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The Fishbone - Center of the Ship

The volcano flared and Zack felt like he had, of all things, slipped on a banana peel. The incredulity only lasted a moment before he flew backward and the smoke-sodden corridor whirled red and grey. He collided with the far wall. Everything turned black, and his limbs betrayed him fully. A fire had started. He could smell it. Zack couldn't move except with the greatest of effort. First he slid his hand to his chest, worked himself onto his elbow. It hurt, which was good, gave him something to fight. He grit his teeth, slumping upwards against the wall as Hazard flew towards him.

The Fishbone rocked, its innards groaning and gushing. They had finally hit the water. Zack stood at the intersection between two corridors. If he left now he might still have time to escape before the Fishbone sank beneath the waves. Ska wasn't too far away, even now, through the smoke and the heat and fire. Even if he hated him, Zack couldn't leave someone to die. Not again.

'We need an exit,' Zack spoke, but his voice came out aged. Like himself, but fifty years older. He coughed, ribs grinding with each breath. Great. Still Hazard nodded, and flew off in search of a way out of the ship. The path Zack had traveled might not be there anymore. Zack drove his feet through the soil, staggering towards Ska, and the ship lurched again, like an animal howling in pain. Its death rattle took the trainer's legs from under him as the floor tipped on its end.

Zack caught a pipe by his fingertips and swung into the wall. Below him was black nothing. Debris fell past, guiding Zack's eyes toward an open double-doorway on the side of the vertical corridor. His fingers seared with heat, urging him to drop. Zack fought the pain, swinging his other arm up, grabbing the ledge above him. As he hoisted himself up, smoke filled Zack's lungs, his forearms cut and bled on the craggy rock. He strained through the dark haze, tainted red by the ship's emergency lighting. There was Ska. His leg had caught beneath debris. Zack squinted, and the captain's face shifted. Ska looked directly at him, terror in his eyes. Desperate and accusing.

'Zack, please, you gotta help me!' Ska pleaded, but it wasn't his voice. It wasn't. 'I can't- I can't get out.'

Rock slid from the tunnel above, crashed into the earth at Zack's side, and he fell into the pit of nothing. It stretched below him endlessly. No. Now he saw it. The heat rising to meet him, and with it a blazing orange glow in a basin of pulsing rock. The heart of the volcano. The pit of Zack's despair. He closed his eyes or else they would burn from their sockets.

Pressure caught Zack's midsection, pushed the air from his lungs as he slammed into the side of the corridor. He opened his eye a crack and saw Serene opposite him, a vicious pink claw projected from her with psychic force. Her Psyshock. Serene suspended Zack over the black pit, and pulled him to where she stood in the open double-doorway. She seemed every bit as exhausted as Zack did, but still she helped with the final pull herself as she dragged him to safety.

'Thanks,' he gasped, breathing better away from the smoke. He could stand, he told himself as his hands shook against the wall, though his legs screamed with the effort. Zack turned, and cast a final look into the pit. No volcano. He could see the far wall, pipes and wires and debris that floated in a shallow bath of saltwater. It steadily rose as the Fishbone sank into the depths, but in a flash of light they were gone.

---

[I'm seriously gonna kill you if you don't let go,] Malis growled, but he could've sworn that just made the Stunky grip his tail tighter. They had escaped the proverbial fire, but as their entrance went from horizontal to vertical, and Malis had to keep himself upright by clinging to a drainpipe, he sensed the frying pan heat up. He stared at the blue overhead, sliced in two by the Fishbone's deck as it slowly rotated across the sky and water began to trickle in.

It caught his flesh with a hiss and Malis flinched back. To a fire type, any water may as well be boiling for the good it did. And though it began with a trickle, a few drops then a stream, it wasn't long before saltwater sloshed over the edge. Malis eyed Loki irritably. The genius sure took his time figuring things out. The Charmeleon considered kicking Stunky off his tail and Flame Jetting back to the mainland, but he didn't fancy his chance of failure, or the long soak underseas that would soon follow.

[Figure something out, you c**k,] Malis snarled at Loki, then nearly jumped out of his scales when a grinning face pushed its way through the wall beside him. The cackle gave her away. [Hazard.]

[Kekeke,] the ghost span around in the air. [You're in a bind. Maybe you'll be a ghost soon too, then you can just float out of ******** off,] Malis replied. [But help me first.]
[Fear not, but say you did for I have a budding reputation to maintain,] Hazard's yellow teeth practically glinted. [Listen carefully, and that includes the guy with the moustache. I have a very cunning plan.]

A chunk of water spilled directly onto Malis's head.

The Tower of Mastery

The courtyard outside the tower lit up in a flash of light. Zack hit the ground almost immediately, but this time he didn't force himself to his feet. He was done. Serene hovered over him, her hands outstretched to project her Healing Pulse. It ate away at Zack's pain, numbing the sharp grind of his ribs that flared with each breath he took, and eased his cuts closed. The trainer was aware of movement around him, the shouts of soldiers and the relieved chatter of civilians. Tears spilled down his cheeks.

