback by the sudden and abrupt change in her boss's demeanor.
However, unbeknownst to them, Esther was listening in on their conversation as she was standing right next to the doorway with a suspicious look on her face.
"What the hell are you up to, Jack? This isn't like you at all…"
TLSTLSTLSTLS
A short time later, Elena was sitting in the living room at home while watching T.V. when suddenly she heard her phone ring. She then picked it up and answered it.
"Hello?"
"Elena, this is Esther," Esther replied in a nervous and apprehensive voice. "I have some bad news. Rebecca and her team went to the Pokemon universe to find Rhonda and her friends and our satellites last detected them on the St. Anne cruise liner. And I'm afraid that ship has sunk into the bottom of the ocean as a result of a bad storm."
"What?! Esther, why aren't you out there looking for them? They could be in serious trouble!" Elena gasped in shock and horror.
"Believe me, I want nothing more than that," Esther sighed deeply while rubbing her temples. "But Jack is not interested in any sort of rescue mission. Instead he's brought in two new recruits to replace our fallen agents. I don't care what he says. I'm going out there to find them."
"So am I," Elena growled determinedly. "I'll meet you there in London. See you in a few hours."
She then slammed the phone into the receiver and turned off the T.V. before getting up from her sofa as she headed for the kitchen.
"Horatio, pack your things. We're going to London," Elena announced as she saw that her husband was sitting at the table while reading the newspaper and eating a sandwich.
"What the hell for?" Horatio scoffed disdainfully, not fully paying attention to his wife.
Elena then marched over to her husband and forcibly snatched the newspaper from him while glaring furiously at him.
"Our daughter and granddaughter are in serious trouble in another universe and we need to go find them! Let's go!" she snarled.
"Goddamn it, woman, how are we going to get on a flight on such short notice?" Horatio groaned while slowly getting up to his feet.
"I still have that private jet that Karissa gave me. We can use it to fly to London and then we can hail a cab to the IDA headquarters," Elena explained as she stormed out of the kitchen and headed up the stairs to her room to go pack a suitcase for her and her husband. "Now come on!"
TLSTLSTLSTLS
A few hours later, Elena and Horatio arrived in London as they headed right into the IDA headquarters with Elena storming right into the conference room.
"What the hell is the meaning of this, Elena?" Jack growled tersely as Elena marched over to him and grabbed him by the collar of his shirt before shoving her face onto his and glaring daggers at him.
"You son of a bitch! You really are going to leave my daughter and granddaughter to die in a strange universe, are you?" she hissed darkly.
"I don't know what you're talking about, you crazy woman," Jack scoffed disdainfully with narrowed eyes.
"Come on you two; this way," Esther urged as she gestured over to the active portal, which was now glowing brightly and spinning rapidly.
Elena then reluctantly let go of Jack as she walked over to Horatio and Esther before she and Horatio charged at the portal and jumped inside.
"This is insubordination, Esther!" Jack snarled indignantly, his eyes burning ferociously with a twisted and deranged scowl. "This is an outright mutiny!"
"I don't take orders from you, Jack! Not anymore!" Esther yelled angrily at him. "You do your best to remember that."
Jack then let out a low growl of anger and frustration as he watched Esther jump right into the portal before she disappeared inside.
"After them, Nolan and Channing!" Jack roared exasperatedly as Agent Nolan and Agent Channing nodded before following the others into the portal.
Moments later the portal fizzled out as it exploded into a bright burst of energy before shutting down altogether.
Jack then growled softly as he walked over to his seat and sank down on it.
"I'm going to get rid of that Iranian bitch one way or another. I just need to find a way…"
