"Luce," Lucian approaches him, once the sky has turned dark with no sign of the situation fixing itself. "It's getting late. Time to head back to— WOAH!"

Duskull jumps out of the bushes with a loud "RUUUU!!!" scaring the living daylights out of him. Gallade jumps out of its Poke Ball, poised to attack, but stops part way just to stare in confusion, trying to figure out what happened as Duskull starts hysterically laughing.

"Wh– you rascal!" Lucian catches his breath, on his knees. "I almost instinctively attacked you!"

Duskull keeps laughing, so Lucian sighs.

Luce stands up, dusting off his pants. Cynthia went over them a while ago, but she hasn't come out yet. There must be a mess of a situation inside, too. There's been messengers running around the area, hand-delivering situational updates.

There wasn't anything they could do to help until they understood the situation better, so Luce stayed here to make sure none of the civilians tried to force their way through the psychic barrier.

"Where's your other Pokemon?" Lucian asks.

Luce points toward the tall grass, where Monferno seemed to be coaching Buneary and Togepi on how to fight. Ponyta, Machop and Roselia were in the grass, taking them up on their duels. Togepi watches intently, while Buneary tries fervently to upstage the fighting type Pokemon with her attacks.

"...they're capable of training without you? That's pretty impressive," Lucian says.

Luce nods, managing to smile a little. They were pretty capable even without him. Most of his battle style is on their own independence rather than his commanding, after all. They were probably more comfortable gaining experience and coming up with tactics on their own, and only after that, they would try to match up with Luce's pacing.

He didn't have a problem with that at all, in fact, he was quite proud of them.

"[How were things?]" Luce asks, when Lucian recalls his Gallade and he takes Duskull in his hands, shaking it like a piggy bank a few times because it seemed to like it.

"Not too great. We have no proof Galactic did it, though everyone's pretty sure it is. Until we get the proof, though, we can't do a thing," Lucian says. "The Celestic Ruins are rubble, so Cynthia's going to have to stay and help out the locals until experts can go in and try to restore it. The fog's pretty bad, so normal flyers can't get in right now either. "

Luce cringes at that. Sure, with the power of Pokemon, perhaps, they could bring the pieces back together. But that must be pretty devastating.

"Until then, the both of us have to stay here to deal with this," he says, gesturing toward the Psyduck. "Modern medicine's not going to work, so an order's been placed at the Herb Shop in Eterna City. None of the Gym Leaders can leave their towns until we're sure no more attacks are coming, but Gardenia says she'll send someone to deliver it as soon as they can."

Luce looks up at that. So the SecretPotion was commissioned from the Herb Shop? He supposed that... made sense.

"[We can't go meet them halfway?]" he asks. He doesn't know how long he can wait. He can't even contact Barry and Dawn, since no communication device was working.

"I suggested so as well, but I don't have a flyer either, and there aren't Staraptor Flights to rent in a rural town like Solaceon," Lucian says. "But Gardenia told me not to worry, since the guy she sent's a capable chap— whatever that means."

A capable chap...? Luce didn't know anyone of significance. Mister Rickshaw wasn't exactly fighting material, and most of everyone else in the town were older... ah.

Roy! Right. He exists.

He'd completely forgotten about the nice guy back then. Come to think of it, Barry said he told him about the statue inscriptions, but Roy's clearly Unovan, isn't he? The Pokemon he used were all pretty intimidating, too.

Who exactly was he, anyways? He didn't exist in the games...

"Well, if you don't want to rest, I have a suggestion," Lucian says. "We can leave the current watch to the adults of the town. Won't you come with me to Solaceon Ruins?"

Luce slouches in bewilderment, when he asks that.

He wasn't really in the mood to do anything right now, and yet...

"You're here to train and get stronger, aren't you?" Lucian asks. Luce straightens. He was right. "There's no sense in worrying about this now. It'll take a while, so until then, it's okay to clear your head a little. Alright?"

Luce wasn't quite in the mood to do that, either. The last thing he wanted to do now was train. He'd never be able to focus.

But Monferno and Buneary had noticed them talking, and they had come over, curiously tugging at Lucian's pants to get more details of the man's suggestions. They even pointedly handed Luce Togepi first, like a 'hold this. Stay there', while they went to talk to Lucian instead.

It seemed they had a better understanding of what Luce needed now than Luce himself.

"But honestly, what I want to focus on here is your Duskull," Lucian says. "Your Pokemon are all Physical, close combat types, so you most likely don't have much experience fighting with a Pokemon of this typing, do you?"

