A while later, the boat pulled into the Dewford Town port. The sun was setting, and orange light painted the sea. May and Max had already changed back into their normal clothes as they pulled in.
Ash stretched, cracking his shoulders. "Ahhh, finally. Solid ground."
Pikachu and Vee hopped onto the railing and nodded together.
Mr. Briney slowed the engine, guiding the boat gently into place. "Alright! Safe and sound. Welcome to Dewford Town!"
The docks were surprisingly lively despite the approaching night. Lanterns hung from posts, flickering warmly in the ocean breeze. Fishermen packed up their gear, tourists wandered around the small shops, and somewhere in the distance, lively music drifted through the air.
As the boat thudded softly against the pier, May leaned over the railing with a dreamy sigh. "Wow… it's so pretty at sunset."
Max nodded, pushing up his glasses. "Yeah… not bad. Still not worth almost being eaten alive, though."
"Fair," Ash said, patting him on the head.
Brock stepped off the boat first and inhaled deeply. "Ah… island air. You can practically taste the humidity."
May hopped off after him. "Please don't taste it."
Ash, Pikachu, and Vee jumped down next, followed by Max, who grabbed Ash's sleeve halfway down, just in case the dock decided to betray him too.
Briney tied off the boat with a practiced tug. "Well, kiddos, this is where we part ways, unless you need a ride back later. But I reckon you'll be stayin' a while."
"I mean, yeah, we have the letter, then I guess some training, along with looking around the island and having some fun," Ash listed off, tapping his chin as his other arm rested behind his head.
"Wait, what about your Gym battle, Ash?" Max asked. "I thought you would've wanted to battle first."
Ash shrugged. "Why? It's not like I'm in a hurry. I mean, I could probably win, but where's the fun in that? Besides, waiting a bit won't kill me."
Brock smiled knowingly. "Wow. Ash choosing not to sprint straight into a Gym the moment he arrives? Who are you and what have you done with our Ash?"
Ash rolled his eyes and smirked. "Wow, we're three feet onto an island and your girl radar isn't going off. Are you our real Brock?" he jabbed back.
Brock placed a dramatic hand over his heart. "Excuse you. I'll have you know my girl radar still works perfectly fine,"
He paused.
His eyes slowly drifted toward a pair of stylish young women chatting near a shop. His pupils sparkled. His shoulders straightened.
Ash sighed. "There it is."
Pikachu facepalmed. "Pikaaaa…"
Brock adjusted his vest, cleared his throat, and started confidently walking toward them.
Ash rolled his eyes, and as he put his hands in his pockets, he raised his foot and kicked Brock in the back, sending him falling off the dock and into the water. "Nope. Brock, we talked about this. It's for your own good."
Brock resurfaced with a sputter, hair plastered to his forehead. "ASSSH! Why?!"
Ash leaned over the dock with the most innocent expression known to mankind. "Self-preservation. Yours, specifically. You'd get rejected, cry, and then I'd have to deal with your dramatics for the next three hours. Besides, remember the deal. Misty may not be here anymore, but I'll still keep you to our deal."
Pikachu nodded sagely, and Vee just looked at them like he still didn't see the appeal.
"What deal are you talking about?" Max whispered over to Ash.
"Don't worry about it." Ash patted Max's head as he reached out, taking Brock's hand and pulling him out of the water.
Brock stood on the dock dripping seawater like a sad, soggy carpet. "I swear," he muttered, wringing out his vest, "one day I'm going to file a complaint."
"With who?" Ash asked. "Human Resources? Pikachu is HR and my lawyer."
Pikachu crossed his arms and nodded seriously. "Pika."
Brock deflated. "...Right."
Meanwhile, May was spinning in a circle, pointing at everything at once.
"A beach! A gym! Cute shops! A restaurant shaped like a Wailmer! A guy selling seashell accessories! A place that says 'Beginner's Surf Lessons'? MAX, MAX LOOK THEY HAVE PINK CUSTOM SURFBOARDS!"
