Looker came back from the other car, tapping his pen against his notepad as he carefully stepped around the body.

"That about covers what they know," he said, then looked up at everyone in our car. "Now, onto you six."

He sat down in the seat opposite of the brother and sister. "Tell me who you two are."

The guy with the strange hair leaned forward from where he had been resting his head and focused on the International Policeman, his eyes only three quarters open and looked really tired. "I dunno why you're here investigating us, but my name's Piers and this here be my little sis Marnie. We're here visiting from the Galar region. I'm also the gym leader of Spikemuth."

"Can I see your passports please?" Looker asked and Piers and Marnie both nodded.

Marnie's Pokemon scrambled onto the table when she began ruffling through her pink backpack. Piers got his passport first and handed it to Looker, who immediately began looking it over. After a minute, he nodded and took Marnie's, then gave the passports back after another minute.

"You two look good," Looker nodded. "Did you two have any relations with that man over there?"

They both shook their heads.

"Never seen him before in me life," Piers said. "Tragic though."

Looker nodded, jotting something down in his notebook. "Alright, did either of you happen to leave your seat to go use the bathroom?"

Marnie cracked a small smile and Piers gave a light chuckle.

"What?" Looker looked confused.

"Sorry," Piers said, smiling. "It's just in Galar, bathrooms are used for bathing only. I think you would mean the loo."

"Ah, yes," Looker rubbed his head. "Sure. Did either of you use the loo?"

Piers and Marnie looked at each other before shaking their heads no.

"Alright then," Looker got up. "That will be it for now."

Piers began talking with his sister as Looker sat down in the seat opposite of us three.

He smiled. "It's been a while, Zeno, Alex, Robert."

"Likewise," I nodded. "But, what exactly are you doing here?"

His expression didn't give anything away. "A mission. I'm not allowed to speak about it. However, this murder has nothing to do with it, maybe. There's always that possibility."

He leaned forwards on his propped-up hands. "Before we get to questioning, I need to talk with you, Zeno. Alone."

I looked at my friends, who looked slightly worried, but I smiled and nodded at Looker. "Sure."

He got up first and I followed him. We went to the back of the car and through the door into a small room. Unlike the hallway at the opposite end of the car connecting cars, this was the very back of the train.

"I was Nanu's informant," Looker said once the door had closed. "I was the one who was investigating Team Rocket and gave information to Nanu."

I leaned against the wall, staying silent for the time being.

Looker continued. "Before you got to Alola, or maybe it was right when you were on your way, I had Nanu come back to Kanto to help me on a case. I was trying to track down Team Rocket after the whole Radio Tower incident."

"We managed to get surveillance of you and that girl," he went on. "I sent further information to Nanu later when he returned to Alola, which led him straight to you."

He held up a hand. "Don't worry. Nanu told me later he believed you to be worthy of a second chance."

"After he arrested me," I said, smiling a little. "But yeah, I'm thankful for what he did."

Looker nodded. "You should be. I know what happened to Alola and his fate. But that's not why I'm here. I'm not even here to arrest you. What I need is information on that girl you were with."

He took out a photo of a blurry image, with a younger me and Willow cuddled together on the couch back in that abandoned log cabin.

With shaky hands, I grasped it. "I... I thought I had lost all the pictures of her. Giovanni made sure of that. This was the picture we retook because the camera wasn't set up right. I thought I threw this away."

"Why write your names down then?" Looker asked.

I shook my head. "I didn't. I know I threw it away."

I traced the curvy letters. "This is... was Willow's handwriting. She must've kept it."

"Was she connected to Team Rocket as well?" Looker crossed his arms.

I tucked the photo away into my pocket. "No. She knew about me of course, so in a way she was connected, but she was never part of them. It was only me."

Looker nodded. "Thank you, Zeno. That should be enough for me to close that case. But I'm still on the hunt for Team Rocket. You wouldn't happen to know where they are currently, would you?"

"A forested area in Kanto," I responded. "That's all I can really say. Any more and Giovanni will know someone talked. Most likely me."

I met Looker's eyes. "The less I can have his attention on me, the safer my friends are. I already had to deal with that once back in Alola. Never again."