Luce winces. He's right.

"So, come with me," Lucian says. "I'll even give you a Technical Machine for a super strong move if you do well."

...You're bribing me?!

Duskull cheers, though, whirling out of Luce's hands to get uncomfortably close to Lucian's face. Monferno and Buneary whine, tugging for attention and wailing in a 'what about us?' sort of way, and Lucian couldn't help but laugh.

"We'll see," Lucian says.

Luce sighs. Guess they have to go now.

"Did you nickname your Duskull?"

"[Rascal]."

"Wha— oh. Yeah. Yeah, that fits."

-

-

-

Barry rushed to Pastoria with Thorton and Crasher Wake. They rushed along, drenched boots and heavy rains pouring, slipping through any gap in the swarm in order to get out.

By the time they made it to Pastoria City, the rain had given way to a fair drizzle.

"Alright. Let's head to your house first. You kids are going to catch a cold like this," Crasher Wake sighs. "How long were you out in the swamps in your boxers again?"

Thorton sneezes. Barry sneezes, immediately after him.

"...alright, that answers that," Crasher Wake says. "This way, then."

"Anyways, Master Crasher Wake!" Barry raises his hand, "would you take me as your disciple?! Please, Master! Admiral really wants it too!" he gestures at Prinplup, who, surprisingly, had actually enthusiastically followed along on foot instead of returning to his Poke Ball like the other Pokemon.

"Kid, you're already calling me Master?"

"YES!" he cheers, pumping his fist into the air in celebration.

"Hold on. That wasn't an affirmative!"

"Give up, Mister Wake," Thorton says, shivering as he makes his way in a set direction, "if he's anything like Palmer, there's a 98% chance you will never be able to change his mind. Don't mind that number— actually scratch that. The number. It's 100%. Not scientific, but neither is this child."

"What do you mean, child?!" Barry snarls, "you're barely older than me!"

"Bzweeeeeep!" came the pointed response. "I am three years, four months, twelve days, two hours, and fifteen minutes, older than you. Though the definition of 'barely' differs for every individual, I believe that number is past the threshold."

"That was way too specific!"

"...Barry, do you think your father ever shuts up about you?"

"Now I'm embarrassed!" Barry whines, "what exactly has he been saying about me?"

"Bzweeeeeep! What hasn't he said about you?"

"AAAaaaahhh! Why did you have to tell me that?! I'm going to die! Right now! Point me to the nearest bridge and I promise no one will ever see me again. Please."

Crasher Wake sighs longsufferingly. He did not sign up to be a parent today, but lo and behold, fate had its plans today.

"Enough, boys," he sets his hands on them both. "Let's go get you two warmed up, alrig—"

He's interrupted by a tremor, a growing, rumbling shudder that sends shivers down his spine. He lifts his head just in time for the explosion, loud and jarring and booming, quakes the entire earth.

Thorton falls, knees giving in, but Barry holds onto Wake and Prinplup yelps, holding on to Barry.

And Wake lifts his head to the single worst nightmare of his life.

The Great Marsh was up in smoke.

-

Nothing was alright. Apparently, a Galactic grunt had run out right after the explosion. Some locals were chasing, but too many were busy trying to quell the frazzled Pokemon.

"DO NOT follow me in!" Wake warns them sharply, when they approach the marsh. "It'll be bad news if there's any of that bomb left!"

Thorton crosses his arms and mulls. "Okay fine!" he throws his hands into the air, grumbling something about being treated like a kid. "I'll go after the grunt!"

"I'll go too!" Barry says. "Master Wake, please focus on the city!"

Thorton releases an Arcanine, hopping on immediately. He extends a hand toward Barry, and he quickly takes it. They hop on, holding tightly against the rough mane as Arcanine breaks through the crowd, giving chase in the direction of where they pointed.

"You say that Team Galactic is the culprit of 85% of everything unsavory happening as of late?" Thorton asks.

"Closer to ninety!" Barry says. "At this rate, it might be a hundred!"

"Hm. Interesting," Thorton says, inspecting his machine. "Noise's slowly stabilizing, after that explosion. I wonder what motive they have for targeting the Great Marsh, of all places?"

Which was curious indeed. The Great Marsh is a safari, full of rare Pokemon hard to find in the region. Why would they target that place specifically? Was it another one of those plots for space-related Pokemon? That couldn't be. Then why?

