Chapter Fifty Seven

Wave City was awash with chaos. Strange, blobby creatures drifted above the water, a trail of black mist following their jellyfish tentacles. Water pokemon stood on the shore, firing hydro pumps and water pulses at the invasive creatures. Somewhere deep below the water's surface, electricity rose to the top and spread out in a blanket of static, illuminating the night sky. Those creatures unfortunate enough to be too close received a nasty shock and their twitching, paralysed bodies vanished beneath the surf.

"What's going on down there?" Annie asked as she peered through the cockpit window at the commotion below.

"I dunno," said Trojan. "And I'm loathe to find out. I say we change our plans."

"We can't do that!" Zip whined. "We need to get some backup in our rebellion and the water types are our best option!"

"I'm sorry," Trojan scoffed. "But none of us are equipped to deal with these monsters, let alone you."

"They aren't monsters," said Poipole.

"What's that, Sticky?" Annie peered over her shoulder at the poipole in Web's lap.

"I said they aren't monsters," he repeated. "They're nihilego. Creatures from a region called Deep Sea."

"Never head of it." Annie turned to the rest of her crew. "You?"

Everyone else exchanged glances and shook their heads.

"Of course you haven't. It's not part of your world." Poipole let out a wheeze. "I'm starting to feel dizzy."

Web looked down at him with a start. "Oh... your atmosphere... we rushed off without even thinking!"

"Well, given all that mist they're spewin'," said Trojan, "if it's poison, he'll be all right. Right?"

Poipole gave a weak nod. "It is poison..."

"Well, I've got plenty of that," said Web. "But I can't very well flood this cabin."

"Take him to the cargo hold," said Annie. "Then spray him with it. We'll be fine up here."

"It ain't air tight, yanno," Trojan scoffed.

Annie shrugged. "Provided she doesn't fill the cargo hold with it, we should be fine."

"Easy for you to say," Trojan muttered. He looked up and fixed her with a sneer. "But what about your buddy Waveform, eh? He's a grass type."

"I'll be fine," Waveform said bluntly. "If it will keep Poipole alive, I'm backing Annie's point."

"Spoken like a true Number One." Annie grinned and gave him a playful punch in the shoulder, causing the decidueye to twitch with agitation. "The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few."

Everyone fell silent and stared at her. She tucked her arms behind her head, watching the battle below.

It was Trojan who finally broke the silence. "That don't even make sense in this scenario!"

Annie waved a hand towards the cargo bay door. "Time is of the essence. Take Sticky and spray him!"

Web scooped Poipole up and vanished through the hatch into the cargo bay. It fell back into place in a manner Annie chose to decide was not an angry slam.

"So what are we going to do?" Zip asked. "How are we going to get down there?"

"That's easy, little fish," said Annie. "We land."

"Where?" Trojan scoffed, waving a paw at the battle. "The city is riddled with this... what did that runt call them? Nil Leggy or something?"

"I believe he said 'nihilego'." Annie scratched her chin in thought. "The name rings a bell for some reason."

All eyes were on her again as she wracked her mind. Where had she heard of these creatures before? She watched them curiously, drifting like little, ghostly girls in the air. A torrent of water fell shy of the ship as it struck one of them, only for the creature to retaliate back with a beam of shining stones. They didn't reach their target, instead peppering the ocean and creating a spray of colour. Along with the electricity sparking over the water and the vibrant lights from the city, it was like a laser light show, awakening the night in a sparkling song and dance.

"You're going to tell us you're from their world, aren't you?" Waveform asked slowly.

"Nuh-uh." Annie shook her head. "You see, I did a lot of travellin' when I were in my own world. Although I didn't see much outside of four white walls. But they made me do a lot of readin'. Thought it would calm my mind. I probably read its name somewhere, 'cos I sure don't recognise it physically."

"Hmm." Trojan pursed his lips and fixed her out of the corner of his eye. "Anythin' come to mind about how to fight them?"

"Nope."

"All right, guess we're skirtin' round 'em and landin' somewhere in the middle of the city." He brought the ship up in a sharp arc and a surprised squeal came from the floor below. "Let's just hope those things aren't infestin' the entire jackin' place, eh?"

