Kellyn couldn't believe himself! He had failed to protect the team again. Could J not be smart for once and not catch him off guard? Apparently not. And now they had lost Lucario just as he was beginning to improve.
Regardless, Kellyn wasn't sure whether it was smart to go ahead and chase after J, especially with Sven, or to move on to the next Gem Guardian and hope they got there before her.
"Lucario!" Ash's voice snapped Kellyn out of his doze.
He rushed past him, but Kellyn yelled, "Hold it!" and grabbed Ash's arm, yanking him back.
J's spaceship roared, and Kellyn and the others closed their eyes against the wind as it lifted into the sky and vanished.
"Lucario!" Ash drew Staravia's pokéball. "Staravia, I choose—!"
"Ash, stop!" Kellyn interrupted, snatching his wrist and lowering Ash's pokéball. He calmed himself. "I know how you feel, but I think it's better, for Sven's sake, to go ahead and move on to Boyleland instead of pursuing her right now. We need to protect the other Gem Guardians, and then we'll get Lucario."
"But—!" Ash argued, then he groaned and lowered his head. His attention shifted to Sven, who coughed and yawned, leaving Wendy to hold him close.
"It makes sense, Ash," Brock said, stepping forward. "We need to set priorities."
"If we're quick," Dawn added in a low voice, "we may be able to reach the next Gem Guardian before J."
"And Kellyn still needs to practice," Wendy said, her focus leaving Sven.
"That's right." While Kellyn was more confident now, he wasn't 100% sure it was at an expert level.
It looked like Ash wanted to keep arguing, but then he gave a small smile and said, "Okay."
Pikachu patted his shoulder, and he and Ash bumped foreheads.
Kellyn kept up with his training the rest of the way to Pueltown. He and Blu separated from the group and practiced shifting Blu from his Rainbow Forme to his Standard Forme. Kellyn then tried to bend Vatonage to his will again, but in the first few attempts, it kept trying to overtake him, as before.
It wasn't until they reached Pueltown that Kellyn could use his power again successfully, and Blu transformed.
"Blu, happy! Blu, happy!" he chirped, flying around a battle court near the Ranger Depot.
As the team waited for the ferry, Ash and Dawn practiced battling each other, while Kellyn watched them and tried to come up with a plan for Boyleland. It depended on how Sven did during the night. Kellyn hated excluding him, but if it came to that point… He merely hoped Golden Boy Sven would forgive him.
It looked like Sven didn't want to be excluded, either, because he rested at the Ranger Depot with Wendy until it was time to board the ferry.
Ash grew excited and jittery again as soon as his feet hit the deck, but Kellyn was reminded of his previous panic attack. Hopefully, this ferry ride would be better. At least they had a first-class suite, an upgrade from the last ferry. Dawn and Wendy shared a room, Brock and Sven another, and Kellyn and Ash the final one. Each room had a balcony, and the living room and bathroom were outside them.
Kellyn grabbed his cloak from Ash's backpack, put it on, and stepped onto the balcony with Blu to watch the ferry depart. He examined the dimming sky and watched the waves of the Puel Sea slap against the ferry's hull. There was a glass floor beneath him, so Blu, back in his Standard Forme, examined the Water Pokémon below. He jumped back when a Magikarp gave him a goofy look.
Kellyn giggled, patted Blu's head, and then sat, crossing his legs. He and Blu observed the Water Pokémon for a while before he stood and approached the balcony's end.
Kellyn cupped his hands, and the familiar golden light appeared in them. He waited for it to turn rainbow-colored, but it didn't. Still, Kellyn tossed the light into the sky, where it exploded into ribbon-like strands that rained down on the ocean. It was getting easier. Maybe Kellyn could do it after all.
He beamed, but then Blu's feathers stuck up, and he asked, "Blu?"
A sudden jerk knocked Kellyn off his feet. He hit the balcony before crashing onto his front, with Blu beside him.
"What the—?" Kellyn gripped his arm and turned to Blu. "Are you okay, Blu?"
He pulled out a few loose feathers and chirped, "Blu okay, Blu okay."
"Kellyn!" Ash, Dawn, Brock, and Wendy soon appeared at the balcony's entryway.
Brock instantly turned on nurse mode. "Is your arm okay?"
"Yeah, I think so." Kellyn stood on his wobbling legs and grasped the balcony. "But what was that? Did we hit a reef?"
"No." Wendy stepped onto the balcony and looked over the railing into the clear water. "Maybe something happened at the bridge?"
"Or maybe something underwater." Kellyn stood with Wendy, watching the ocean.
Wendy held her hand out to him. "Let's let Sven sleep and ask the captain before we do anything."
"We need to be quick," Ash said. "J." He switched places with Wendy and gripped Kellyn's shoulder. Just then, the ferry jerked again—much harder that time—and Ash and Kellyn yelped as they were thrown forward—off the ferry's edge into the ocean.
Splash!
"Ash! Kellyn!" the others shouted.
Blu soared after Ash and Kellyn. Right then, a third jerk knocked the others down, and the ferry sped off, leaving Ash and Kellyn alone in the ocean.
Ash and Pikachu surfaced, and Ash yelled, "Hey!" waving at the ferry. "What about us?"
Kellyn surfaced, too, and said, "J must've hijacked the ferry. That's the only explanation." Like any good Ranger, he remained calm and scanned the ocean for a Mantine.
"Hijacked?" Ash grabbed Pikachu and set him on his head. "Then what are we supposed to do? Everyone on the boat is in danger!"
"I'll tell you what we do, Ash." Kellyn reached into his pockets and pulled out three apparatuses. He handed one to Ash and Pikachu. "We put on a Micro Aqualung, search the Puel Sea for Mantine, then chase the ferry to Boyleland. Sven and Wendy are Top Rangers; they'll be okay until we get there."
"Blu, Kellyn! Blu, Kellyn!" Blu soon appeared and flew to Ash and Kellyn.
"Blu!" Kellyn said, grinning.
"Blu, help! Blu, help!" Blu dove into the water and soon surfaced, kicking with his legs and wings.
"He can swim?" Ash inquired, edging closer to the Pokémon. "A Bird Pokémon? How?" He examined Blu, who swam playfully around him, as graceful as a Goldeen.
White tinged Kellyn's face, and he fell quiet, his chin dipping.
Ash lifted a brow. "What is it, Kellyn? What are you hiding?"
Blu was a Rainbow Pokémon—another reason J wanted him and Parity—but Kellyn didn't say that aloud. He replaced it with, "Not now, Ash. We need to find a Mantine. Follow me, and I'll get us through the Puel Sea. We'll save the others and the Gem Guardians." With that, he stuck the Micro Aqualung in his mouth and dove underwater, Blu following.
Ash glared and looked up at Pikachu. "What is happening, Pikachu?"
"Pika," his partner responded, tightening his grip on him.
"Well, we're going to figure it out," Ash added. "There's something about Parity and Blue-Bird that the Rangers are keeping from us."
"Pika," Pikachu said, nodding.
Ash put on his and Pikachu's Micro Aqualungs, then dove into the ocean after Kellyn and Blu. Whatever the secret was, he would uncover it.
While Ash and Kellyn swam toward a large coral reef at the bottom of the Puel Sea, Blu moved gracefully and communicated with a few Water Pokémon.
Seeing Ash, Kellyn knew he couldn't keep the secret much longer.