Max simply adjusted his glasses tiredly. "I regret giving her sugar on the boat."
"You gave her sugar?" Ash asked.
Max looked away. "I didn't know it was sugar! The label was in Unovian!" he said, raising the wrapper.
Ash took it and read it, since he could speak perfect Unovian. "It literally says 'Sweet Powder.'"
"I couldn't read that, I'm rusty!" Max complained, as May kept looking around at every shop she could see, already with like three shopping bags.
Brock sniffled dramatically. "They grow up so fast… already darting toward chaos like seasoned adventurers…"
Ash casually slapped Brock on the back of the head. "Focus, man. No being weird."
"Ow."
May was already waving them over from across the boardwalk. "HURRY UP! There's a food stand selling tropical shaved ice AND THEY HAVE STARF BERRY FLAVOR!"
Ash blinked. "Okay, yeah, that actually sounds good."
Max gasped in betrayal. "YOU'RE ENABLING HER!"
"Buddy," Ash said, placing a hand on Max's shoulder, "when you've dealt with what I've had to deal with, being weird is like the only thing keeping you sane. And sugar helps a lot."
Max opened his mouth, closed it, looked over at May, and shrugged. "You know what, screw it." He called out and started walking over to her. "MAY, GET ME A FIGY BERRY ONE!"
Ash shook his head and looked back at Briney. "Yeah, we're gonna be here for a while. Thanks for having us."
Briney chuckled and waved his hand. "It's not a problem. Will you all need a ride after? Since I'm already out on the water, I may as well go back out to sea again. I think I might reconnect with some old friends."
Ash shook his head. "No need. I'll have my own ride by the time I'm done with Brawly." He gave a playful wink, as if asking Briney to keep a secret.
"Ahh, alright then. Well, I'll leave you with my number anyway. Contact me if you find yourself in the water and in trouble. Alright? Stay safe out there." Briney said, as he sailed his boat off to another area, leaving Ash alone on the dock.
Ash just casually walked off the dock and went after his friends, looking around at the island.
He glanced at a cozy-looking row of beachside houses, small, simple, with wooden porches and hammocks swaying lazily.
"…Huh," he muttered under his breath. "Doesn't look too expensive…"
Pikachu's ear twitched. "Pi?"
"Nah, don't worry about it, bud," Ash said as he got curious, pulled out his phone, and looked some stuff up. As he did, he heard a loud, "AHEM."
Ash jolted so hard Pikachu had to grab his hair spikes to stay on. He turned to see May with four shaved-ice cups stacked precariously in her arms, Max with two bags of seashell necklaces, and Brock looking like he had mentally aged ten years in the last five minutes.
"What'cha doing?" May asked.
"Oh, just looking for a place for us to stay. You know, since we're gonna be here a while. Might as well get something better than the Pokémon Center's rooms."
"Not a bad idea. But Ash, remember, don't go too crazy. Like, you better not get us a five-star hotel again." Brock crossed his arms.
"Yeah, yeah, I get it. You're still guilty I spent almost two years covering you guys' hotel rooms and other things you don't know about. Get over it," Ash joked, sticking his tongue out playfully.
May giggled and handed Ash one of the cups. "Here. Starf Berry for me, Figy for Max, Aspear for Brock, and yours is Sitrus."
"Oh nice, thanks." Ash took his happily. His Rotom Phone was still floating beside him; he saw something on the screen, then let it drift back into his pocket.
"So, should we go looking for a place to stay before it gets too dark?" Brock asked.
As Ash was about to answer, May was mid-bite on her shaved ice when her stomach growled. She blinked, looking embarrassed. "I…I… sorry…"
Ash chuckled. "Well, guess May chose for us. Let's find a place to have dinner, y'know, since somebody apparently hates my cooking," he said overdramatically.
"I never said I hated your cooking!" May immediately protested, almost gripping her shaved ice like it was evidence.
"Sure you don't. And that's why you always want to try restaurants when me and Brock are right here," Ash fake-cried.
May puffed up defensively, spoon still in her mouth. "H-Hey! I like your cooking! I just… also like food made by professionals!"