He nodded. "I understand, more than you know."

He nodded at the door. "Alright, I don't feel it particularly necessary to ask you three questions, but I should anyway."

I nodded, heading out first, taking the seat next to Alex, who raised a questioning eyebrow. I mouthed her "later" and turned to face Looker as he sat down.

"Alright then," Looker took out his notebook. "Let's get started. Did any of you three leave to use the bathroom?"

We shook our heads and Looker nodded. "What about the others in here? Did you see any of them leave or act suspiciously?"

I shook my head. "I was spacing out, so no."

"I was looking out the window," Robert put in. "I have some great notes on the Water and Grass type Pokemon we passed by."

"I was sitting where you were sitting," Alex said. "Playing with Floette, so I wasn't facing anyone and I never bothered to turn around in my seat."

Looker nodded and jotted some things down. "I take it none of you knew the man prior to this incident?"

We shook our heads again.

Looker sighed. "Not a whole lot to go off of here. Anything of note to add?"

Alex and Robert shook their heads, but I hesitated.

Looked leaned forwards. "Go on."

I nodded. "Yeah, okay. That guy over there, closest to the bathroom. I only noticed him during the first few minutes when we left the station, then didn't pay any mind to him again. But, I felt like he was staring at me. Suspiciously. I also got some weird vibes off of him."

Looker nodded and wrote something down. "Thank you. It may just be a feeling, but it could mean something. Thanks, you three."

Looker got up and went over to the guy I had singled out, who still looked shocked from seeing the dead body. Narrowing my eyes, I wondered if he could be just faking, or if he was truly innocent. Something about him just didn't sit right with me.

Looker talked to him for a couple minutes before standing up and heading toward's the hallway. There, he stopped, and pronounced loudly for passengers in both cars to hear, "From my deductions, I have concluded that no one here in these two cars approximately thirty minutes ago murdered this man! Further investigation will be made when we arrive at the train station in Coumarine!"

"Really?" Robert asked as Looker sat across from us once more, his Inteleon leaning against his chair. "Are you sure?"

"Yes," Looker folded his hands together, his eyes going to his corners in the direction of the other car. "I am sure that no one in these two cars at that time , or specifically that car,murdered that man."

"What?" Alex and Robert both looked confused.

Looker smiled. "It's simple really. So simple I could laugh."

He looked at me. "You get it don't you?"

I nodded as my two friends looked at me. "Thirty minutes ago, the people in these two cars didn't murder that man."

I looked at Looker directly. "There's someone else here now, isn't there?"

Looker nodded. "In the other car I would presume."

"But how," Alex asked. "I thought they weren't going to let anyone into that car?"

"Not," Looker held up a finger. "Unless they were thoroughly deceived into believing that they were already there."

He continued. "There's a man in the back, with an Alakazam. No one seemed to pay him much attention, and when asked, they all claimed to have seen him sitting there this whole time."

"Wouldn't he try to mess with your mind as well then," Robert asked.

"How many people are in that car?" I asked.

"Bingo," Looker nodded. "Ten, not including that man or the Pokemon."

"So," Robert rubbed his chin. "He doesn't want to risk trying to tamper with anyone else because he still needs to keep control of all their minds."

"Exactly," I said. "But, now the question is, where did he come from?"

"He would have had to kill that man in the bathroom," Looker said. "But somehow make it over to his seat in the back of the car without anyone noticing. Basically, it's nearly impossible that it was him."

"That's what he wants us to think," Alex said. "But, how did he do it then?"

"He didn't," Robert leaned forwards, a surprised look on his face. "Alakazam did it for him."

"That's where this thought process would lead us to believe," Looker's face grew serious. "I would bet my job on that. Alakazams are good at teleporting, so him doing it is the only way all this could have happened."

"But wait," I asked. "You said that he wasn't here thirty minutes ago. How does any of that make sense now. He could've just been here from the start."

Looker smiled. "Sorry about that. I had to lead you guys down the wrong trail before we could get here."

"Why?" Robert asked, confused.

