CHAPTER 8

Ash surveyed the situation as he faced the Team Rocket members and his brainwashed friend. Butch and Cassidy were each standing on one side of the hypnotic amplifier, at the opposite end of the boat, while Misty stood in the middle, halfway between Ash and the amplifier.

Ash had to get to that amplifier. It was the only way to get Misty back.

He brought out a pokéball and tossed it, shouting, "I choose you ... Bulbasaur!" The little green Pokémon materialized in an instant.

Misty countered by releasing her Psyduck. The headache that was a side effect of the hypnosis was having its influence, and Psyduck's eyes blazed with intense psychic energies.

"Use your Vine Whip to get that amplifier!" Ash ordered.

The plant creature's slender vines stretched out towards the Exeggcute cage. Misty yelled, "Psyduck, Confusion!"

Bulbasaur's vines never made it. With a rush of psychic energy, Bulbasaur was hurled off the boat and into the sky. "Bulba...!" it screamed.

As Bulbasaur splashed into the sea, about twenty yards away, Ash pulled out another pokéball and released Lapras. "Go get Bulbasaur and make sure it's okay," Ash told the aquatic creature.

Lapras set off, and Ash turned back to face Misty and Psyduck again. This was definitely going to be more difficult than he thought.

*

Pikachu tugged and pulled at the nest of wires attached to him. He had gotten maybe a half of them free, but he still wasn't able to go anywhere.

So far, Jessie, James, and Meowth were too occupied to notice his attempts at freeing himself. Meowth's plan had been simply for them to use Pikachu's electric abilities to catch up to the speedboat and then to sneak away with the electric mouse while the twerp was busy fighting Butch and Cassidy. It was this last part of the plan that was giving them some difficulties as they tried frantically to get the sub in motion again.

"Why aren't we moving, James?" Jessie demanded angrily.

James fiddled with the controls some more, then finally said in resignation, "We're stuck, Jess. The electrical system now has plenty of power, but the drive shaft is broken again."

Jessie was incensed. "What do you mean, broken?" she screeched. "I thought you fixed it on the last island we were on."

"Well, yes," James admitted, "but not that securely. I didn't know at the time that we were going to plow the sub into something."

"Well, what are you standing there for?" Jessie shouted. "Get to work fixing it!"

"Hey, how do we know dat da Pikachu won't try ta overload da electrical system wit' a Thundershock attack?" Meowth asked, while James took out the tools.

"Don't be silly, Meowth," Jessie muttered. "The Pikachu would blow itself up too if it did that. Focus on more important things, like helping James fix the drive shaft."

"And whaddare you gonna do while da two o' us are workin'?"

"Why, I'll be the one to show the resolve and fortitude," she replied loftily, and proceeded to grit her teeth and to assume a determined facial expression.

Meowth muttered something under his breath and turned to the drive shaft, while Pikachu quietly pulled out two more wires. Only about fifty or so left to go.

*

"Squirtle, Hydro Pump!" Ash yelled.

Squirtle retracted its head and legs and sent out spiraling blasts of water at Psyduck. The duck Pokémon, still a powerhouse of psychic energy, telekinetically scattered the torrents of water with ease. Psyduck countered with yet another Confusion attack, and Squirtle cried out in alarm as it went flying.

The little turtle splashed into the ocean waves about thirty yards away. Ash knew that Squirtle would be all right in the water, but he was now in a bad position. Of his six Pokémon, Bulbasaur, Lapras, and Squirtle were now away from him, Charizard was too exhausted from the battle with the Blastoise, and he couldn't release Snorlax, lest he sink the boat. And he had no idea where Pikachu was.

He now backed up to the edge of the boat as Misty and a glowering Psyduck advanced upon him. Butch and Cassidy grinned maliciously. Ash had nowhere to go and he was defenseless.

Suddenly, an idea occurred to Ash and his expression brightened. He reached into his backpack and gently pulled out the little sleeping Togepi inside. He shoved the egg Pokémon towards Misty, and the tiny creature woke up at that instant, smiling happily as it saw her. "To - ge - briiiiiiii!" it chirped merrily at its adoptive mother.

Misty stopped dead in her tracks. Even in her brainwashed state, her maternal protective feelings for Togepi resonated deep within her. She hesitated, unsure of what to do.

"What are you waiting for?" Cassidy yelled furiously. "Blast him away with that duck of yours!"

