Lt. Surge took a deep breath and tightened his grip on wheel of the ship. He should feel at home on the S.S. Anne. It was his ship. He was the boss here, completely in control. So why did he feel like he was just seconds away from losing it?

He didn't have anything to be afraid of. It was just the ocean. It may be strange, wide, and unfamiliar by nature, but that was what made it so familiar to him. There may be plenty of dangers out there, but that was no reason for him to be afraid.

Lt. Surge tried to tell this to himself, but it didn't help. It wasn't the unknown that made him feel uneasy, it was what he knew was out there. A monster of a bird pokémon that could cause a tempest so strong that it could cause the sturdiest of ships to sink. A flash of silver that could knock into a ship with such force that anybody that who wasn't tied down would be thrown overboard.

And likely the body of a young boy with maroon hair that Lt. Surge had been unable to get a proper grip on before he was tossed completely off the ship…

"Matis?" Lt. Surge blinked and turned to see Sabrina looking at him in concern, which was a very strange sight. Sabrina by nature was just not a very emotional person, so the fact that he could see such obvious concern in her eyes was enough to make him feel pretty concerned himself.

"What's going on, Beautiful?" Lt. Surge asked in a flirty tone. He had hoped to distract Sabrina from worrying about him, but he wasn't nearly as successful as he would have liked to be. Sabrina did look annoyed, but the concern didn't go away as much as he would have liked.

"Koga is requesting to be able to wear his shirt again." Sabrina said, and if the circumstances were any different Lt. Surge would probably find her words hilarious. As it was though, he couldn't find anything funny about the situation.

"Alright, I'll take care of it." Lt. Surge stepped aside and left the controlling of the ship in Sabrina's hands. He did so reluctantly, but he was secretly relieved that he didn't have to look out at the ocean. Later, he swore he would get over this hurdle, but at least for now he just didn't want to think about it.

"And Matis?" Sabrina's tone was quiet and careful. Lt. Surge raised an eyebrow at her. That was twice in under a minute that she had used his first name. She was on a roll today. "Next time you're struggling with something, let go of your pride and just ask for help. I'm already dealing with one fully grown adult who refuses to accept that he needs help. I don't need another."

Lt. Surge scowled and clenched his fists. He was tempted to shout at her, to tell her that he was fine and didn't need her help, but he would probably just end up confirming Sabrina's suspicions. Lt. Surge loved that girl, but she could be a real pain when she decided to psychoanalyze somebody.

"I'll keep that in mind." Lt. Surge said stiffly as he left to go find Koga. He probably stomped and stormed around more than he intended, but he was frustrated. Sabrina had told him that she couldn't truly read people's minds, but he knew that wasn't true. If she couldn't, then how was it that she always seemed to know exactly how he was feeling and why? Lt. Surge had never told Sabrina about what exactly had happened when he had lost Silver. She knew that he had been there, but she shouldn't know anything about them being on a boat and how he had been too focused on keeping the ship steady to just grab the kid's hand before he fell into the sea.

She shouldn't know about that stuff, but he couldn't shake the feeling that she did, and it was incredibly frustrating. Lt. Surge had been dealing with the guilt for five years. He hadn't needed her stupid sympathy back then, and he definitely didn't need it now. He could handle this by himself.

Still, despite how absolutely infuriating Sabrina could be, Lt. Surge was glad that she had taken over steering the ship. He wasn't about to admit it, not to himself, and certainly not to anybody else, but he couldn't deal with looking out at the vast ocean. He just wasn't ready for it.

Lt. Surge kept his eyes on the deck as he made his way below deck where he knew Koga was. Despite his somber mood, when Lt. Surge saw Koga sitting around brooding like a moody teenager, he couldn't help but let out a chuckle.

"You look like somebody stole your ninja stars." Lt. Surge teased. Koga glared at him, though he looked so exhausted that it didn't look all that intimidating.

"They're called shuriken, and you know it." Koga scolded.

"Tell you what, I'll start calling them by their proper name when you stop getting so insulted when I don't." Lt. Surge suggested. "You're just so easy to mess with."