"Uh-huh," Ash said, wiping an imaginary tear. "It's okay. One day my cooking will earn your respect."
Pikachu patted his shoulder sympathetically. "Pika…"
"It's not like that and you know it!" May huffed, crossing her arms.
"Suuure," Ash rolled his eyes, making May huff and push him as she marched away, grabbing Max and Brock and pulling them along.
"Hmph, whatever. Stay mad then. Come on, let's go get something to eat."
As they left, Ash chuckled and pulled out his phone again. There were actually a few houses, and they weren't too expensive. Honestly, he could buy one, use it, then rent it out after he leaves, and he could get his money back in like three years if he made the rent cheap.
Ash shrugged and thought, why not. "Hey, you guys," he said, talking directly to the phone.
On the screen, a chibi avatar of Porygon and Rotom appeared, saluting him. "Yes sir-zzz!"
"Fill out the paperwork for me and send the money. I want to be able to get in by tonight," Ash said casually. Not that the money was a problem, he could probably buy half of Dewford with all the money he'd stolen from Team Rocket.
"Roger roger!" Rotom saluted as they flew off-screen to get everything done.
Ash put his phone into his pocket as he saw his friends wave over to him. He smiled. Well… he could keep this one a secret. What they didn't know wouldn't hurt them.
So he ran after them. "Alright, let's go. And I found a place for us to stay, don't worry about it, I'll take care of the rest."
–
{With Ashtwo}
The ship pulled into an isolated stretch of coastline, the kind of place even Wingull avoided. Fog rolled thick over the bay as Team Rocket operatives lined up in formation. Matori stood at the front, tablet in hand, veins already visible in her forehead.
In fact, right about now, they'd actually met up with Jessie, James, and Meowth, since they'd been given the same coordinates. They looked like they wanted to tell Matori something, but she looked way too stressed and angry to acknowledge them, the trio was, after all, known for failing a lot.
Proton muttered, "Okay… no explosions. No disasters. No stupid decisions."
Petrel snorted. "It's Carr. Lower your expectations."
Archer inhaled deeply, praying to Arceus, Giratina, and whatever other gods listen to ex–mind-controlled executives.
D stood quietly near the front, Meowth perched on his shoulder, silent as always.
Then a shadow fell over them. A big shadow.
Proton blinked. "…What is that?"
The fog parted.
And descending loudly, dramatically, unnecessarily (and totally on purpose with fog machines), was a MASSIVE AIRSHIP. Chrome plating, red LEDs, a giant Rocket logo plastered across the side like a bad tattoo. It cast a shadow the size of a stadium.
Matori's soul left her body on sight.
As the ship opened, three figures walked out. First was a tall, slender, middle-aged woman with silver-colored hair, mostly slicked down with a widow's peak at the front, and four cowlicks sprouting out, making her almost look like a vampire, Sird.
Next was a muscular man with short, slicked-down black hair. He wore a black shirt and an open, black-outlined jacket with the Team Rocket logo etched onto the left side of the chest. He also wore gray pants and black boots. His head was large and square-shaped, and his eyes were closed, making him kinda look like Frankenstein's monster, Orm
And last was the final person: a man with black pupils and short, spiky yellow-gold hair. He wore a collared, loose-fitting gray jacket with black cuffs and a black zipper, with a Team Rocket logo etched onto the left side of his chest. And even though he was a grown man, he was short, child-short. He was about the same size as Meowth. This was Carr, smiling just a bit too wide.
Carr spread his arms wide. "Welcome, Executives! Behold, Team Rocket Hoenn Branch's pride and glory! Our Airborne Forward Operations Fortress! A fully equipped command vessel, capable of—"
Matori's voice hit a pitch only dogs could hear. "CARR."
He paused.
She stepped forward slowly.
Very slowly.
"Carr…" she repeated, adrenaline making her left eye spasm, "where are the bases?"
Carr blinked. "…What bases?"
"The ones you were allocated several billion Pokédollars to establish."