As they drifted over the ocean, one of the nihilego let out a spray of tinkling reminiscent of laughter and took off after the pyukumyuku. Black mist trailed from its tentacles and it brought them up to fasten itself to the ship's hull. The lights flickered and the dashboard lit up briefly before the cabin was plunged into darkness. It swerved sharply to the right, facing the eerily glowing bodies of an ocean of nihilego.

"Erm..." Trojan stared at his paws fixed over the steering stick.

"What are you doing?!" Waveform roared. "Turn us away!"

"I didn't do nothin'!" Trojan barked back. "It did that itself!"

The cabin floor shook as someone struck the floor beneath repeatedly. Trojan cursed under his breath and brought his foot down on the floor in a fit of rage. His lips curled into a sneer and he fought with the steering stick, but instead the ship drifted closer to the nihilego. They raised their waiting tentacles in a mesmerising fashion, stretching them out towards the ship.

The hatch exploded open and Poipole re-entered the cabin, making a beeline for the door.

"Poipole, wait!" Web followed after him, catching a confused glance from Annie. "He won't listen to me..."

"I have to fight them!" he squeaked. "Or they'll take over the ship!"

"But you're too weak!" Web cried as he wrestled the door open.

"I'm immune to their poison attacks," he told her. "I'm you're only chance of you getting free from their parasitic hold."

"Parasite?" Trojan and Waveform spoke at the same time.

"They're controlling the ship?" Trojan stared, slack jawed, at the strange creatures.

Web stopped short of the door as Poipole rushed out into the ocean air. She turned back to the cockpit, watching the nihilego with horror.

"He's not going to stand a chance," she said. "It's too clean here."

"Let's just give him a shot," said Waveform. "If he starts to falter, we'll find a way to get him back. I'll fly out and grab him if I have to."

One of the closer nihilego lifted its tentacles, and they began to glow with an eerie light. Before it could unleash an attack, it found itself doused with thick, purple slime. The slime proved too heavy, and it dropped like a boulder into the ocean. The rest of the nihilego turned their attention to something above the ship. The entire ship lurched backwards and the long, stretchy innards out reached up, forming a giant flat hand. It swiped the air, causing Poipole to swerve to the side and enter their field of vision.

"Aww, now that just plain ain't fair!" said Annie. "They're tryin' to swat him out of the air like an over-sized bug!" She rose slightly in her seat and waved her fist at the nihilego. "Oi! That's our trick!"

The innards out swung around like a flailing arm, changing from a flat palm to a club to a fist. Poipole dodged each swing, turning to fire sticky goo from the needle-like appendage on his head. Many of his shots fell short, but those that hit home sent the nihilego dropping like stunned flies. The pokemon beneath the ocean surface cottoned on to the creature's strategy, lighting the water up with electricity to engulf the fallen nihilego.

"Yeah! That's right!" Annie cheered. "Toast them! Toast them like marshmallows!"

One of the ocean dwellers rose to the surface, almost unidentifiable amid the chaos. It sent a bolt of electricity right up towards them, striking the ship and causing sparks to fly over the surface. Annie ducked and covered her head with her arms, but a small jolt coursed through her body. She heard grunts from her crew mates and a squeal of pain from Zip. She looked up with a start and twisted in her seat towards his water-filled bowl.

"You okay, little fish?" she asked.

He opened one eye and fought back his pained grimace with a weak smile. "I'm... I'm fine..."

She spun towards the window and waved her fist at the ocean. "Watch where you're aimin'! I didn't ask you to toast us, you fools!"

"They are watching where they're aiming," Waveform croaked. "They see us as a threat since our ship is trying to strike Poipole!"

Annie's jaw dropped slightly. "Ohh..."

Poipole dodged another swipe as one of the water pokemon threw a thunderbolt straight at the ship's weapon. It fizzled harmlessly on the gooey surface, doing nothing to stop its pursuit of Poipole. Another bolt struck the ship, this time causing sparks to fly from the dashboard's wires.

Trojan leapt back with a yelp and stuck his paw in his mouth. "We're gonna sink if this keeps up!"