Koga sighed in defeat. "You're such a child."

"Look who's talking." Lt. Surge scoffed. "Sabrina says you've been moping around because I don't want your tight ninja clothing to irritate your ribs."

"My clothing is not tight." Koga protested. "And what do you expect me to do, walk around shirtless for the next six weeks?"

Lt. Surge winked. "Don't knock it till you try it." Koga scowled and at a speed that really shouldn't be humanly possible he threw one of those ninja throwing stars at Lt. Surge. The blond man flinched when the shuriken grazed his cheek, causing a clean cut. "Alright, alright, I'll knock it off." Lt. had known that teasing Koga, even when he was hurt, would be a mistake, but he just hadn't been able to resist.

"Look, how about I make you a deal?" Lt. Surge reached into deep pockets and pulled out Koga's tunic like shirt. "If you promise to take it easy, I'll give you your ninja shirt back."

Koga eyed the cloth in Lt. Surge's hand and narrowed his eyes. "And my other shirt?"

"You mean your tight undershirt that makes you look like an emo goth punk?" Lt. Surge rolled his eyes. He knew that it probably had a technical ninja term and a useful function and all that, but he didn't really care. "I've seen how hard a time you have getting that thing on. No way am I giving it back to you, not until you're better."

Koga frowned but didn't say anything. He just accepted the shirt from Lt. Surge. Koga tried to put it on by himself, but the movement rustled his ribs, making him wince in pain. Lt. Surge shook his head and went to help Koga. People may have a hard time believing that Lt. Surge could be gentle, but he was more than capable of it when he really wanted to. And considering he suspected that Koga had at least one broken rib, this was definitely a time when he wanted to be gentle.

"What did I just tell you about taking it easy?" Lt. Surge frowned as he helped a reluctant Koga put his tunic on.

"I can take care of myself." Koga scowled before his expression softened slightly. "...but thank you." Lt. Surge grinned as he untied Koga's scarf from around his waist and wrapped it around his neck. "This is so humiliating. I shouldn't need help putting a shirt on. It's pathetic."

"You got attacked by a Nidoking. There's nothing pathetic about that." Lt. Surge reminded him with a grin. Koga returned his grin with a small smile that a stranger might mistake for a meer facial twitch.

"Koga, Lt. Surge, " The two men flinched when they heard Sabrina's voice directly in their heads. She was using telepathy. Lt. Surge hated when she did this. It was unnatural and felt extremely weird. Sabrina always felt exhausted after using her powers in this way, and Lt. Surge didn't see the point when there was a perfectly fine communication system on the ship. If she wanted to talk to them, why didn't she just use that?

"Yeah, what do you want?" Lt. Surge asked irritably.

"We've received a call from the Fuchsia Gym." Sabrina said in their minds. "Janine says it's urgent." Koga stiffened at this words.

"Alright, we're coming." Lt. Surge said, even as Koga began to make his way back to the main deck of the ship. Lt. Surge quickly caught up to Koga and grabbed his scarf to force him to slow down. Koga wasn't happy about it, but he knew Lt. Surge well enough to know that if he didn't do what he wanted, then Lt. Surge would man handle him, and neither of them wanted that.

Even with their slower speed it only took them a minute or two to get back to where Sabrina was waiting. She had activated the auto-pilot, which irritated Lt. Surge. So she could figure out how to make the ship drive itself, but the communication system was too complicated for her?

"What's wrong?" Koga asked urgently as he approached the video phone that Sabrina was using to talk with Janine. The girl looked annoyed but unconcerned, so Lt. Surge didn't think that there was anything wrong at the gym itself, but Koga wasn't convinced. Until he heard from his daughter himself that she was okay, Koga would be worried about her. And even after she said she was fine, he would still worry. Koga was a father, it was his job to worry.

"Giovanni called." Janine said, all business. "He has an assignment for the three of you."

The expression on Koga's face darkened dangerously. "What have I told you about involving yourself in Team Rocket?"

Janine was not amused by her father's scolding. "What did you want me to do? Tell your boss that you directly disobeyed his orders to stay behind at the gym five minutes after he left?" Janine scowled. "It was only because I 'involved myself' that Giovanni thinks that you were all too busy to receive the assignment yourselves."