Carr laughed nervously. "Oh, those! Well, funny story—"
"We replaced them," Sird said calmly, checking her clipboard. "The budget was… redirected."
Matori stared at her, dead-eyed. "Redirected," she repeated, voice faint, as though her soul was dangling on a thin thread ready to snap. She looked ten seconds away from cardiac arrest.
Carr nodded proudly. "Yep! Straight into our new Hoenn HQ: the Airborne Forward Operations Fortress!"
Sird stayed quiet with her hands behind her back, like she knew a meltdown was imminent, but she was smiling like she was praying for Carr's downfall. "Its stealth systems are… passable."
Matori inhaled sharply.
Proton took one step back.
Petrel took three.
Archer whispered, "Arceus have mercy."
Jessie whispered to James, "Ohhh, she's gonna blow."
James whispered back, "I'm not standing near her. I want to survive."
Meowth nodded. "I think we're watchin' a historic meltdown, guys."
Matori began trembling, literally shaking, as she looked up at the gargantuan ship. Her glasses slipped down her nose. A vein throbbed on her forehead.
"…Carr," she said slowly, "exactly how much funding did you spend on this… thing?"
Carr beamed. "All of it!"
A grunt in the back fainted.
"ALL," Matori repeated, "OF IT."
Sird folded her hands neatly behind her back. "Including the emergency reserve."
Orm nodded. "And the extra reserve!"
Matori went still.
Very still.
Too still.
Petrel whispered, "She's entering shock."
Proton whispered, "No. No, that's rage buffering."
Archer was already thinking of how to report Carr's death to the boss.
Matori exhaled through her nose like a Dragonite preparing Hyper Beam. "I just want to ask… whose idea was this?"
"It was all Carr's idea," Sird said calmly, letting Carr take all the blame.
Carr nodded like he was proud. "Yes it was!"
Matori looked down at Carr and took a breath. "Carr," she said far too slowly, "all that money was to establish bases, supply lines, business fronts, and a functioning team infrastructure."
Carr nodded.
"And instead," she continued, voice tightening, "you built…THIS."
"Yes," Carr said, far too happy.
Matori raised her hand, took off her glasses, and looked down again. "CARR," she roared, snapping back into banshee mode, "YOU ARE GOING TO TELL ME RIGHT NOW WHY YOU THOUGHT BUILDING A GIANT, LED-COVERED, MISSILE-ARMED SKY-WHALE WAS MORE IMPORTANT THAN ESTABLISHING THE BARE MINIMUM OF A REGIONAL INFRASTRUCTURE!"
Carr opened his mouth, confidently, stupidly. "Well, you see, Matori, it's actually very simple—"
Sird, already stepping back a polite three meters, murmured, "Oh, this will be good."
Orm raised a hand like a schoolboy. "Should I… get earplugs? Or restraints?"
"No," Petrel whispered. "Let him talk. Giovanni couldn't pay for entertainment like this."
Carr puffed out his chest. "I made an executive decision—"
"You are NOT an executive," Matori snapped.
"—a bold, strategic, forward-thinking decision," Carr corrected, sweating. "One that ensures Team Rocket's supremacy in Hoenn!"
"How," Matori growled, "does a single, massive, impossible-to-hide, LED-laced, sky-whale fortress ensure supremacy?!"
Carr beamed. "Intimidation!"
A grunt actually said, "Oh Arceus," and crossed himself.
Matori blinked once. Twice. Then— "INTIMIDATION?!" Her voice cracked.
Carr nodded enthusiastically. "Yes! Imagine: other gangs see THIS in the sky, they panic! They flee! They surrender! We dominate the region instantly!"
"It also has a disco mode," Orm added helpfully.
Sird clasped her hands behind her back. "And heated floors."
Carr gave two thumbs up. "And a smoothie bar! And built-in missile launchers! And did I mention the laser billboard that can write messages across the sky? That one was my idea—"
Matori raised a hand.
Everyone froze.
