Poni was the most neglected of the four Alolan Islands: while Melemele, Akala and Ula'Ula had places of interest from a tourism or business perspective, Poni stuck out like a sore thumb between its mostly wild surroundings and very few settlements. There were places of interest like the Battle Tree or Exeggutor Island, but nothing that really made Poni pop compared to the rest of Alola. The recent loss of their previous Kahuna with no successor in sight just compounded the problem.
And yet, Looker of the International Police liked Poni exactly for this reason. Sure, he had some very bad memories of it, but it was also a quaint, simple place compared to cities like Jubilife, Castelia and Lumiose were he was often deployed. It was good to just be able to sit at a restaurant and take a coffee without worrying of tailing criminals or having to hide his identity. It was the closest thing to a vacation he would ever get, and he wasn't going to waste it.
Except he was, his mind racing as he stared and sipped at the coffee in Seafolk Village's restaurant, his frown more furrowed than usual. He used to be good at keeping his cool, but it seemed that was another thing he was starting to lose.
The ringing of the entrance bell derailed his thoughts, shifting his focus towards the shady and very familiar man that was striding in his way, taking a seat right in front of him.
Looker remained wordless, shaking his head and turning back to his coffee. "Nanu."
"100kr." Nanu crossed his arms, tired eyes staring him down. "Or is it 'Looker' nowadays?"
"Sometimes." Looker observed the blackness of his drink, following its wobbling.
Nanu slouched on the chair, eyes on the woody ceiling. "So, does the International Police need you to babysit UB-05 or you just craved some Alolan cuisine?"
"A bit of both." Looker paused, his fingers clenching around his cup. "Has Glutton been sighted?"
Nanu shook his head, turning towards the window and Resolution Cave in the distance. "Never since ten years ago, when our colleague was made into a snack."
Looker shook away the unpleasant memories before they arrived, taking a long sip of his coffee. Nanu tapped his fingers on the table, waiting for a response that didn't come.
"Man, you sure are a downer today. No smile, no snark, you almost look troubled." He inched forward, bearing his stare into Looker.
Looker surrendered from the glaring contest right away, putting down the cup and studying the wooden linings of the planks making up the boat restaurant, easy to break yet always able to stay afloat.
"So, what is it?"
Looker shook his head again, adjusting his duster coat. "Nothing."
"Well, suit yourself then." He gave the agent a dismissive gesture, turning the other way. "I just wanted to help you, but it seems you aren't interested."
After spending a few other seconds admiring the boat's structure, Looker glanced back at Nanu, sighing.
"Why did you left the International Police?" he asked, hand back to the coffee.
"Too much secrecy, too many poor decisions, and frankly I was getting too old for that secret agent crap." Nanu grumbled as he turned towards the sea, in Ula'Ula's direction. "Now I'm the last bastion of legality in Alola's biggest wretched hive. Talk about improvement."
Looker's lips briefly curled upward. "I understand."
"Why, you want to retire now?" Nanu raised an eyebrow, his expression unchanging.
Looker put the now empty cup on the table with a bit more strenght than needed. "Maybe it'd be better for everyone."
"Did they use another Faller as Ultra Beast bait or something?" Nanu's glare turned ever so tenser, his muscles contracting.
"Not quite." Looker shook his head. "Just realizing I have become obsolete."
"What could lead the International Police's top agent to think that?" Nanu adjusted his seat, his eyes lighting up just briefly.
Looker's attention went to the floor once more. "It's not such an interesting story."
"Pay me a coffee and I'd listen to anything, including the Aether Foundation's rejected anthem." Nanu frowned. "And trust me, that crap was revolting."
Looker managed to chuckle, quickly calling for two other cups of coffee.
"Alright then." Taking a deep breath, Looker focused on Nanu. "The first was a mission in Unova, a couple weeks ago."
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Looker sighed as he adjusted his coat and rubbed off his sweat, trying to keep his mind off the Unovan sun and more on the ground. The local police hadn't moved much aside from blocking access to the perimeter, several broken trees and disturbed grass laying ahead of them. There didn't seem to be much in the way of clues, but their job never ended up being easy anyway.
"We can't waste time staying in place, agent Looker. We need to get on with the investigation."
Looker turned toward the young blue-clad teen behind him, finding his colleague adjusting his red visor over his scruffy brown hair before moving past him alongside his Dewott.