Koga looked like he wanted to argue further, but Lt. Surge beat him to the punch. "You did great, kiddo. What's the job?"

Janine's expression softened now that she wasn't being scolded for helping them. "Giovanni says that Ash found out the truth about Mewtwo and disappeared. Agents have reported seeing Ash and the lead scientist behind Mewtwo's creation near the docks on the tourist side of the island. Giovanni suspects that they're up to something, and he wants you three to find out what."

Lt. Surge smirked and gently put his arm around Koga's shoulder. "You hear that? Our assignment is to keep an eye on Ash. You should be happy."

"I don't know about happy, but I'm relieved that Ash isn't following Giovanni blindly anymore." Koga tried to shrug Lt. Surge's arm off of his shoulder, but he must have moved a bit too much in doing so because he flinched and curled slightly in on himself. It was such a miniscule movement that Lt. Surge might not have noticed if he wasn't already aware that Koga was hurt, but Janine noticed it right away.

"Father, what's wrong?" Janine's eyes widened in concern. "Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine." Koga tried to say. Both Lt. Surge and Sabrina glared at him for his lie.

"I wouldn't say that a broken rib is 'fine'." Sabrina muttered under her breath, but Janine heard it anyways.

"A broken rib?!" Janine paled. "What happened?"

"He questioned our boss, that's what happened." Lt. Surge said.

"Which is exactly why I don't want you to have any part in Team Rocket." Koga said sternly to his daughter. "This job is dangerous, and the people who do it aren't much better. Do you understand me."

Janine looked like she had a couple of colorful terms that she wanted to say, but she kept them to herself. She just nodded. "I understand."

"Good." Koga's expression softened slightly. "I promise, I'll be alright." Well, at least he wasn't claiming that he already was just fine.

"Of course you will be." Janine agreed confidently, though she still looked upset and scared. Not that Lt. Surge could blame her, because he felt pretty much the same way. Janine turned her gaze to Lt. Surge. "Keep him out of trouble. You know how can get."

Lt. Surge sniggered at the insulted sound of protest that Koga made. It sounded like their parent child roles had been reversed. "I'll do my best." Lt. Surge promised. He always did what he could to keep his partners out of trouble. He didn't always succeed, but he definitely tried.

The video feed wavered with static and it took a few moments for the image to clear up. Lt. Surge looked out towards the ocean and frowned when he saw what had to be Cinnabar Island in the distance. Lt. Surge wasn't a technological expert, but he was familiar with his ship. The S.S. Anne was an old ship, and its systems weren't the most up to date. He wouldn't be surprised if the top of the notch technology on Cinnabar Island was interfering with the ship's communication systems.

"We're breaking up." Lt. Surge said. "We're coming up to Cinnabar Island and have to get to work. We'll get back to you soon, girl."

"Good luck." Janine said before she hung up. Lt. Surge turned off the communication system and went back to the wheel. He still didn't feel as completely comfortable as he wanted to be, but the closer they got to the island the better he felt. Massive monster pokémon didn't have nests right up close to islands. The closer they were to Cinnabar Island, the more sure he was that they were out of the woods, and the more he felt like he could breathe freely.

After what felt like no time at all, they were close enough to Cinnabar Island that they could get ready to pull into the dock. That was when Lt. Surge gave up control to Koga. Lt. Surge may be better on the boat, but he had never been able to figure out the finesse of pulling into the dock. Koga, who was all about patience and little details, was much better at it.

"Let's go see how Ash is doing." Lt. Surge draped an arm over Sabrina's shoulder and dragged her to the main deck of the ship. Giovanni had tasked them to keep an eye on Ash and the scientist to find what they were up to. As far as Lt. Surge was concerned, the best way to figure out what was going on was to be right in the middle of the action. If Ash still trusted them, they could easily figure out what was going on. If he already suspected that they were part of team rocket, well, they could just do the old fashioned method of following him.

But it was so much easier to just be handed all the information.