"Carr," Matori said with the horrifying calm of someone who had transcended rage and entered a realm of pure, concentrated murder, "you had one job. One. Job."
Carr swallowed.
"You were instructed," she continued, stepping closer, "to build bases. Not a parade float for megalomaniacs!"
"It's not a float," Carr whispered. "It's a fortress…"
"IT HAS A SMOOTHIE BAR!"
"It's for morale—"
"CARR, WE DON'T HAVE BASES!"
Carr flinched. Orm flinched. Some grunts dove behind crates. Jessie, James, and Meowth hid behind a conveniently placed tree.
"Oof, she's murderin' dat one." Meowth muttered
Matori took another step, voice trembling with pressure. "Where… are… the… bases?"
Carr smiled nervously. "Well… we thought… since the airship can move, it's like having ALL the bases… in ONE place!"
There was a silence so sharp it could have sliced through steel.
A Wingull somewhere in the distance screamed and immediately turned around.
Matori twitched.
Not blinked. Twitched.
A tiny, involuntary jerk of her left eye, like she was trying very hard not to ascend into a higher plane of fury.
Sird coughed delicately into her hand, absolutely not hiding her smile. "Brilliant logic, isn't it?" she murmured, voice almost sweet. "A mobile base. So efficient. So innovative."
Orm, bless his enormous heart, nodded earnestly. "It's like having a family road trip. But in the sky. Forever."
Petrel whispered to Proton, "He thinks that helped."
Proton whispered back, "It didn't."
Archer looked like he was calculating if pushing Carr off the pier would count as a mercy kill.
Matori inhaled the slowest, deepest breath of her life.
"Carr," she said, "that is the single most idiotic justification I've heard since Jessie tried to convince me we could write off her hair dye as a 'tactical expense.'"
Jessie winced. "To be fair, that shade of red IS tactical—"
"NOT NOW."
Jessie shut up instantly.
Matori pinched the bridge of her nose. "Let me explain this very slowly, since clearly your brain is… overheating from the effort."
Carr straightened, ready to defend himself again.
Big mistake.
"While," Matori started, slowly, almost a whisper, "a mobile base can be useful—"
Carr perked up.
"IT IS NOT A SUBSTITUTE," she yelled, voice jumping an octave, "FOR AN ENTIRE REGIONAL NETWORK OF OPERATIONS!"
Carr deflated.
"The Hoenn branch," she yelled, "now has no warehouses. No supply depots. No safehouses. No contacts. NO. BASES."
Matori took a deep breath, rubbing the sides of her head like she was trying not to get a blood clot. "I swear… you were given one job, Giovanni put his faith in you, and you do this…"
She took one deep breath. "Okay… this is not unsalvageable. With the 10 billion Giovanni gave us, we have something to work with…"
"Great, so if you'll just hand over the—" Carr started, but Matori glared at him before he could continue, making him shut up.
Matori continued, "Since clearly your incompetence almost risked Hoenn for us, you're relieved of your duty as head of Hoenn. You don't need to act now that the Executives are here."
Carr flinched and got up defensively. "Hey, you can't do that! The Boss trusted me! Making me the head of the Hoenn branch, it's my right-" but he was cut off.
"And he also expected something when he sent you here with billions of dollars in funding!" Matori snapped at him. "And do you know how I know this? Because I signed the paperwork for the transfer!"
Matori took one more breath, calming herself down again. "As Team Rocket's chief secretary, I outrank you. And not only that, the Executives are here. You are just an admin, and if you keep acting like this, I might personally send a report to Giovanni to demote you further."
Carr's mouth opened and closed like a stunned Magikarp.
"B–But, you can't just… I built that airship!"
"Yes," Matori said dryly, "and in doing so, you destroyed our budget, our infrastructure, and my will to live. Congratulations."
Carr sputtered, "Giovanni trusted me! He made me Hoenn's head! You can't take that from me, you pencil-pushing harpy!"
A few grunts gasped quietly and backed away like Carr had just insulted a Legendary.
Sird's smile sharpened.