"We're missing some crucial information," Barry says.

"Will catching up to this escaping grunt bring us any merit?" Thorton asks.

Barry frowns. They were robotic, answered in fixed phrases, and offered no knowledge of their master plans, because they most likely didn't know either. The few grunts that were arrested in the Pokemon Mansion were the same. Interpol was dealing with them now, but with no good news to speak of.

"No," Barry deems.

Thorton frowns. "I see."

"HI THERE FRIENDS," a doll-shaped contraption comes popping out of the bushes. They all scream. Arcanine instinctively blows a mouthful of flamethrower at it, burning it to crisp as they skid harshly to a stop in the middle of the road.

The real Looker emerges from the bushes, holding onto the doll's puppet hinges, "just kidding, that was a decoy!" he says. "Anyways, young Barry— uh, could you two stop screaming for a second? My ears ring."

Barry and Thorton hugged on instinct, and Arcanine was growling.

"M-m-m— freaky Interpol guy! What the– where even— why did you stop us?! We're never going to catch the freak now!" Barry couldn't even phrase his sentences right. Thorton was still doing breathing exercises in the corner.

"Rest assured," Looker salutes, "as you said, there's no point in catching him."

"...hold on, before you continue," Barry stops him, scowling. "How did you eavesdrop on us? We were riding an Arcanine."

"There is a listening device on the Vs. Recorder I gave you so long ago," Looker says.

"EXCUSE ME?!"

"Worry not! I got it on a discount, so it only works 1/7th of the time," Looker assures, ignoring Barry's frantic shout of 'WHERE'. "Plus it's solar-powered and you two always keep it in your bags, so it never has enough power to actually function anyways. It's why I didn't expect to see you in Eterna Galactic Building."

"DUDE," Barry wants to strangle this man. He's such a creep!

"Anyways," Looker says.

"DON'T CHANGE THE SUBJECT."

"You're really good at shouting, I envy your set of lungs."

Barry's breathing harshly now, so he walks dreadfully over to the Arcanine, leaning on its mane in search of comfort from this incredulous situation.

"As I was saying," Looker went right back to business. "I already know where they're going, so there's no worry. What is important to retrieve now is the 'detonator' he left behind."

Barry and Thorton lift their heads at that.

"You are a mechanical expert, are you not?" Looker turns to Thorton, who recomposes himself. "It would be ideal if you were to inspect it upon retrieval."

"Ah, yes... I will..." Thorton isn't so sure what the actual hell is happening. He loses his composure as soon as he regains it, throwing his arms up furiously. "Wait! BZWEEEP ZWEEP! Who the hell are you?! Why are you in our way?! Fine, we don't need to arrest him, but we still need to chase after him for this detonator object—!!"

Looker puts his hands up to stop them before they charge through him, shaking his head.

"My companion has already gone after him. Rest assured. For now, we must reconvene in Pastoria and seek shelter from this rain," he says. "Composure is important. It won't do to run yourselves ragged this way."

Barry and Thorton stare at him, baffled.

"WHO DO YOU THINK IS EXHAUSTING US HERE?!"

-

Barry and Thorton get the chance to soak in a hot bath while Looker briefs them on the situation. The older man stands outside, freshly changed and looking through his documents.

They were in their lodgings— Thorton's, specifically. He got a suite room in Pastoria's only hotel, since his trip here is sponsored by the Pokemon Association. The power's back on, thankfully, so they could enjoy themselves while the rest of the town fussed over their reparations.

"Please be aware this is confidential information," Looker says.

"I'm ten years old, stop trying to make me save the world," Barry pleads, slumping against the side of the tub, groaning. "I don't understand confidentiality. It's too difficult of a word for me. Please use easier words, my little ten year old brain can't understand anything, I'll parrot it all out to everyone on the streets. So don't tell me anything that's confidential. Please. I am a child. Let me raise my Pokemon in peace."

"Ah, don't worry, I am fourteen," Thorton says dryly. "I understand the importance of confidentiality very well. I just don't respect it."

Looker facepalms. Why is this his life?

"Alright, listen closely," he says. And he starts recounting the events up to this point. The Psyduck disappearances, the kidnappings of space-related Pokemon, the attempt at Valley Windworks, the heavy activity on Galactic Eterna Building and its immediate abandonment. "All of this convenes in East Sinnoh. We suspect this is just the warm up for a much bigger attack to come, though we're still unclear on their motives..."

