The crowd had gone from roaring with excitement to stunned silence. Gasps, murmurs, and panicked questions rippled through the audience as the Lugia-shaped mecha vanished beneath the sea, dragging the girls with it.
The Cloyster and Tentacruel robots were still above, looking around as if monitoring them.
Of course, Misty's sisters were panicking out of their minds.
"They took Misty!" Daisy shrieked, hands clutched to her face.
"And Nessa and Maya too!" Violet cried, looking helplessly at the water.
"What do we do!?" Lily asked, standing on her seat as if that would help.
"Misty… Nessa… and Maya… they're really gone." Yellow's voice trembled. She clenched her fists against her pants as Chuchu rubbed her arm. "They just took them."
Ash's fists were clenched so tight his knuckles turned white. He was about ready to punch something. Pikachu was at his side, ears flattened and cheeks sparking. Vee, standing beside him, growled low in his throat.
"That's it," Ash muttered. "Now I'm pissed off."
Nearby, Officer Jenny barked into her radio, voice tense but professional. "All units converge on the stadium's docks! We're going after that sub. Backup incoming."
But not like that would help, because there were also Team Rocket members along with the two mechs fighting back against the few people who were battling, and with Wallace out of the fight for fear that Misty, Nessa, and Maya would get hurt.
Ash unzipped his hoodie and took off his hat. "I'm going after them."
"Wait, what?" Brock said. "Wait, you can't be serious."
"I have Water-types. They can help me down there," Ash said, giving his hat to Pikachu and putting his bag on the ground.
"Can't you get Abby to teleport you?" Yellow asked.
"Teleporting through water is tricky, same with trying to teleport through lead. Not to mention, if they're in a submarine, they're probably moving, so it would take too long," Ash said, looking at Pikachu. "If you want to come with me, you have to go into the Pokéball, or you're staying up here."
Pikachu's eye twitched. He sighed and nodded. "Pika… [Fine, but let me out as soon as we're there.]"
Ash nodded, grabbed his Pokéball, and returned Pikachu, hat and all.
He looked at Brock and Yellow. "Take care of things here. Those robots are the problem. Can I trust you with that?"
Brock still hesitated to let Ash go on his own, but he sighed, knowing he couldn't stop him. "Fine. When you get back, you'll find them as scrap metal."
Yellow looked up at Ash and gulped. "Stay safe… and bring them back. Please."
Ash nodded, grabbed a rebreather from his bag, and slipped it into his pocket. "I will. Don't worry about me, I'm just going for a 'walk.'" Ash said as he started running, not directly to where they went, but off to the side so no one would see him. Vee ran beside him as he switched his ring to water mode.
When they reached the edge, Vee and Ash jumped in. Ash gave Vee a high five. Vee started glowing, and together, they dove into the water to begin the rescue.
—-----
Misty, Nessa, and Maya were pinned in place by sleek magnetic restraints clamped to their wrists and ankles as the robot Lugia swam downward, connecting with a submarine and launching them into a holding cell.
Inside the submarine, the walls pulsed with eerie blue light. Strange machinery hummed with a low, mechanical growl. Misty and Nessa were flung onto the floor of a chamber, while Maya was set down gently, still clutching the Great Sea Spirit Sapphire staff in her arms.
Misty pushed herself up. Her arms were red from how tightly she'd been grabbed. Her head throbbed, but her voice was sharp. "Are you okay?" she asked Maya first, then glanced sideways at Nessa. "You too?"
"I've had better mornings," Nessa said flatly, brushing her soaked hair out of her face. Her gaze didn't meet Misty's.
Maya gave a soft sigh. "This place… it reeks of distortion. The Sea Spirit Sapphire trembles."
Before Misty could ask what that meant, the wall ahead of them shimmered. A screen blinked on. Dr. Namba's face filled the space, his expression smug.
"Ah, my lovely guests. Welcome aboard my submarine. I do hope you feel comfortable inside your cell."
"What is it you want, you monster?" Maya said, clutching the staff tightly.
"Did you really think we'd let a trinket like the Sea Spirit Sapphire remain in such primitive hands?" he sneered, glancing at Maya. "You're a relic, dear Priestess. A voice of the old ways. But we've found a better use for your power. I'll cut to the chase, hand over the Great Sea Spirit Sapphire, and things will be much simpler."