'Safe, I see,' said a voice that could only belong to Gurkinn. Zack wiped his eyes while the old guru hung at his peripheral, unharmed from the chaos. 'That is good. Very good.'

Zack sat upright with a grunt. Gurkinn had been accompanied by his Mega Medicham who, as if to signal the close of the battle, devolved into its normal form. Gurkinn seemed displeased as he watched Absolon's forces take control of the island. Zack recalled how Lord Nostrad wanted any excuse to get into the island's vault, and figured this attack would do fine.

'Sorry this had to happen,' Zack said. He thought about standing up, but Serene hadn't finished yet. 'It wasn't supposed to go down like this.'
Gurkinn stared at Zack for a long breath. 'I think, Zack, that Skarada would have attacked the island regardless of how you and your friends acted. You were children making war with a soldier.'

Zack took off his sunglasses and watched the pirates be rounded together while the tower's residents threw stones at them. 'Yeah. We were.'

Shalour City

A sound caught on the wind. It was long, high pitched. As if something were screaming: 'Chaaaaaaaaaaaaaa-'

And if you looked in the distance, you might see it. A Gengar, a Charmeleon, and a Stunky who flew across the ocean waves. The Gengar held the Charmeleon by his armpits, while the Charmeleon blazed fire from his fists in an effort to keep all three from meeting the ocean waves. But still, the weight was great, and the lizard's fire could only provide so much lift. They skimmed the water. And skimmed. And met the shore with a final surge of heat that propelled them into the street.

[-uuuuuck!] Malis howled as he hit the road and rolled to a halt right in front of Ben and Sal. Hazard rose through the air, cackling at the disgruntled fire type. The distance would be great, but her voice was aided by another's psychic abilities. Still she shouted.
[Heeeeey, moustache guuuuy! Use that Ally Swiiiiitch! I'll just fly baaaaaack!]

It sure was a good thing Gengar could Levitate.

The Fishbone - Center of the Ship

It was the crash that changed everything. The Scizor's battle ended in that moment, the sudden lurch and crash, followed by the second impact, shook the entire ship and Ecarlate immediately lost his opponent.

***

Their was a sudden panic as Helena woke up seconds after the ship had touched water.

With a gasp, her eyes opened wide, and her eyelids felt heavy, weighing on her with a prickle of inevitable unconsciousness that hung in the darkness at the edge of her vision. Helena's head ached, and she knew that she had hit it. Once before the crash, and once after.

Stay conscious.

She was laying in a corridor, on her way to Zack's last known position. The soothing pulse of Sylveon's presence comforted Helena, kept her sane. The teenager trainer climbed to her feet, using one of the now still walls for support. Water was flooding in from below, and there was a cry from the ships hull as the pressure of it pushed through the ship. It echoed alongside the sounds of Pokemon and people who had not yet escaped the ship.

With labored breaths, Helena pushed forwards. Back toward Zack, back the way she had come. "Go on ahead," the trainer said, more quietly than she had been expecting. The Sylveon didn't listen, instead the Pokemon stayed by her side.

It would take minutes before she'd get out of the ship.

Ecarlate arrived then, like a gift from heaven. He approached her quickly, and she collapsed into him when he arrived. "Is Zack okay?"

Ecarlate shrugged in response, and looked back toward where they had come in from.

He doesn't know.

"Keep up," she told Sylveon as Ecarlate hoisted her up and the two were off, the clangs of Ecarlate's feet against the ground replaced by the splashing of the water that quickly filled the ship.

The shot through the place up until Helena called for Ecarlate to "stop!"

He did abruptly, curious as to why she was saying this now. There wasn't a lot of time left to get out of the ship.

"Ska," she climbed from Ecarlate's arms and approached the pirate captain. She was not slow or cautious. He was alone, and dead. With a panic and growing dread, Helena would search the Captain for his deck of cards, and possibly anything else of value along the way. If they took too long to find, or none were left, she'd abandon the effort. However, if found, she'd quickly shove them into her bag and Ecarlate would scoop her up again.

Soon, they'd arrive out on the deck, after Loki and Hazard would have swapped places and then Hazard would have flown back, unless Hazard had the morbid curiosity to linger.

Seconds before this moment, from the tower, onlookers could see the emerald streak of energy carry the Quillon to the deck.

The ground shook when he landed and Ecarlate quickly let Helena down.

Absolon landed, jumping down from the back of his Talonflame, seconds after.

"Helena. What are you doing here?"

The Quillon eyed the teenager, in one hand the Emerald Sunny Day was grasped in it. He rose the other, his right hand, pointing a finger at Helena's head.

