Laughing a little at what she had to say, Derek moved to take hold of Jonesy's hand while Shiloh would have the other. With a deep breath the Sobble dived down, kicking with both legs and even his tail to take them down into the deep blue.

Some pokemon could be seen clinging to the shadows while the fish swam freely, neither of them choosing to disturb the trainers as they moved closer to the small submersible carrying the cargo into Sootopolis. Everything seemed to be going smoothly, at least for a few more moments...

Then the personal submersible devices of a few 'pirates' came racing after the larger vessel, prompting Derek to release Dredgen, his Garchomp. The lack of oxygen catches it off-guard, using a dragon rush to surface and then breach back down into the water, spearheading into one of the individuals it's trainer was pointing at, and breaking their device. Watching them race back up to the surface, Derek glances over at Shiloh to if and how she may be dealing with the other one.

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@shiloh | mission 2/5

Giving a nod to Shiloh and then his Garchomp, the pokemon seemed to be on Derek's wavelength, maneuvering behind them all and kicking up a sand attack along the trench to cover their tracks for a moment as they continued forward.

Jonesy was working hard in the meantime, bringing them to the halfway mark with little to no sign of fatigue. In fact, as they went, he seemed to be swimming faster. Jonesy was in his element, and it was starting to show. A gentle squeeze was all Derek could afford his pokemon, unable to say anything from behind his breathing device.

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@shiloh | mission 3/5

A few moments passed as the Garchomp went ahead to surface for air, acting with a dual purpose to scout up ahead. The duration it took for the pokemon to come back was only so many moments, but it was enough time for the thieves to make another attempt on the vessel.

But this time they honed in on the trainers, who could be seen clinging desperately to what was a mere Sobble in their eyes. Sending out an Eelektross, the electric swimmer did well to do as it was told, gunning right towards them in order to deliver a nasty thundershock.

Without Dredgen in sight, Derek felt the lump of air catching in his throat as he reached for another pokeball. It was sketchy, but the Machamp that was soon summoned into the water with them was quick to catch the eel with it's brute strength, allowing itself to be shocked in their place before tossing it away. Returning Randal just after, he felt foolish to think that somehow it would be enough to stop them.

Being pursued again, Derek tugged on Jonesy who was disassociating himself from the ongoing battle by only looking onward. Realizing his trainer's plight, the Sobble swallowed it's fear of the Eelektross knowing that it was in far less danger.

Giving enough time for Shiloh to let go momentarily, Jonesy rounded about with a sucker punch, catching the eel before it could deliver it's next thundershock. Even so, that didn't stop it from gaining on them soon after.

Preparing himself for the strike, Jonesy cowered and covered his face, refusing to hide behind his trainer. Accepting it's fate, the hit it received seemed much less...electric?

Spun around by the force of something moving past it and catching it's side slightly, Dredgen had managed to race back just in time to withstand the thundershock while delivering it's own attack in the form of another dragon rush. Practically folding the Eelektross, Dredgen ensured it wouldn't be able to follow by managing to cripple one of it's flippers.

Clenching ahold of Jonesy's hand, Derek and the Sobble raced over to Shiloh and began racing to Sootopolis with the adrenaline of the skirmish still fresh. The rays of light from Sootopolis began to creep over them, the Garchomp swimming along them and giving a nod that seemed to imply there wouldn't be anymore trouble. Using their pokeball to withdraw them from the water, Derek couldn't help but laugh at the slight scare, causing bubbles to fly out from the end of the device that practically lead them to their destination.

With the vessel even further ahead than them, Derek turned to return Shiloh's thumbs up, refusing to consider the events anything other than fun. It reminded him of a couple years ago, when he and his pokemon endured situations more dire than this one. They were stronger for this, and that put a smile on Derek's face any day.

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@shiloh | mission 4/5

"Oh come on, it wasn't that bad." Derek questions as he throws his head above the surface, removing his mask and climbing shore. Slicking his hair back to get rid of the excess water, he turns to give a thumbs up to Jonesy, who seemed to be waiting for the praise.

"You did great, buddy. We'll have to see about finding you a reward when we get into town." Removing the wetsuit and bringing it over to where the submersible had docked, Derek shook the hands of the skipper and learned that their money had already been linked to their accounts.

"So, since we're stuck here for a little, want to go have a look around the city with me and Jonesy?" Seeing as how she probably didn't have a way back herself, Derek hoped Shiloh might stick around for a little while. "I've only been here a couple times myself, and I've yet to see what the lake looks like at night. I'll buy you something if it makes the difference."

Regardless of the answer, Derek already planned to stay until dark. There was something else he'd been meaning to look into, but that was a one man job that he didn't want to get her caught up in. Not for the time being, at least.

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@shiloh | mission 5/5