As he started scanning the area, Looker grabbed the letter given to them by headquarters, opening and reading it over again.
"According to eyewitnesses from Floccesy Town and Aspertia City, suspicious people wearing white armor-like clothes were sighted on this route, poaching Pokémon." Looker stashed the orders away, scanning the area. "The description matches the one given by Driftveil's Gym Leader Clay about mysterious criminals sighted in his city."
The boy nodded, wordless as his eyes darted left and right.
"Let's search." Looker put a pair of gloves on, as his colleague did likewise.
The investigation continued without a word, both agents going through the crime scene with method and purpose. Becoming part of the International Police required outstand skills and aptitude, and every agent knew that and approached their tasks with the utmost seriousness.
However, even by putting his all into the search nothing new was coming up. And thus, Looker's eyes wandered from the ground to the boy alongside him, seeing him and his Dewott analyzing every tree and blade of grass.
He had hearn many rumors about the boy: he was apparently an orphan that once contributed to solving an International Police case by accident and insisted on entering the organization, passing tests with flying colors and quickly rising in the ranks with every mission.
He had used several alias, from Nate to Arata to Lack-Two to Blake, the latter of which seemed to be his preferred choice, but on the job he was always Black no. 2, one of the top agents of the International Police.
Looker had no complaints about his diligence or seriousness, but he really couldn't help but feel that the boy seemed to hide something. No kid would ever be that diligent or want to join their organization, after all.
The agent shook his head and went back to the grass. He hated when his paranoia reared its ugly head.
After about ten minutes of fruitless search, Looker stood again and rubbed the sweat off his face, facing Blake at his side.
"I don't think there's much to find here, the trail must've become cold by now." He pocketed his hands, scanning the area one more time.
Folding his arms, Blake steeled his gaze and shook his head. "No, it hasn't."
"Did you find something?" Looker blinked, walking closer to him.
Blake nodded, pointing at the gashes on the trees and the upset ground around them.
"These traces are definite proof of a battle taking place, far more vicious than your average Pokémon battle." He squinted, tracing his finger on the grass. "Something during the white suits' operation must've gone very, very wrong."
"You can tell that with just one look?" Looker quirked an eyebrow. "That sounds like a longshot."
"It's just the first clue, but there's more, like this piece of fur." He kneeled and grabbed a small tuft of stained dark blue fur, holding it towards Looker.
The agent squinted, stroking his chin. "Interesting, but how can we tell where that comes from?"
"Easy." He gestured at his Pokémon.
Swiftly, Dewott cut off a piece of his fur and gave it to Blake, his trainer holding it opposite to the found piece. Inching closer, Looker widened his eyes at the color and appearence of both.
Blake held the first piece of fur higher, staring at it further. "This is not an official analysis of course, but the similarity in texture and composition is unmistakable. This is Dewott fur."
"Dewott is the evolution of Oshawott, one of the officially approved starter Pokémon of Unova, no?" Looker observed Blake's Dewott, scratching his head. "How did one get there?"
Blake took a piece of paper from his pocket, unfolding it to reveal a newspaper article. He cleared his throat and started reading.
"Jeffrey Isaac, retired trainer from Aspertia City. Missing for days after taking a stroll to Pledge Grove alongside his Dewott, 'Mizutaro'." Folding it again, he turned back to his colleague. "It was on the news for several days, but the investigations on the armored people overshadowed it."
Looker frowned, turning to his left. "Pledge Grove? But that's-"
"Just a few minutes of walk from here, yes." Blake turned that way as well. "According to the Gym Leader's testimony, he was faced with a Delcatty that looked incredibly vicious, whose moves couldn't be seen, and attacked humans without issue to boot."
"You think there's a connection?"
"Too many things add up." Blake nodded, glare sharpening. "This group has been pretty thorough in removing traces of their passage, but these little details will be their downfall."
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Looker crossed his arms, head tilted. "We have no idea where they might be coming from."
"Orre." Blake raised a finger. "The transport ship they attacked in Driftveil was bound to go there. People usually aren't interested in that region, unless they can gain something for it."
"We can't jump to conclusions like this. We need more information." Looker folded his arms.
Blake shook his head. "Investigating further will only lead to the trail actually becoming cold. The International Police must know of this possible connection."