Ecarlate tensed but didn't move. Helena felt her heart skip a beat. "I was trying to stop the cannon," she said very quickly, staring down the barrel of the Quillon's Solar Beam.

The spark of green energy began to circle its finger, and it only stopped when Absolon said "wait."

"She's clear. Come on, I'll take you to shore." He offered his hand.

Helena was fixated on the Quillon's finger, green energy receding. He had fully intended to fire, only stopping at Absolon's command. The teen looked to the soldier and nodded, returning Ecarlate and gesturing for Sylveon to follow. Absolon would help them onto the Talonflame and they would take off back to the Tower of Mastery.

Landing in the courtyard, Helena would collapse to the ground, falling to her knees.

Tower of Mastery - Courtyard

A second later, the Quillon landed next to her as Absolon climbed down from the back of his Pokemon.

"You should get to a hospital," Absolon said, and then he stepped away, heading toward where he had ordered the pirates to be rounded up at. Talonflame and the Quillon followed.

Shalour City

Hazard, Malis and their passenger descended to the street, tumbling in front of Salieri and Benedict’s company. Stunky’s claws detached themselves from Malis as she rolled onto her back, dazed with her feet in the air. [I thought I was dead~]

At Ben's accepting gesture, Reynard blew a gentle cooling breath onto where his fingertips once were. The area frosted over. Ben would feel a dull pang of cold that would settle into a numbness comparatively more comfortable than the pain. His ring and middle fingers weren't even half gone. Salieri had seen worse wounds get better. With the right healer, for the right price, he could get his whole hand back.

Sal did try to cut in, but held herself when Ben lifted a hand. A detached association came to her suddenly, and she realized she recognized this particular irritation before. This was the kind of angry Mia would be when they did group projects in school, and the work wasn't doled out right. They'd still pass, but for Mia that was never the point. Realigning with their current reality, Sal couldn't say this theory totally applied, but she could understand Ben's frustration.

What she wrestled with now was how to tell her side of the story without having to explain everything. Salieri still had yet to confront some of the things she said and did on that ship internally and she certainly wasn't going to start doing it here, out loud, now.

"You want better communication? Buy me a new phone." Sal held up her wrist, where the remains of her Pokégear clung on. A leather strap, some copper wire and shards of yellow plastic. "Mine turned into a talking weapon. And blew up. When I was keeping the teleporting kung-fu Psychic busy. Again, you're welcome."

She put her sunglasses back on and looked to the sea with her back to Benedict and the Pokémon. Smoke rose from the wreckage of the ship that she once called home. It was a bittersweet visual for putting part of her past to rest. She fumbled with the Trap Card belt she had taken from the bridge, still slung across her chest.

They saved the city. She still had yet to get what she wanted. Today had been a longer, weirder version of any other day for her. The sad familiarity knowing she would go to sleep unsatisfied like always returned to her.

"You did your thing, I did my thing, Zack did his. Hey look, our things stopped the bad guys. That's how a team works. I couldn’t handle it alone, so I asked for help. And you did your part. Be proud." Memories of Orre came back to her, and her misadventures with her teacher. Plans never stuck. The more you planned, the more it would go off rails. And the more precious time you would lose. She learned a long time ago that the best you could do in situations like these was learn to improvise and find someone to count on.

...a phone call may have helped. But she had her reasons for not calling, aside from her phone becoming a laser punching gauntlet. Prou was the main reason. There's was no point in saying that proper communication would have been pointless, because that was a stupid argument to make. Still, she would not apologize. There was too much complication for her to see it as cut and dry

Sal sighed deeply, with a weariness a child of her age shouldn't possess. Everything ached. She was acutely aware that Oberon's rush healing jobs hadn't put her bones back in the correct spots. Healing for real would be a painful process. "You get used to it. Anyway, I'm gonna check the island for Zack." Juliet had told her to stay, but ******** Juliet. Salieri was restless, but not in a rush to find Zack. After Bonding, she knew him better than most people on Earth. He'd gotten out of tighter spots, and Serene was probably with him.

"You coming?" she asked both Ben and Zack’s Pokémon.

Tower of Mastery

Absolon’s unit rounded up all the remaining pirates after scouring the island. Held in the square, the whole raid squad was present and in cuffs. The news helicopters weren’t allowed close to the scene, being commanded to hover in Shalour’s bay while the area was secured.

Upon discovering the Vault Room, the soldiers would discover the corpse of a Pokémon and the barely breathing body of Nowell. Immediate medical attention would be given to his broken ribs. Whether he'd survive the night was anyone’s guess.

With little evidence as to exactly how this fight went down, the soldiers left it up to forensics. It was hardly their first priority, what with the terrorists and such. Their medical team was assisting the wounded acolytes, and that came first.