"You're corrupting the sea's balance," Maya said, her voice low and powerful despite her chains. "The Sea Spirit Union will reject you. The ocean does not serve tyrants."
"Well, looks like we have no choice but to do things the hard way. Good," Namba said as he pressed a button. Floor panels opened up beneath them, revealing more mechanical arms that grabbed their wrists before they could reach for their Pokéballs.
The ones that grabbed Maya forced her arms open, allowing another to steal the staff, while others snatched Misty and Nessa's Pokéballs.
"No, you can't!" Maya cried, but Namba ignored her. The robots dropped them again and placed the stolen items on a table across the room, except for the one holding the Sea Spirit Sapphire. That one disappeared into a trap door, taking the staff with it.
Maya's cry echoed in the metal chamber as the staff vanished into the trap door with a final, echoing clang. The moment it was gone, the lights dimmed briefly, as if the submarine itself exhaled, cold, victorious, and wrong.
Misty slammed a fist against the floor, fury flashing in her eyes. "You slimy cowards—!"
Nessa turned sharply. "Don't waste your energy," she said, her voice tight. "We need a plan, not a tantrum."
Misty whipped her head around. "Excuse me?"
"You heard me." Nessa stood now, shaking water off her sleeves, keeping her back to Misty. "We're trapped. Again. And yelling won't get us out of here."
"And what, brooding will? At least I'm trying," Misty snapped, stepping forward. She wasn't yelling because she was angry at Nessa, she was yelling because she was scared. "If you've got something to say to me, just say it already!"
Maya looked between them, silent. The loss of the staff weighed heavy in her chest, but the tension between the other two made her heart ache just as much. "Please," she said softly, "this isn't the time to fight. The Sea Spirit... it's in danger now."
Misty turned away, jaw clenched, her eyes shimmering with emotion. "I know," she muttered, more to herself than anyone else. "I know it's not the time. I just—"
Nessa exhaled and slowly turned to face her. Her voice softened. "We're both scared, okay? And we both hate being powerless." She hesitated. "I don't hate you, Misty. Even after what you said."
There was a pause between them. Misty walked to the side of the cell and sat down on the floor, putting her face into her knees.
"I don't hate you either," she said, quieter now.
For a moment, there was silence. Then she spoke again, voice soft and shaking. "I'm sorry… for what I said…"
Nessa didn't move at first. She just stood there in the dim glow of the submarine, watching Misty like she was seeing her for the first time, not as a rival, but as a girl trembling under the weight of years she never asked to carry.
"…I know that wasn't really about me," Nessa said finally, her voice gentler now, though still edged. "Not all of it, at least."
Misty didn't look up. "No," she said. "It wasn't. But I still said it."
Silence stretched between them. Maya remained quiet too, listening with a calm but attentive expression, like she knew this was a tide that had to rise before it could fall.
Misty drew in a shaky breath. "You ever grow up being told you were just… extra? Like the spare sibling? My sisters, they were beautiful, graceful, and everyone loved them. And me? I was the weird tomboy. The one who liked playing in the dirt, fishing, and Mudkips." She gave a dry, bitter chuckle. "They laughed when I said I wanted to be a real trainer. Told me I could try, but I'd never be like them."
Her voice quieted, but the room still vibrated with the weight of her words, things she'd never dared admit aloud before. Misty kept her face buried in her knees, her voice barely more than a breath. "I worked so hard… and no one ever saw it. Just the hair. Her dress. Their smiles. I was just the 'little sister with a temper.'"
"Sure… we've been making up. They apologized, and they promised they'd be better, but… it still happened. I still think about it… most nights," Misty mumbled. The trauma lingered, and maybe it always would.
"I'm sorry I told you you didn't work for it," Misty whispered without lifting her head. "It's just… when I saw you, you're pretty, and you're also a Gym Leader, you reminded me of them. And they never took the Gym seriously. They made it a laughingstock."
"Wait… Gym… Waterflower… sisters," Nessa said, realization dawning. "Your sisters are the so-called Sensational Sisters? Leaders of the Cerulean City Gym? I thought that last name sounded familiar..."