"We can't bring them incomplete information and half-guesses."
"Once is an incident, twice is a coincidence, and thrice is a pattern, as they say." Blake shrugged, circling around Looker. "Just because we don't have the full picture, we can't discard all of this."
Looker grabbed his arm, staring his way. "I can't allow you to do this, Black no. 2."
"I don't see how you can stop me." He broke free of Looker's grip and walked past him, his Pokémon following suit. "It was me and Dewott that did all the work."
Looker froze and looked down, wordless as Blake left.
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"His analysis was taken into consideration right away, and now the International Police is looking into an investigation in Orre."
Ending his tale, Looker grabbed the new coffee cup and drank again.
Nanu sipped his own coffee, staring through Looker. "So a kid beat you to the punch in finding a lead to a case of Pokémon trafficking. Then what?"
"It wasn't just that." Looker shook his head, adjusting his seat and placing his hands on the table. "Blake is way younger than me and you, barely old enough to be a trainer, and yet he's basically the perfect agent of the International Police."
He frowned, fists clenching. "He literally lives for his job, and some of my colleagues suggested that he might even outrank me soon. I wouldn't be surprised if he was assigned to the Orre case instead of me."
"You're probably the only police agent ever to think not being sent to Orre is a problem." Nanu grumbled, slouching and scowling the other way.
"I'm just baffled that the International Police would let a kid sacrifice his chance at a normal life to work for them." Looker sighed, passing a hand through his hair. "It's like he'd rather become a policeman because he has nothing else to live for."
"Or maybe he's just one of those hero of justice types, like that Gligarguy from Johto or that Blaziken Something from Kalos." Nanu shrugged. "He just decided to get a badge instead of becoming Dewott Kid, defender of Earth."
Looker cracked a smile, examining the restaurant's architecture once more. "Probably."
"In any case, I don't see how this is a major problem."
"It's not." The smile turned upside down as Looker inspected the half-empty cup. "I just question if we did a good job if people like Blake feel the need to become agents in spite of their age."
"So there's at least another one." Nanu sharpened his glare.
Looker's pose stiffened, closing his eyes. After contemplating his eyelids and shaking his head, the agent looked back to his ex-superior.
"There is." He eyed the sky beyond the window. "From a mission I took part in a couple days ago, in Sinnoh."
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Looker compared the street to the letter, nodding and striding ahead. "This should be our address."
Hearing steps, he knew his colleague was following. Allowing himself a glance, he studied him: a kid again, roughly around Blake's age, dressed in full black with white gloves, short blond hair and a stare capable of melting ice. Making eye contact, Looker hastily turned back to the road ahead.
He had heard enough stories about him: Koya, one of the youngest and most promising recruits of the International Police. He didn't have that many missions under his belt, but his exceptional work ethics and seriousness had made him pretty well-known. He might've not been the 'Mr. Perfect' that Blake was, but he seemed rather trustworthy as far as first impressions went. Hopefully his evaluation wouldn't turn out wrong.
His train of thoughts stopped as they reached a large building, with several antennae and parabolic dishes rotating over the ceiling. Sharing a glance, Looker walked up to the door and rung the bell.
A man with white hair and golden eyes opened the door, observing the pair and stroking his chin. "Who would you be?"
"International Police. We are investigating the disappearence of Newton Graceland." Looker showed off his badge. "You are Zero, the Professor's assistant and student, correct?"
"Why, that's me." He nodded. "Have you found out about Professor Graceland's whereabouts?"
"No, and that's why we are here." Looker put the badge aside, staring at Zero. "You are the last person to have seen the Professor, and we think you might be able to help us."
"I understand." Zero folded his arms, steeling his gaze as he moved out of the way. "Please, come inside."
Looker and Koya entered the laboratory, their eyes darting all around the complex structures and systems laying around, with several members of the Magnemite evolutionary line hovering up and down, organizing things or working on several devices among several other duties.
Seeing the two agents checking the laboratory, Zero grinned while patting a nearby Magnezone. "Impressive, right? Graceland Labs are manned only by Professor Graceland, me, and our trusty equipe of Magnemite, Magneton and Magnezone. They provide us with assistance and electricity without producing any meaningful waste. Truly magnificent Pokémon."