Orm blinked slowly, already stepping subtly closer to Carr like a big protective Ursaring. "Uh… Miss Matori?" he rumbled. "Carr worked really hard. Maybe don't yell so much. It hurts morale."
Matori turned her head toward him with the slow precision of a turret locking onto a target.
Orm immediately regretted speaking.
"Orm," she said with eerie calm, "your loyalty is admirable. Misguided, but admirable. However, unless you want to explain to Giovanni why we have spent all available funding on a floating nightclub, I suggest you step aside."
The big man shuffled back behind Carr like a chastised puppy.
Carr regained just enough confidence to puff out his chest. "A–Anyway! You can't demote me! You can't! I'm indispensable! I'm the mastermind of Hoenn!"
Petrel snorted. "Mastermind of wasting money, maybe."
Proton nodded. "Mastermind of poor financial decisions."
"Mastermind of smoothie bars," Archer added quietly.
Carr pointed at Archer, outraged. "THAT FEATURE IS ESSENTIAL!"
Matori screamed into her hands.
Sird delicately cleared her throat. "Matori is correct, Carr. You were the provisional head because you were the highest rank at the time, but now that the Executives have arrived, that's no longer the case."
"Wha-Sird, you're supposed to be on my side!" Carr yelled.
"I'm on no one's side." Sird raised her hands in surrender, her smile never leaving her face.
Matori cleared her throat. "Carr, you are officially removed as the acting head of Hoenn."
Carr looked like his soul left his body.
Sird's eyes glimmered with wicked delight, like she's been praying for Carr's downfall every day.
Orm whispered, "Family is… complicated…"
Matori continued, tapping her tablet, "Effective immediately, authority over Hoenn's operations goes to Executive Archer, and Executive Proton is to act as his right hand for now to make sure he is mentally stable enough to lead."
Carr sat there, stuck between raging because of his inferiority complex or doing something about it.
Matori took one more breath before she had a mental breakdown. "Does anyone else have anything to say, no, let me rephrase that: does anyone have any GOOD news? Because I swear, if I hear one more stupid thing, I'm going to actually murder someone."
Everyone stayed quiet. Carr conveniently didn't mention he built a few robots too, but no one needed to know that.
Jessie scratched her cheek. "Is this a bad time to report that we stole a bunch of submarines, supplies, and a warehouse from some weird team called Team Aqua or something? Oh, and we got a few extra Pokémon from some poachers."
Matori looked over, wondering if she actually just heard good news or if it was her rage making her hear things, because that almost sounded like Jessie did something… competent. "Say that again?"
Jessie straightened proudly, hands on her hips. "I said," she repeated, louder, "we stole a bunch of submarines, supplies, and a whole warehouse from Team Aqua. Oh! And we liberated some Pokémon from some loser on the way."
James nodded vigorously. "Quite a large warehouse, actually. With built-in cold storage, a docking lift, and a break room."
Meowth chimed in, "And dey had donuts! Fresh ones! With sprinkles!"
Matori blinked, saying nothing for a moment. "How many?"
James pulled out his little notebook. "Oh, like six Submarines, two boats, two warehouses with, I'd say, about three months' worth of supplies, and a bunch of random Pokémon in Pokéballs."
Matori blinked, walked up to them, and slowly put a hand on Jessie's shoulder. "For once, I am glad you guys didn't die on that suicide mission I assigned you to three years ago."
"Aww-wait, what?" Jessie blinked. "Say that last part again, you sent us on what?"
Matori didn't elaborate. She walked away and rubbed her temple. "Okay, things aren't completely hopeless. We have 10 billion and some supplies," she said, not even acknowledging the airship. "I can work with this. Six months. Let's do this."
Everyone finally sighed in relief, seeing Matori starting to calm down and realizing she wasn't going to kill anyone. Meanwhile, D looked around, his eyes landing on Carr, Sird, and Orm.
Orm was fine. Orm just saw Team Rocket as family, D could probably get along with him. But the problem came with Carr and Sird, and… let's just say, if you know, you know. And D was planning on keeping a close eye on them.