The ship shuddered and the innards out flopped limply forward. A splash came from below and the ship hung there in the air harmlessly. Trojan grabbed his steering controls and the ship juddered as it drifted backwards.

"I can't call back the innards," he said. "Whatever they've done, they've fried it."

"But we're free, right?" Waveform asked. "Do we have any backup weapons to show we're not a threat?"

"Nope." Trojan dropped to the floor and opened up the dashboard to reveal its circuits. "I suggest you get onto the roof and start fighting the nihilego. That'll gain the army's trust."

The ship shook again and the scrafty cursed loudly as his head struck the inside of the dash.

Annie rose to her feet and turned to her crew. "He's right. We need to climb on up there and start firing our attacks. I suggest you two go first, since you have range to your advantage. As for you-" She turned to Zip and Web cut her off.

"You and Zip will stay in here," she said. "He's too young and you are not a pokemon at this present time."

Annie looked down at herself then met Web's eye. "What's your point?"

"You can't use attacks."

Annie folded her arms and closed her eyes, lifting her nose in the air. "I have you know I punched the Mayor lookin' like this."

"And I can fight!" Zip snapped. "I can use water pulse. Unlock my legs and I'll fight alongside you!"

Web sank slightly and let out a sigh. "Fine. Punch some jellyfish then. And keep a close eye on Zip. Make sure he doesn't tumble off the ship or something."

The skuntank marched towards the door and tugged it open. Cold air immediately flooded the cockpit and she twisted her body through the door to climb up the crude ladder to the roof. Annie followed after her, sandwiched between the skuntank and Waveform. The latter had Zip clutched under one wing as he used his other to hoist himself up. Once they were on the roof, another tremor shook the ship.

"Whoa!" Annie flailed her arms as she teetered backwards.

Web span and grabbed her arm, tugging her back onto the roof. "Be careful!"

Annie dusted herself down and looked out at the ocean of nihilego. There looked to be a lot more from her new vantage point. Some were even drifting over the top of the ship, only to be shot down by Poipole's gunk shot.

Waveform set Zip down in the centre of the roof between two of the pyukumyuku's spines then turned and aimed one of his silver arrows into the fray. It fired off towards the nihilego with a twang, leaving behind a trail of purple stars. It struck one of the nihilego right in the centre of its gelatinous head, engulfing it in a cloud of purple. It sank towards the ocean into a wet, electrical embrace.

"Hey, look!" Annie pointed at the electric-firing water types. "They're turning their attention away from the ship!"

"I guess they've taken our point," said Waveform. "Now focus your own attention onto the nihilego."

Poipole shot between them, engulfing an enraged nihilego in sludge. It dropped, clipping the ship and leaving behind a sticky trail.

"Eww." Annie's lip curled with disgust. "That's gonna leave a stain..."

The small, purple creature zipped away from them to fire his sludge bomb into the chaos. Many of his attacks missed home, but those close enough found themselves struggling to stay airborne. Web joined him, firing sludge bombs of her own. Each one left the tip of her tail with the force of a canon ball. Zip stood beside her, launching water pulses from the opening in his bowl.

The nihilego retaliated, launching a barrage of sparkling rocks. They peppered Web and the ship, bouncing off like large hail stones. Web flinched and raised a paw to shield her face, then when she found a break in the attack she fought back with another sludge bomb.

All Annie could do was watch. She stood with her arms at her side, watching as the nihilego dodged attacks only to find themselves in the firing line of another. Their tentacles outstretched to try and claim the ship, or grab one of her crew. Tiny stones rained down around them, scuffing the pyukumyuku and tumbling into the water to strike the helpless water types.

Waveform nailed one of the aliens right in its flailing tentacle, spearing it with an arrow and sending the creature reeling back in pain. Tinkles and screeches filled the air, rising to a crescendo as the nihilego's attention was drawn from the city to the giant pyukumyuku.

Some of the water pokemon on the docks dived into the ocean, carrying smaller members on their backs. Those who braved to swim though the electrically charged waters were completely unfazed, throwing their heads back to fire at the nihilego at closer range. The ones being carried joined their own attacks, combining to create an even more powerful stream of water. It exploded beneath the nihilego, blowing several of them out of the air. Their bodies rained down, creating an almighty splash that pushed the water pokemon back. Electricity surged over the surface, combining with the spray to give those not immune a rather painful shower. But they shook it off and kept going, water gushing from their mouths with the power of a jet hose.

