A Way Out

"Are we going to dive underwater next?" Ash asked.

Brock gently swirled his hand through the seawater and said worriedly, "But what if we dive down and swim for ages, only to find a dead end or a hatch we can't open? We'd be in real trouble."

"That's what Pokémon are for!" Misty took out her Poké Ball and released a Goldeen into the water. "Goldeen, go down and take a look! Find us a way out!"

Goldeen nodded and sank beneath the surface, disappearing in an instant.

Yet even after a long wait, Goldeen still hadn't returned.

"Is it no use after all?"

Misty frowned. Just as she was about to go down and investigate herself, ripples suddenly spread across the water.

After a moment, the surface parted, and the first thing to emerge was a human head with disheveled hair, looking for all the world like a drowned ghost!

Everyone had been watching so intently that the sight made them jump. Misty even screamed and hid behind Xia You, clutching the hem of his clothes as she trembled.

Xia You was a little braver than the girls. He forced himself to stay calm, and as the head rose farther out of the water, he realized it was actually the Team Rocket Trio, stacked on top of one another as Goldeen pushed them up from below.

"Don't be scared, everyone. It's Team Rocket."

Xia You patted Misty's shoulder. Only after she saw that it really was the Team Rocket Trio did she breathe a sigh of relief.

"What the heck? Why were they in the water?"

Jessie, James, and Meowth lay on the floor, each coughing up several mouthfuls of seawater. They had been barely clinging to life, their eyes rolling back, but the moment they heard Misty's voice, their energy returned and they all sprang to their feet.

Jessie shouted, "Of all the people to run into, it had to be you!"

In an instant, both sides squared off and took out their Poké Balls. Jessie and James released Ekans and Koffing, while Ash and Brock sent out Squirtle and Geodude.

"Hey, hey!" Misty thrust out her arms between them, hurriedly trying to stop things from escalating. "Get this straight: my Goldeen just saved you! And look around! This is no time for a fight! If we don't find a way out soon, we'll all die here!"

Despite her words, Ash, Brock, and the Team Rocket Trio continued glaring fiercely at one another, neither side willing to back down.

Just then, James spotted Xia You standing nearby. Pointing at him in surprise, he said, "Ah! It's you! Thanks so much for earlier. If it weren't for you, that guy selling Magikarp would have scammed me!"

"You idiot! We're the bad guys! Why are you thanking someone?" Jessie gave James a hard knock on the head, then asked in confusion, "Come to think of it, who is he?"

James flushed slightly and didn't dare tell her the truth. If Jessie found out he had nearly taken an advance on both their salaries to buy a Magikarp that could do nothing but flop around, she would definitely kill him herself.

"Let's all stop here," Xia You urged. "Misty's right. We really don't have much time!"

With Xia You stepping in to mediate, both sides finally recalled their Pokémon.

After asking a few questions, Xia You and the others learned that Team Rocket's two humans and one cat had also failed to leave the S.S. Anne in time. After the cruise ship capsized, their desperation to escape had driven them to break straight through the hull, allowing seawater to flood the cabin and sweep them into the current.

If Goldeen hadn't happened to pass by, the trio would probably have drowned already.

"Hmph, fine." Jessie planted her hands on her hips and said haughtily, "But don't get full of yourselves. This is only a temporary truce. It doesn't mean we'll let you off in the future!"

"Say..." Xia You ventured. "You don't have any Water-type Pokémon, do you? We'll have to escape through the sea in a moment. Is it really a good idea to act so high and mighty?"

"Well..."

The Team Rocket Trio's expressions changed, as though they had only just realized the problem. Their attitudes instantly did a complete about-face, and they all bowed in apology.

"Ah! We're sorry! We were wrong!"

Xia You smiled and shook his head. No matter how grim the atmosphere was, their presence seemed to turn it into something silly and cheerful.

With Team Rocket dealt with, they could finally discuss a plan in peace.

Brock rubbed his chin and asked, "So how exactly are we going to get out of here?"

"Leave that to me." Misty puffed out her chest. "I made a model of the S.S. Anne once, so I know its layout very well. Since the route below is blocked, we'll have to go up. I remember the bottom of the hull beneath the engine room being fairly thin. If we make a hole there, we can escape!"

Ash and the others nodded in agreement. Only Xia You objected.

"We can't make a hole in the bottom of the hull!"

"Huh?" Misty asked, puzzled. "Why not?"

"If we break through the bottom of the hull, the water will pour down from above," Xia You explained. "The pressure will be enormous, and swimming up against the current will be very difficult. Besides, once we breach the hull, the air pressure will become unbalanced, and seawater will quickly fill the entire ship. If we fail to escape through that hole, there definitely won't be enough time to try anything else."

"Oh, I see," Misty said in realization. "Then do you have a plan?"

Xia You continued, "Since everything below is already underwater, why not have the Water-type Pokémon break through a section of the hull in that flooded area and swim out with us? The water pressure we face head-on should be much lower that way!"

"But if we do that..." Misty hesitated. "It'll take longer than going out through the top. I'm afraid we won't be able to hold our breath that long."

"Don't worry about that. I took a look out the window earlier. The ship may have sunk, but the seabed here is fairly high. We're actually not that far from the surface."

As he spoke, Xia You pointed at the seawater by their feet.

"And look! What are those?"

Everyone looked down. In the direction Xia You was pointing, several plastic water bottles were floating on the surface!

Once their drinks had been finished, the bottles had filled with air. Somehow, they had floated all the way here!

"We can hold the bottles to our mouths," Xia You said. "Even one extra breath should let us last a few minutes longer than usual. And the water here isn't deep, so we don't have to worry about the pressure crushing them!"

Had someone else raised this objection, Misty might have stuck to her own plan. But once Xia You spoke up, she became his staunchest supporter.

As for the others, they exchanged glances, unable to make up their minds. But since Misty supported Xia You, they had nothing left to argue about.

"All right, let's do it that way!"