But Misty couldn't move. Despite the power of the Exeggcutes' hypnosis, she could not bring herself to harm Togepi. She stood transfixed, unable to act. Butch cursed under his breath and turned to the hypnotic amplifier. There was a control on the device that he could use to set the device at full amplification. At this setting, there was a risk of brain damage to the subject, but there would be no more hesitation from Misty. Just complete and unquestioning obedience.

Pikachu detached another wire from his body, and he discovered that he was loose enough to break free. With a burst of adrenaline, he pulled away from the remaining tangle of connections and jumped out of the Magikarp sub. A single leftover wire was still attached to his jagged tail and trailed after him as he ran. Like lightning, he flew down to the speedboat and dashed across the boat straight towards the Exeggcute cage, and so unexpected was his sudden appearance that no one was prepared to stop him.

"Good job, buddy!" yelled out Ash, still holding Togepi out in front of him. "Now do a Thundershock!"

Pikachu landed on the cage and charged up his body. "Pi - ka - CHUUUUUU!" he shouted, as searing electricity coursed through the cage, the Exeggcutes, and the hypnotic amplifier. The Exeggcutes screamed, and various charred electronic components shot off the amplifier in every direction. Misty gave a sharp squeal of pain as a flash of light appeared briefly on the back of her neck, and the gold transceiver, smoking and useless, fell harmlessly to the deck of the speedboat. The girl and her Psyduck both collapsed, finally relieved from the strain of the Exeggcutes' hypnotic influence.

Pikachu's body still contained a considerable amount of residual electric charge, which now drained away on the single wire still connected to his tail. The wire carried the remaining current back into the Magikarp sub, where it merged into the already overtaxed electrical system.

James had just gotten the drive shaft nearly under control when sparks and smoke began suddenly flying all about them.

"What's happening?" Jessie cried out in alarm, as several of the sub's systems began to catch fire.

Meowth looked around. "It's just like I was warnin' ya, da Pikachu overloaded da electrical system wit' its Thundershock attack!" he yelled.

"But that's impossible!" the redheaded Team Rocket member protested. "As I said, it would blow itself up too if it did that ... hey, where is the Pikachu, anyway?"

"Er," said James. He was looking through the periscope and saw Pikachu out of the sub and on top of the now defunct hypnotic amplifier. The electric Pokémon was in the process of disconnecting the final wire still attached to his tail. James commented dejectedly, "I don't think the Pikachu is too worried about blowing itself up."

"NO!" screamed Jessie, as the cabin began to fill with smoke. "I DO NOT ACCEPT THIS! I SAID NO MORE BLAST-" was all she got out before the sub exploded.

Jessie, James and Meowth looked down at the rapidly receding dot that was the speedboat as they made their all-too familiar trip towards the stratosphere.

"So much for not getting blasted away," James commented despondently.

"So much for determination," Jessie added mournfully.

"Well, look on da bright side, Jimmy boy," Meowth said as he looked down at the unsalvageable wreckage that was all that was left of the Magikarp sub. "At least ya don't hafta worry about fixin' dat drive shaft no more."

"LOOKS LIKE TEAM ROCKET'S BLASTING OFF AGAINNNNNNnnnnnnnnn ..." they called out, before vanishing in a sparkle in the distance.

Butch and Cassidy took no notice of the sudden departure of their rival team. They snarled as they faced Ash and pulled out their own pokéballs.

Butch was just about to throw his pokéball when suddenly a light green blur flashed in front of him and the ball was knocked out of his hand with a loud clang. Cassidy asked, "What happen-" but stopped short as the green blur knocked her pokéball out of her hand, too, additionally cutting off one of her pigtails in the process.

The two Team Rocket members froze in place, utterly transfixed by the sudden appearance of two razor sharp steel blades whose dagger-like tips poked into them firmly, one in each of their chests. Before them stood Tracey's Scyther, a wild look in its eyes and saliva dripping eagerly from its mandibles. "Scy - ther!" it screeched at them, and it looked fearlessly in both of their eyes as if to dare them to move. It was a dare that they did not take.

"Ash! Are you okay?" shouted Tracey from behind. He was riding behind Officer Jenny on a police jet ski and holding tightly onto her waist to avoid falling in the water.

"Yeah, Tracey," called out Ash laughingly. "You're just in time."

Butch, still not taking his eyes off of Scyther's sharp blade, shouted as defiantly as he could, "We're in international waters now, copper. You have no authority to arrest us, so call off your green bug here."