"Keep it coming, guys!" Annie called towards them.

She turned back to the nihilego just in time to catch one that had broken free of its assault. She raised her fist to sock it right between its 'eyes'. Her fist plunged through its flesh, vanishing into its soft insides. The nihilego merely stopped and for a second she was convinced it was staring at her. Grinning. Clearly she'd not hurt it. It raised its tentacles, an eerie glow emanating from the tips. One of them wrapped around her arm, dragging her further towards its body as though it wanted to consume her. A high squeal flooded through her head, followed by the rumble of a million voices. Her eyes widened as she looked back at her own face, hazed as if she was looking at herself through a sheet of purple crystal.

Water engulfed it, shattering the illusion and ending the voices. She staggered back from it and watched as the creature blew back from her towards Waveform's waiting arrow. Annie's arm was released from it with a soft plop, leaving a hole wide enough for the nihilego's life fluids to gush from. The creature fell, crashing onto the roof then sliding off towards the ocean. Annie looked up, clutching her slimy fist in her other hand. Zip skittered past her to launch a water pulse into the chaos. Waveform gave Annie a nod and turned back to the battle.

"That was a close call," he said. "I guess you can't exactly punch them."

"Aye." Annie shook her fist, sending slime onto the roof of her ship. "It was like punching jelly."

"You might be more use to Trojan," he said. "Get back inside."

Every nihilego diverted its attention from the city to the pyukumyuku. They drifted around the ship in a circle, waving their tentacles and firing out their sparkling rocks. The pokemon flinched back and Annie lifted her arms to block the attack. Seeing an opening, the aliens moved in, wrapping their targets in their tentacles and taking hold of the ship.

Waveform struggled against a nihilego, straining back as it tried to grab his head. The alien jolted and Waveform let out a sneer, staggering back as the creature fell bleeding onto the roof of the ship. He gave it a hefty kick and launched an arrow to free Web from the clutches of another.

The numbers were too great, and Annie and her crew found themselves back to back in the middle of the ship's decorative spines.

"I don't like what they do to your head," Web gasped. "All that chaos..."

"Then don't let them touch your head." Waveform fired an arrow right through the centre of one of the creatures, knocking it from the sky.

"I can't help but think we've overestimated our abilities." Web followed his attack with a sludge bomb. "We might very well die here."

"Then go down fighting," Waveform told her.

"Alright. You don't need to tell me twice." Annie shrugged and reached up, grabbing a flailing tentacle. She spun on the spot and launched the creature like a shot put right into one of its friends. The two crashed down onto the roof. But they shook themselves off and raced back with even more vigour.

"Oh great, you've angered it," said Waveform as he fired off another arrow.

It didn't hit home, however. It found itself buried beneath a nihilego and a pile of sludge. Poipole floated in its place before turning to shoot another nihilego down.

Water gushed up from the ocean, sparking with electricity. Two more nihilego found themselves knocked from the sky, only to meet a shocking demise in the charged ocean.

The ship shook again, but not due to electricity or attack. The long innards out retracted back into the ship, and the contraption turned so the mouth was facing the nihilego. The occupants of the roof could hear Trojan's voice above all the chaos, muffled only by the ship's tinny body.

"Take this, suckers!"

The innards out shot forward with the force of a bullet, punching one of the nihilego and sending it rocketing backwards like a snooker ball. It crashed into one of its allies, and small cracks shot across its body, leaking out gelatinous goop. Its ally fell unconscious towards the water while the assaulted nihilego tried to shake the attack off. It rushed forward with two others, only to be caught by a downward swatting palm. They struck the charged ocean like raining pebbles.

Annie threw her hands in the air and let out a euphoric 'woo!' The innards out struck left and right, doing more damage than their combined attacks. Nihilego began dropping like flies, their heavy bodies creating loud splashes in the ocean. Pokemon were blown back from the impact, and many of the water types decided to return to the shore, leaving the ship and Annie's crew to deal with the threat. Before long, the nihilego were in retreat, their numbers greatly reduced.