Dodging a few Magneton with a frown, Koya scowled in Zero's direction. "Graceland Labs studies parallel dimensions in conjuction with Alola's Dimensional Research Lab, right?"
"Indeed." Zero nodded, observing a model of Earth hanging above. "We are located in the Sinnoh region due to our studies on the Distortion World, or as we prefer to call it, Reverse World."
"The world where Giratina is rumored to live?" Looker stroked his chin, eyes moving to the pictures of the creation trio plastered on the walls.
"Correct, the universe of antimatter that is separate yet linked to ours." Zero's lips twitched briefly, before shaking his head. "It was Professor Graceland's dream to discover more of our relationship with it. We have discovered that-"
"This is all interesting and all, but it's not what we came here for." Koya's stare pierced through Zero.
The assistant paused, sighing and facing the agents again. "I haven't seen Professor Graceland in months, and I have been handling the laboratory ever since."
"Is that really all?" Koya inched closer, bearing his stare firmly on Zero.
Zero rubbed his chin, eyes on the floor. "Thinking about it, there was something else. The last time I've seen him, Professor Graceland was discussing with a man I had never seen before."
Looker and Koya flinched, quickly relaxing their posture before they faced Zero again, Koya stepping closer. "Tell us all you know about this man."
"I believe his name was Kaisei. He had long black hair in a ponytail, smelled like he hadn't showered for weeks, and generally acted like a nuissance while bragging to know a way to access the Reverse World." Zero sneered, eyes to the computers. "The Professor seemed interested in his claims, however."
"Kaisei..." Looker frowned, facing his colleague. "Koya, do you-"
Koya showed his phone to Looker, several pages worth of info flashing by. "Kaisei Yamamoto. He's a freelance researcher that collaborated with several Pokémon Professors, famous and respected for his knowledge of legendary Pokémon."
Looker grabbed the phone, reading all the extra information, mostly details of his personal life and mentions of a kid called Hareta, but nothing that related to Graceland.
"Maybe they simply departed on a journey together?" Koya asked.
"If they did, the Professor would've told me about it." Zero folded his arms. "He might be a bit scatterbrained, but he's not careless."
"We will look more into Yamamoto, then." Looker bowed. "Thanks for the information."
"You are welcome."
Looker and Koya turned back towards the door and walked away, Zero following close by. Then, a loud thump made them stop.
Everyone turned around, while Koya widened his eyes and sharpened his stare, body tense. Other thumps were heard.
The three turned around, seeing several Magnemite piled up on the ground, sparks flying freely. Koya went pale.
"Magnemite!" Zero yelled, checking them up before going to grab some Potions.
Looker and Koya rushed at their side, the latter kneeling and touching one of the Magnemite, frowning.
"What happened to them?" He glared Zero's way.
Zero gulped, grabbing one of the Magnemite. "It looks like they overworked themselves."
"Why?" Koya's fists clenched, his body shaking. Looker blinked, keeping an eye on him.
"We have needed more power recently for a... little project, and the Magnemite had to work a bit more." He sighed and shook his head, then mustered a smile. "Nothing some rest can't-"
Zero felt his body being pressed on the wall, and looking down found Koya holding him up and glaring at him, teeth bared and hands clenched.
"These Pokémon work for you, and you treat them like this?" His expression fiercened, his face an inch from Zero's.
Zero widened his eyes, sweat pouring down his face. "Wait! It was just an accident!"
"An accident that shouldn't have happened!" Koya pressed Zero closer to the wall.
"Your Pokémon love you and will overwork themselves for you! You can't let them do that!"
"I-"
"Koya, calm down! He did nothing wrong!" Looker tried to pull Koya away, without much success.
As Koya resisted, his stare softened ever-so-slightly while seeing Zero's visage, the sweat pouring down his face and the trembling lips. Muttering under his breath, he let Zero slide on the ground.
"Don't let this happen again." He adjusted his gloves, giving Zero his back.
Graceland's assistant remained still, mouth agape and eyes on the kid. Looker put himself between the two, forcing a smile and waving his hands.
"Excuse him, he has a bit of a temper but he's a nice guy." He grabbed Koya's shoulders tighter than he needed to while nudging him forward.
"I see." Zero scoffed, adjusting his labcoat while scowling at the agents. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm busy. I'd appreciate if you could leave."