Missing from the roundup on the island was the second in command of the Fishbone, Erin. She, and her Pokémon, were nowhere to be found.

Similarly, among all the bodies found on the Fishbone before it sank too far to be boarded, Skarada’s was not among them. He and his Pokémon were missing as well. A faint pink mist lingered on the ship, but disappeared before the soldiers could make anything of it.

((Btw Helena successfully found a Trap Card deck with 10 cards left, a Hyper Potion and a Max Revive on Skarada's person. And, if she wanted to be a sick ********, she could take his Mega Eye. Trop, I'll let you know which cards you got))

Tower of Mastery

"Yes, yes, Zack," Helena said as she grabbed his wrists to remove his hands. Her eyes were wild with the fear of facing down death just moments before - wide and unfocused - but she wasn't about to relay that experience to Zack if he hadn't seen it for himself.

"Holy s**t, that Quillon almost killed that chick," someone said while pointing out Helena.

"I'm uh, mostly okay." The blood on her face was hers from knocking her head, and one wouldn't have to try hard to hear the slight slur in her words. She wasn't resilient like the rest of the crew in the face of injury.

"Are you okay?"

"Okay," Helena said, she stood up and followed Zack to find the others.

Shalour City

Sal shrugged. Ben's tolerance of Juliet was far higher than her own. She didn't feel like hearing more lecture either, or the notion that it might double down when Ben spoke to Zack. Either way she sliced it, this was a fine choice. "Suit yourself. Come by the Tower when you're done with the harpy."

She returned most of her Pokémon, except for Reynard, and led Zack's down to the pier. High tide was still in play. Using a rowboat from the pier and a Pokémon as an engine would still get her there just as fast as if she had walked.

Around this time, the police on the outskirts of the city had been given word that the scene was clear. With barricades set up and the assistance of Korrina, Shalour's residents were slowly filed back into town. Ben was still one of the only people in the city, so the far away murmurs and cries of relief rang relatively loudly through the empty streets.

Juliet shortly emerged from the boutique's doorway, dragging two more unconscious and damp pirates with her. "That's all I could do," she muttered regretfully while closing the door behind her. She was soaked head to toe, no doubt swimming through the half submerged Fishbone just to get a couple more people out.

She laid them down and pressed their chests, forcing them to sputter up sea water and come back to life. Juliet rose her head up. "Now we're going to round up your friends and you're going to give me a detailed account..."

Salieri was gone. Juliet knew she shouldn't be surprised. But she was annoyed. "That b***h." Skipping a beat, she looked to Ben. "Is that your writing hand?" she asked him, nodding to his iced fingers.

Tower Of Mastery

It was a miracle Absolon and his squadron had arrived during the incident at all. That luck had run dry now, as his squadron scrambled to hastily assess the situation and create order in the community. It wasn't hard for Sal to use her street smarts and guide her company past the military's barely set yellow tape.

She could overhear snippets of conversation. The commanding officer was in a heated debate on the phone about their jurisdiction in this situation. From the shade of red on his face, it sounded like he had less jurisdiction than he thought. If Salieri had half a mind to consider the political consequences to Skarada's assault, she'd be racking up conspiracy theories by the minute.

Instead, she saw Zack and Helena through the crowd and sped up her step. From a quick glance, they were whole. No missing limbs or chunks ripped off. Zack was even missing his sling. Even so, she got up to them and could not hide the look of relief even if she tried. "You're okay. You are okay, right?"

She'd attempt to spin both Helena and Zack around by their shoulders to get a 360 view and see if it was worse than it looked.

Tower of Mastery

'Yeah,' said Zack.

Shalour City

Keeping your spirits up in a trying time was a sign of fortitude, or so Juliet had been told. Taking some comfort in knowing Benedict wouldn't need her immediate counseling, Juliet sat on the patio and sighed. This was the first chance she had to take in the once in a lifetime sight sinking into the ocean. Watching the Fishbone sink was mesmerizing, in a macabre way.

"They're gonna want both. Always have a backup." Juliet pulled out the flask she had snuck into the inside pocket of her funeral coat. "But I'll tell them to leave you alone, for tonight. They can debrief over the caesura."

She took a long swig and exhaled a cool, sweat breath. "You're a hero now, at least for this news cycle. Act fast and you might get some leverage to fix that hand."

A pause, and another swig. Juliet held the flask out to Benedict. "Funny how we keep meeting like this," she sighed flatly.

Tower Of Mastery

Helena's words knocked the wind from Sal's gut. "Oh."

That was an outcome that, somehow, she never expected. It never occurred to her that Skarada wouldn't make it out alive. She wondered why she couldn't fathom it until now. Maybe because he was to be a father. Or because, for a little while, he had almost been one to her.

Sal searched for the words, no easy task for her frazzled state of being. The reality wasn't quite sinking in yet. She looked between the two siblings. "What, uh, happened?"