Lt. Surge grinned when he saw Ash's Pidgeotto and Butterfree flying around the deck. Ash had to have seen the ship, and he probably sent his pokémon to see what was going on. It was really smart of him.

"Hey, guys. How're you doing?" Lt. Surge greeted. The two pokémon didn't answer him. They just flew off back to Ash. Lt. Surge didn't take it personally though. They were just following Ash's orders.

As they were pulling into the dock Ash ran forward to greet them excitedly. "Lt. Surge, Sabrina, what are you guys doing here?"

"We're here to check up on you." Lt. Surge climbed on top of the railing and waited until they were close enough to the dock before he just jumped for it. Ash ran to greet him and eagerly caught him in an embrace. Lt. Surge chuckled and pat Ash on the back. "We made our way over as soon as we heard that Giovanni was bringing you here. Are you okay? What happened?"

Ash briefly glanced over at the scientist behind him, who gave a quick, barely noticeable shack of his head. Ash frowned at the gesture before turning back to Giovanni. "...A lot." Ash said slowly, and that was it. Lt. Surge knew that whatever had happened, it had been pretty serious, but the scientist didn't want Ash to share.

"Hey, it's okay." Lt. Surge said. Sure, it would have been amazing if Ash would just tell them what was going on, but just because he hadn't didn't mean that they couldn't figure it out for themselves. It would just take some creativity. "What are you doing hanging around the dock anyways?"

"We were hoping to find a way off this island." Ash said. "But it looks like all the boats left without us."

"Well, lucky for you, we happen to have a ship." Lt. Surge gestured proudly to the S.S. Anne behind him. "Where were you guys headed? Maybe we can give you a ride."

"No offense, but I would rather not tell you that." The scientist - Blade? Blaze? Something like that - said stiffly. Lt. Surge raised an eyebrow at him. He could understand the desire for confidentiality, but that scientist's tone was just insulting in and of itself.

"Guys, can we please not fight?" Ash asked quietly. "We're all friends here." Lt. Surge didn't even know the scientist's name, and Ash really wanted to say that they were friends? It was extremely naive, but it was one of the most endearing qualities about Ash, so Lt. Surge let it slide.

"Yeah, alright." Lt. Surge held out a hand towards the scientist. "Lt. Matis Surge."

The scientist eyed him cautiously before accepting the handshake. "Blaine."

Lt. Surge firmly shook the hand before letting it drop. He gestured behind him to the deck of the ship. "That there's Sabrina, and our friend, Koga, is at the wheel."

"So you're all here?" Ash grinned excitedly. "That's awesome."

"Glad you think so." Lt. Surge chuckled. "So, you want a tour of the ship?"

"Yeah!" Ash exclaimed. Lt. Surge smirked as Ash went running off to where Sabrina was lowering the gangway. With him gone Lt. Surge turned to Blaine and glared at him when he saw that the scientist hadn't stopped looking at him in confusion.

"Look, I'm not asking you to trust me." Considering Lt. Surge's job was literally to spy on Blaine and Ash, it would just be messed up for him to ask to be trusted. "But if you're going to be riding on my ship, you need to tone down the attitude, got it?" Lt. Surge had a bunch of attitude himself, and he knew himself well enough to know that if he felt personally attacked, he would get aggressively defensive. Ash had asked them not to fight, but that wasn't going to happen if they were all distrustful of each other.

If they were going to be traveling together, they at least had to pretend to get along with each other.

"I'll be just as civil as you deserve." Blaine said, which just annoyed Lt. Surge. It looked like if there was going to be civility between the two of them, it was up to Lt. Surge to take the high road, which he hated doing. If that was what was necessary, then he would do it.

"Glad we got that sorted out." Lt. Surge said sarcastically. "Now, all aboard." Lt. Surge gestured to the gangway that Ash had already gone up. Blaine looked extremely annoyed at him, but he didn't say anything, he just made his way onto the ship, and Lt. Surge was right behind him. "It's time to ship out."

Time to head off into the unknown.

A/N: And there's the last chapter of this story. The next story should be getting up and started soon, so keep your eyes out for that.