Officer Jenny smiled. "You're right that I have no authority to arrest you on the high seas," she said. "But I don't have any authority over the Scyther, either. You see, it isn't mine. It belongs to Tracey, over here." She pointed at the boy behind her for emphasis.

"So," the officer continued, "since I can't arrest you and you're not requesting to be towed back to shore, I have no option but to leave you here." She began to turn the jet ski back towards the island.

Cassidy, her single remaining pigtail hanging awkwardly on one side, grimaced as the giant green bug's blade poked a quarter inch deeper into her sternum. "Officer," she finally declared, scarcely daring to breathe, "I think we'd like to be towed back to the island, please."

Officer Jenny grinned as she took out a pokéball. She released it and an enormous Seaking appeared on the surface of the water. It was at least six feet in length and looked like it weighed at least a hundred pounds. "Seaking!" the huge creature bellowed. Jenny put a harness on the giant fish and attached the other end to the damaged speedboat. The Seaking immediately started heading back towards Satsuma Island, effortlessly towing the boat behind it. Scyther, blades at the ready, glowered at the Team Rocket members the entire trip back.

Half an hour later, they were all back on shore. More than a dozen police cars, their lights flashing, surrounded the little party as they made their way back onto the wharf.

Ash looked on attentively as two paramedics delicately placed Misty's unconscious form on a stretcher and carried her into a waiting ambulance. "Will she be okay?" he inquired anxiously.

The paramedic paused briefly to look at him. "We took her vital signs and they look strong. I think she'll probably be just fine, but they'll check her out at the hospital just to be sure," the paramedic replied.

Meanwhile, Butch and Cassidy, securely in handcuffs, were led up the ramp into the back of a police van. "We're tripling the usual security this time, and arming the police guards with several different kinds of Pokémon," Officer Jenny explained to Tracey. "They won't be getting away this time. It's too bad we weren't able to do anything about that other Team Rocket, though."

Just before Cassidy was forced inside the van, she glanced to the side and noticed the old abandoned bookstore next to the wreckage of what was left of the safe house. Inside the storefront window was an old Pokémon fortune telling book, apparently left behind when the bookstore owner closed up shop.

Seeing the little book gave Cassidy an idea, and she grinned to herself in anticipation. It was only a matter of time before they would be free again, and she already knew what their next venture would be.

*

Misty's eyes opened, very slowly, and found the faces of Ash and Pikachu looking back at her. She was in a bed, and they were in a small, white, antiseptic-looking room.

"Pika pika!" Pikachu exclaimed, happy to see her awake.

"Where am I?" she asked groggily.

"Satsuma City General Hospital," Ash replied. "The doctor said that you need to stay here for observation overnight, but that we should be able to go on to Pummelo as early as tomorrow. Do you remember what happened?"

The girl blinked a few times as she tried to remember. "I remember something about Butch and Cassidy, and that somehow they had control over my actions and I did evil things for them. They made me steal jewelry, and Cympelton's Blastoise, and tried to get me to steal the shiny Magikarp, but you and Tracey stopped them.

"Oh, Ash," she added regretfully, "I'm so sorry that I attacked you and your Pokémon."

Ash laughed. "Don't worry about it, Misty," he reassured her. "You had no control over your actions at the time. It was Butch and Cassidy's fault. But Officer Jenny said they'd be behind bars for a good long time this time. Oh, I almost forgot. Here's Togepi," Ash added, handing the little egg Pokémon to Misty.

As Togepi cuddled in Misty's arms, chirping happily, she asked, "Where are my other Pokémon, Ash?"

"At the Pokémon Center, with Nurse Joy," came the reply. "They're all fine, even Psyduck. Only now that the hypnosis is gone, Psyduck can't remember being able to use such a powerful Confusion attack."

Misty smiled. "I guess it's back to being plain old Psyduck," she mused. As she settled back into bed, she inquired, "Where's Tracey?"

"At the Water Pokémon Festival," Ash answered. "Now that Mr. Simpleton's Blastoise is back and the Magikarp is safe, they're having the last day of the festival today."

"Cym-PEL-ton," Misty corrected, with a tone of exasperation. After a pause, she added, "And I suppose you're going to leave me now and go join the festivities." She tried to be matter-of-fact about it and not sound like she felt left out.

"Uh, well, actually, I was going to stay here and keep you company," Ash said.