"Yeah. I was the fourth one. The one they didn't talk about. The one no one talked about. When I saw them, they didn't care about the Gym. They cared more about their shows and modeling and… I just compared them to you. I thought you probably got your Pokémon handed to you, and that you cared more about modeling too..." Misty said, digging her fingers into her arms.
"I'm sorry… it wasn't fair. It's just… it was easier to think you were like them than to admit the truth," she said, then took a breath and finally looked up at Nessa, eyes shimmering with held-back tears. "When I look at you, I see everything I've ever wanted to be. And… I was jealous. And scared…"
The silence stretched, heavy and painful.
Then Nessa moved. She walked over and sat next to Misty on the floor.
"I do get it," she said, voice steady but no longer cold. "You're not the only one who had to fight to be seen."
Misty's head lifted slightly, confused.
"I wasn't handed anything," Nessa continued. "Do you know how many times people tried to make me choose? Trainer or model? 'Pick one, you can't be both.' 'You're too pretty to be taken seriously.' 'Why don't you smile more when you battle?' I got told I was just a face. That my looks sold tickets, not my skill."
Misty blinked. That… wasn't what she expected.
Nessa sighed heavily. "Truth is… I didn't even want to be here. Chairman Rose, the big-shot from the Pokémon League, he signed me up without asking. And ever since, he's been trying to push me out of modeling. Says I should 'focus' on being a Gym Leader."
"I know the photoshoots didn't help my case. People thought I was just some pretty face. But honestly? I only model once a month. Not every day. I think Rose is just trying to scare me out of it. And… it's working."
"What do you mean?" Misty asked quietly. "Aren't you happy?"
Nessa laughed, bitter and low. "Happy? No. I couldn't be. I've got no one here I can really talk to. My team… they don't see me as anything but a model. We don't hang out outside of shoots. And let's not even talk about other people. So no, I haven't been happy since I came to Johto."
She leaned back, eyes on the ceiling. "I'm not perfect, Misty. Not even close."
"But you looked like it," Misty said softly. "And it made me feel like I was still that forgotten little girl in the corner of her sisters' spotlight again. The one no one ever picked first. The one who had to be different just to be seen."
Nessa didn't interrupt.
"I know I shouldn't have taken it out on you," Misty continued, her voice quieter now. "But when you tried to be nice… it felt fake. That smile you gave me, when you said you wanted to be friends, it looked just like the one they used to give me before asking for something. I guess I just… reacted. I didn't even give you a chance."
There was a pause. Then, Misty whispered more clearly, "I'm sorry. You didn't deserve that. And I shouldn't have judged you based on someone else's actions. That was wrong."
Nessa turned to face her fully now. "And I'm sorry too. I pushed too hard. I didn't see the signs. But looking back… it was kinda obvious you were holding something back every time you looked at me."
Maya finally stepped forward. Her voice was calm, but carried a soft, mournful strength. "The ocean remembers," she said, her hands glowing faintly with a soft sea-blue light. "It remembers pain. It remembers joy. And it always forgives, if you let it."
Misty blinked up at her. "What does that mean?"
Maya looked at them both, really looked, and in their eyes, she saw all the tides they'd weathered, all the storms they'd carried. She sat across from them and said, "You don't need to carry those old tides with you forever. Let them flow out. Let yourself heal. The Great Sea Spirit speaks through those who listen, and she says your bond isn't broken, just tested."
Nessa looked over at her. "Do you… really talk to the ocean?"
"I listen," Maya replied with a faint smile. "Sometimes, that's enough."
Misty let her head rest back against the wall. Her throat was tight, but she wasn't angry anymore. Just tired, in the way waves are tired after crashing against the shore too long.
"I used to talk to my Pokémon like that," she said softly. "When I was little. Before I met my friends… when I didn't have anyone else."
"I still do," Nessa said, glancing toward the table where their Poké Balls lay. "Drednaw always knew when I was upset. He'd give me little playful nibbles when I was stressed."
Misty let out a small snort. "Psyduck used to do the same. Except his idea of cheering me up was a well-aimed Confusion beam."
Nessa laughed, and the sound loosened something heavy in Misty's chest.
"…I'm not good at this," Misty admitted. "Talking. Feelings. Usually I just yell or lash out. Sometimes I hit my friends when I'm mad, because that's how I learned people listened to me. I always feel bad after… especially when they're still so nice to me."