Annie watched them fly off over the golden ocean, her arms crossed over her chest. In the distance, the sun was rising, adding an orange hue to the electrically charged water. Her crew joined her side, their breaths coming in heavy bursts.

"Well," she said. "I think we saw them off. Good work, crew."

Web let out a loud puff of air. "I'd say. That was a workout and a half. I think I'm ready for some breakfast."

"And I helped too," said Zip. "Right?"

The goldeen looked from Annie's beaming face to Web's apologetic smile.

"You did great, little fish!" said Annie.

"Annie's right," Web agreed. "You've certainly shown you can put up a fight. We'll be calling on you again."

Zip fluttered his tail from side to side as he pushed up against the glass, a huge smile taking over his face. "I'll never let you down! You can count on me!"

Poipole shot from the air, hovering before Web. A sharp, musical wheeze came from his proboscis but his face looked very relaxed.

"The threat is gone," he said. "But I think they may return. They will want to avenge their fallen members, or look for survivors."

Annie raised an eyebrow at him. "What? Those things think about stuff like that?"

"Of course they do, they're sentient," said Poipole. "They knew to take over your ship, didn't they? To use it against me?"

Annie let out a thoughtful 'hmm' and looked out at the ocean and the nihilego's retreating forms. "Then just how much of a threat do they pose to this world?"

"A big one," said Poipole. "They don't belong here. They'll ruin this world to make it habitable for creatures like them. Like me."

He floated there, exchanging glances with each of them. Web shook her head sadly and led them back towards the ship.

"Oh, I've so many questions," she said. "Let's get to Wave City. See if we can find somewhere to get something to eat and talk all this over."

They climbed back into the ship to find Trojan sitting triumphantly at the helm, a huge grin on his face.

"Did you see that?" he said. "Sent 'em packin'!"

Web gave him a playful grin and flopped into her seat, exhausted. "Get us to the docks, you goof."

Waveform didn't take his seat. He stood beside Annie, watching the docks grow closer. Water pokemon were still gathered on it, their limbs flailing in the air, all eyes on the ship.

"Well, if we were expecting a hostile reception for riding around in a space pirate's ship," he said, "then I think we're going to be disappointed."

"What are you getting at?" asked Annie.

"What I'm saying is I wouldn't be surprised if Wave City offered us a badge of honour."

...

BackDoor sat atop one of Wave City's tallest buildings. A communications tower dedicated to gaming, news and entertainment. Well, it would have performed that job if its main antenna hadn't been broken by one of the tentacled Ultra Beasts.

A chuckle came from deep within him and he sat back on his paws, watching the Ultra Beasts drift away across the ocean. That pyukumyuku ship had given them a run for their money. They'd been greatly outnumbered, and the combined efforts of Wave City's aquatic army and the crude weapon of a shoddy-looking ship had taken them on. And that purple blob thing darting about... he didn't recognise that. But it wasn't mechanical. He could pick up no signal from it. It was definitely organic. Had it slipped through a dimension pocket without him realising? He found that hard to believe. Maybe it was from one of the pockets he'd left open. Or Zero Day had been doing his job again.

He needed to put an end to Zero Day. They were ruining all his fun.

The hoopa rose from the roof and looked over the city. Its inhabitants were waiting eagerly for that ship. He could hear their cheers. Their obnoxious cheers. Beating back his wonderful Ultra Beasts didn't warrant such celebrations.

He turned from Wave City and zipped over the rooftops. He needed another plan. He needed more of those Ultra Beasts.

A quick scan picked up another of their home worlds deep within Wave City. He started towards it, but then his mind reeled, filling with several new ideas at once.

No... he didn't need those tentacled beasts. What he needed was something new. A bigger toy to play with. He scanned again, picking up three different pockets but none of them were close. They were outside Wave City. The closest one was in the Backbone Mountains. Oh well. It was close enough. Maybe what he found there would be fast. Fast enough to trample Wave City to dust. He'd teach them never to ruin his fun again.

BackDoor changed his course, heading towards the mountains and his new toy.