Meanwhile, Prinplup is playing with bubbles, Thorton's Azumarill apparently showing him how to use Aqua Ring. Munchlax was floating upon the bathwater on a bucket, while the Shellos was slowly crawling from one end of the tub to the other. Ponyta escaped the bath ages ago, it was probably in the living room enjoying warmth.

"Are we waiting on Master Wake now?" Barry asks.

"He'll probably be busy for a few more days," Thorton says. "Electronics are up my alley, so if we're just investigating the nonfunctional detonator to just find more out about it, it's better to just get started on my own."

Barry hums at that. "Mister Looker, you said 'your companion' was retrieving it, but are you sure they can do it alone?"

"Oh, of course," Looker says, without missing a beat. "She's very reliable. No worries on that end. And you two, it's been long enough. Get out of there before you get heat strokes."

"Nooo, it's cold out there."

"I'm sleepy."

"There's a limit to being spoiled!" Looker snaps, throwing open the bathroom door. "It's time to work! You're going to make yourselves sick!"

Agent Anabel enters the hotel building by the window, holding up the device.

"Agent Looker, I have returned with the..." she stops abruptly when she sees what's happening— Looker is dragging two half-naked teenagers across the room, and they're both struggling to get away from him.

All of them freeze when they see her, and Anabel shakily reaches for her phone.

"...I'll be calling the police."

"Hold on! Calm down, Anabel, there is an explanation for this!"

-

-

-

"Make way! Make way!" Dawn pushes past the crowd, Luxio by her side.

Ramanas Park had been bombed, and people were evacuating in a hurry. The number of ships and Ride Rents were limited, so half of the crowd were led down the Grand Underground by miners.

"Ah— Dad!" Dawn calls out, when she spots a familiar Honchkrow in the distance.

"Tina!" he notices her as well, "Karasu, get her for me. We'll meet upstairs!"

Dawn snags the Honchkrow's leg right as it lifts, taking her into the air. They soar over the evacuating crowd. The second floor was significantly less congested, and Dawn lands just in time to see Professor Rowan come up to them.

"Dawn! I see," he says.

"Hi, Professor!" she greets, running up to the windows, where a good view of the park could be seen. The damage was like the aftermath of an earthquake, where ground was broken and hills were crumbled, trees fallen haphazardly over what used to be beautiful ponds. There were workers inside, guiding the Protected Pokemon to safety.

But inside, Team Galactic were deployed almost systematically, a single red-haired girl commanding the soldiers as they herded some Pokemon into cages.

"They're stealing Pokemon!" Dawn gasps. "We need to go in!"

"Yes, but not alone!" her father corrects. "They might still have another one of those bombs, and we're not sure if it'll be safe to go yet. Stay here for now."

Dawn could only offer a weak nod at that.

With the situation as it was, none of the Gym Leaders could leave their towns. Roark was guiding the evacuators into Oreburgh, too.

This meant the only backup Ramanas park had would be—

"Oh dear. What have they done to the soil?" an older lady sighs, resting her chin on a palm sadly, "all that wonderful earth, upturned and in a mess. I'm upset."

Beside her, a young lady sips on her tea. "I wouldn't know. I wasn't paying attention."

"Caitlin, honey. You really should pay just a little more attention, especially if you were here when the explosion occurred."

"Gallade made sure I didn't feel the tremors," Caitlin says. "I was sleeping."

The older lady sighs longsufferingly.

"Would you like another cup, Madame Bertha?" the butler asks.

"Oh no, no I'm fine, Darach Dear. It's about time we get to work."

"I understand. Then, Lady Caitlin, if you would stay here?"

"I will."

Dawn turns to just stare, flabbergasted. Among the panic and overall disharmony in the entire building, just that one corner by the binoculars, has the atmosphere of a very leisurely tea party.

Her father, too, was baffled. But Professor Rowan recovers quickly, stepping forward.

"I'll introduce you, Dawn. Elite Four Bertha, Castle Valet Darach, and Lady Caitlin," he says. "All of you, this is Dawnes' daughter, Platina."

The greeting is quick and curt.

"Truth be told, I was expecting Bertha, but not the other two."

"We escaped," Caitlin says, like that's an explanation. "Everyone else ran off somewhere. I didn't want to stay in the Battle Zone with Palmer."

Darach clears his throat, slightly embarrassed. "We're on a short vacation," he says, like rephrasing it makes it any better, "our presence here is just a coincidence, but we're glad to offer our help if necessary."