"You WERE?" Misty exclaimed. "You mean, you're going to spend time with me and not go off and polish your badges, or eat hors-d'oeuvres, or squirt water in one of those clown mouths with a balloon attached to the top?" She was surprised and very pleased.

"Uh, no," Ash replied, blinking. "I polished my badges just the other day. And I wasn't going to eat anything. I'm not even hungry right now." He couldn't understand where all this was coming from and was very confused. He wondered if maybe this was why the doctor wanted to keep her in the hospital overnight.

Misty was a little embarrassed that she had been babbling. She forced herself to calm down, and replied tranquilly, "Well, okay, thanks, Ash." Looking around, she added, "But what are we going to do? It's not exactly that exciting here in a hospital room."

"Well," the boy replied, "I noticed that the hospital has a little video library for the patients. There was only one video left, so I took it without even seeing what it was." He pulled out a videotape cassette and opened the box. The tape cassette read:

POKÉMON IN LOVE
Directed by Clevon Schpealbunk

Ash, Misty, and Pikachu grimaced as they looked at the tape. Then they looked at each other.

"How about checkers?" Misty asked.

Ash agreed.

*

The Satsuma Island Convention Hall was only slightly worse for wear after it was cleaned up and the hole in one wall was boarded over. Now it was once more packed with visitors, enjoying the last day of the Water Pokémon Festival. News of the theft of the Blastoise and its subsequent recovery had spread like wildfire throughout the Orange Islands, and as a result even more visitors had come to share in the events.

Tracey was in front of the shiny Magikarp tank once again, making a new sketch. He had thrown away his old one and needed to replace it. The majestic fish swam around as delicately as ever, and the crowds around the tank stood in awe of the rainbow of colors reflected from its brilliant scales.

"We meet again," said a calm voice behind him. Tracey turned to see the serene face of Sergio.

"Hello, Sergio," Tracey greeted the Pokémon trainer. Sergio nodded in acknowledgement.

Just then, Cympelton came up to the Magikarp tank. He was very excited. Next to him was an attractive and intelligent-looking brunette woman in a white lab coat.

"Professor Ivy," Cympelton declared proudly, "this is the prize specimen in my collection. A shiny Magikarp, all the way from Rage Lake near Mahogany Town in Johto."

Ivy peered at the Magikarp in the tank and smiled. "You must be testing me," she replied laughingly. "This Magikarp came from a lot closer than that. This looks like one that you'd find around Rind Island right here in the Orange Archipelago."

The crowd around the tank had fallen silent by this time as everyone began to listen in on their conversation. Cympelton and Ivy were both experts in their field, and a disagreement between them would undoubtedly be interesting.

"My dear Professor Ivy," Cympelton responded in a slightly patronizing tone, "the spots on the underbelly leave no doubt that this Pokémon is from Rage Lake."

But Professor Ivy stood her ground. "The underbelly spots are from a fungus that is native to Johto," she explained patiently, "and so you find the Magikarp from there tend to have them, but you can't assume that yours is from there just because it has a certain type of fungus growing on it. The fin structure is what gives it away. You only see that fin shape on Magikarp from this area. Or didn't you know that?"

A few chuckles could be heard from the crowd, as Cympelton stood speechless from shock and embarrassment. Sergio, his voice serene as ever, mentioned, "My friend Tracey here made that very observation the other day."

"Really?" Professor Ivy said with interest, as she turned her attention from the now red-faced Cympelton to Tracey.

"Uh, well, yeah, I guess," Tracey said. "That is what I said."

Somebody in the crowd jested, "Alistair Cympelton may know his water Pokémon, but he needs a refresher course on fungus!" Everyone laughed.

Cympelton looked like he was ready to blow his top at this turn of events, but Professor Ivy paid no attention to him. "Well, you have amazing observational skills for one so young," Professor Ivy declared to Tracey in an impressed tone. "I don't suppose you'd consider taking on a professor's assistant job? My most recent assistant had to leave his position unexpectedly."

"Thank you very much, Professor Ivy," Tracey replied, "but I'm actually waiting to hear from another professor about a position already."

"You see?" Sergio declared to Tracey, with a glance towards the spluttering and thoroughly embarrassed Cympelton. "We all lose sometimes."

Tracey only smiled as he put the finishing touches to his drawing. He decided it would be the first one that he showed to Professor Oak when they reached Pallet Town and he asked for that assistant's job. And he was confident that he could get it. For the first time in his life, he truly believed in himself.

THE END