Wordless, Looker rushed out of the laboratory while dragging Koya along, his forced smile making way for a very real frown as he stared straight in Koya's eyes.
"What got into you? He was a helpful lead! Now he won't be willing to cooperate!" He tried shaking Koya's shoulders, only for him to break free.
"He mistreated his own Pokémon." He observed his fist, clenching it tight. "People like him deserve no forgiveness."
"Aren't you overreacting now?" Looker stared him down, arms crossed. "He wasn't committing any crimes, and-"
"You aren't a trainer. You have no say on the matter."
Looker's stare and posture wavered before he steeled it as well as he could. "I am, and think you are getting worked up over nothing."
"You just have a weak Croagunk that can barely fight and will probably get killed in a mission." Koya glared daggers at Looker. "You aren't a real trainer and never will be."
The stare froze Looker where he stood, Koya remaining stiff and tense for a few seconds more before shaking his head and giving Looker his back.
"I think that man is suspicious, and I will keep an eye on him." Koya turned around, walking away. "This is my case now."
Looker stepped forward. "But-"
"That's final." One quick turn and a burning stare were enough to quell Looker's effort.
Looker remained still as Koya left, his icy glare burned in his mind.
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"I don't think I've ever seen someone so angry." Looker placed a hand over his face, massaging his forehead. "It made me wonder if he joined the International Police for some reason other than justice."
"We are all angry at something, be it someone else or ourselves." Nanu shrugged. "What you do to your life depends only on where you decide to direct that rage."
"You make it seem easy and understandable."
"I've just lived twice as much as you and met enough people."
Looker sighed and downed all the coffee left, setting the cup aside as he inspected his hands, clenching his fists. "I should've helped him."
"If he doesn't want help, then that's his problem." Nanu shrugged. "You feel he's gonna blow his mission?"
"He's a good agent, he will make it." Looker pursed his lips, his pose stiffening. "As will Blake. In spite of their young age, they have the skills to become the new top agents of the International Police."
"Thank goodness they will have the current top agent to help them if needed." He looked up, the hint of a grin on his face.
Looker raised an eyebrow. "Have you not paid attention to what I told-"
"I paid attention to what you told me." Nanu inched closer, expression unchanging. "And what you actually said, too."
"Pardon me?" Looker blinked, retroceding as Nanu's face got closer.
"Who are you trying to kid here?" He placed his arms on the table, his stare sharpening. "You aren't afraid to have become obsolete and replaceable. You are afraid that you have failed your duty to make the world a better place and kids had to step up to fix what you haven't done."
Looker tried to reply, only to remain still, mouth agape as he turned to the floor once more.
"I was your superior, I can read you like a book." Nanu slumped back on the chair, the grin growing wider.
Looker kept silent, before adjusting his posture and staring back at Nanu.
"Isn't that how you felt?" He frowned. "That the International Police wasn't for you anymore?"
"It wasn't for me, but you aren't me and you really don't want to be." Nanu crossed his arms, grabbing his empty cup and studying it. "If you are worried for those children, just stick around them and help with their woes or something. Moping and quitting will get you nowhere."
Looker played with his hands, sighing again as he rubbed the sweat off his face. Things seemed so easy a few minutes ago, and now...
He shook his head. "I don't know if that's the correct choice here."
"Neither do I." Nanu kept bearing his stare into Looker. "But what do you really want?"
Looker closed his eyes, thinking about the question. About all his failed missions, all the things he wished to never live through again. All things he wished nobody would live through.
Standing up and dusting off his clothes, Looker smiled. "Guess Blake, Koya and the others will have to deal with me for a while longer."
"Knew it." The Ula'Ula Kahuna grinned.
"Thanks for the discussion." Looker offered a hand.
Nanu looked the other way, giving Looker a dismissive gesture. "Don't thank me, I did it only for the coffee."
"Sure." Looker chuckled, raising a hand and walking towards the door. "See you later, Nanu."
As Looker left the restaurant Nanu watched him from the window, his grin widening. In spite of all their divergences, it was nice to see at least one of them was going to have a good day now.
Taking a deep breath, Nanu stared at the ceiling and closed his eyes. All those weird tourists asking about a 'Kahuna Guzma' could probably wait for his break before harassing him again.