"They sound like good friends. Do they help you… with all this?" Nessa asked gently.
"Yeah... when I'm with them, the pain disappears a little. Before I met them, I never had anyone I could really call a friend. Just my Pokémon." Misty hesitated. "Sometimes I wonder… if I hadn't gone to Route 1 that day, what would've happened to me. I'd probably still be stuck in my anger. Not getting any stronger."
"Yeah... maybe," Nessa said with a scratch to her cheek. "You know, I guess we had more in common than we thought. We probably could've skipped all the arguing last night."
Misty chuckled softly. "Yeah, I guess you're right. Sorry again."
"You're forgiven," Nessa said, waving it off. "Now let's focus on getting out of here."
"Yes," Maya said, her tone suddenly sharper, her eyes narrowing with purpose. "And we must recover the Great Sea Spirit."
"Why is it so important? And why would they want it?" Nessa asked.
"The Sea Spirit is the spirit of the ocean," Maya said solemnly. "It gives me the blessing of the sea… but there's more. The one who gave the gem to my ancestors was Lugia."
Nessa's eyes widened. Misty sat up straighter.
"If they have it," Maya continued, "I fear they may be after Lugia."
"Gee, great," Misty muttered, rubbing her temples. "I can never get a break."
She stood up and cracked her knuckles. "Alright, then. We get the gem back, and we beat the crap out of these creeps."
"How? We're stuck in here, and our Poké Balls are all the way over there on the table," Nessa muttered, frustration creeping into her voice. "We can't reach them… How are we supposed to get out of here?"
Just then, Misty's eyes lit up. She stood suddenly, an idea sparking behind her eyes.
"Actually… I think we're fine."
She walked up to the edge of the cage and yelled, "Psyduck! Come on out! I'm sorry for ever saying you were stupid! Get out here, you lovable duck!"
Nessa and Maya exchanged puzzled looks, until, with a burst of red light, one of Misty's Poké Balls on the table clicked open.
Out waddled Psyduck.
He stood there holding his cheeks and blushing, tail wagging happily. He spun in a little circle and immediately bonked into the table leg, knocking over a PokéBall with a loud clink.
Misty grinned. "There you are! You always find a way out when I least expect it."
Psyduck blinked at her, confused, but clearly proud of himself for simply existing.
Nessa stood, stunned. "Wait, how did he even get out? The lock systems on those Poké Balls should be—"
"He's Psyduck," Misty said with a shrug. "I stopped trying to make sense of him a long time ago. Now come on, Psyduck! See that button? Push it!"
Psyduck squinted at the control panel Misty was pointing to. He waddled over and reached up, but the button was too high. He looked around, tilted his head, and spotted the Poké Ball he'd knocked over.
Nessa leaned forward. "Psyduck! That one, it's Drednaw! Push the button on that Poké Ball!"
Psyduck picked it up with his stubby flippers, holding it like a very confused coconut. His eyes crossed as he turned it over a few times, then, by fate or pure dumb luck, he dropped it.
The Poké Ball hit the ground, bounced once… and burst open in a flash of light.
"Drednaw!" Nessa cried out with relief.
The giant snapping turtle Pokémon snorted as he appeared, his gaze locking instantly on the cell and his trainer behind it. Psyduck poked Drednaw, then pointed dramatically at the button.
Understanding immediately, Drednaw lumbered over and planted himself under the button. Psyduck scrambled up his shell with great effort, wobbled a bit, and finally slammed his flipper down on the panel.
Click.
The cell doors hissed and swung open.
Misty was the first out, dropping to her knees and hugging Psyduck tightly, burying her face into his derpy grin, "You absolute legend! I swear I'll never insult you again, you stupid, adorable, derpy duck!"
Psyduck let out a happy honk.
Nessa stepped out next, rubbing Drednaw's thick head with affection. "Thanks. You always know how to help me."
Maya hurried to the table, searching desperately. She reached for a sealed slot and tugged at it. "It's no use. They've already taken it… They have the staff."
Her voice was calm, but laced with urgency now. "We need to go after it. Now."
Misty and Nessa exchanged a glance, then moved to the table and gathered their PokéBalls, strapping them securely back onto their belts.
"Stick with us," Misty said, voice firm. "We'll get out of here, together."