Looker's eyes shifted to the other car again without turning his head. "Tell me, did any of you notice the Inteleon that was here at the beginning of this conversation?"

My eyes looked to where I remember Inteleon being, leaning against Looker's seat, only to see he was no longer there. "He isn't your Inteleon."

"Oh, I have an Inteleon," Looker smiled. "But he isn't where you can see him. I would assume that Inteleon was sent over here as a spy to make sure I didn't have a clue to who really killed that man. That's why I led you all down the wrong idea until he was gone. I only said what I did to both cars so he would lose suspicion."

"So where's your Inteleon then?" Robert asked.

Looker's eyes drifted to the side, to an overhead compartment as the train began slowing down. "Don't worry, there will be plenty of International Police agents at the station waiting for this train. This ends once we get off the train."

When the train came to a stop within the station, the doors opened and Looker's IP buddies came aboard. There were six of them, the one in the lead wearing a black tie and suit over a white button-up shirt. One hand was holding her badge and the other resting on top of her gun while her Mismagius floated above her long purple hair.

"Detective Looker," she said, seeing him. "Where's our killer?"

"NOW INTELEON!" Looker shouted, rising from his seat.

Inteleon became visible as he lunged over the body, landing with his right pointer finger extended. A thin bolt of water blasted from the tip of his finger and struck the Alakazam who had almost managed to teleport away, slamming him against the wall behind him.

We all got up and rushed into the other car, Looker and his team ahead of us. Everyone in the car was shaking their heads, as if awaking from a dream. The man Alakazam was with blinked and rubbed his head.

"So he was under Alakazam's influence," I thought.

The purple-haired woman tossed a cube at Alakazam's feet and an electric cage captured the Psychic type. Alakazam's eyes glowed, but the cage only sparked. It glared at all of us, its eyes resting on me the longest.

"Good work Inteleon," Looker rubbed his Pokemon's head, who only nodded while holding his hand up in a gun position.

"So this Pokemon killed that man?" the woman looked back the body in the hallway. "Why?"

"That I do not know," Looker knelt and stared into Alakazam's eyes. "But we can try to find out. We'll need to take him back to headquarters.

"Agreed," the woman nodded, then turned to two of the IP with her. "Take care of the body. This is under our jurisdiction now, but we will work with the police."

She turned to the other two. "Help everyone off this train if they need it."

Her men nodded and got to work. Suddenly, I heard a voice.

"So, you are Zeno."

I turned to look at the cage, where Alakazam's eyes were glowing.

"We have heard much about you from the All-Powerful One. She wishes for you to stay alive, to be the sacrifice. But, we will not let you. We will be the ones to kill you. You will come after me, and when you do, our leader will be waiting. He has been waiting for some time now to have his revenge."

I was too surprised to react when Alakazam threw himself into the back of the electric cage, his entire body being zapped by electricity. His body began being burned, constantly warping and liquidizing into a purple goop. He shoved his now misshapen burned body through the last of electricity and shot a glop of poison at the side of the train wall. It burned through it and the blob flew out of the window and disappeared from sight as it fell onto the tracks.

"Wha-!" Looker rushed to the hole, careful not to touch the corrosion.

"Anabel to all units," the woman spoke into her walkie-talkie. "Killer has ran onto the tracks! Find it!"

She rushed off and Looker was about to join her before I spoke up.

"You won't find it," I said.

"Why not?" Looker asked, eyeing me.

"Because," I looked back at the hole, a sinking feeling in my stomach. "Dittos can expertly disguise themselves. If it doesn't want to be found, it probably won't."

"I still have to try," Looker said, Inteleon waiting for him by the train doors. "Before I go though, that man you asked me to speak to, he'll be waiting outside the station for you. He wants to speak to you."

"Me?" I asked, but Looker had rushed off with his Inteleon.

"You'll need to fill us in," Robert said, looking at the hole. "'Cause I am so confused right now."

"From Konikoni?" Alex said, unsure. "That Ditto that got trapped to your face?"

"I think so," I confirmed. "And I don't think it likes me."

"Come on," I said, heading back to our car so we could get our stuff. "Apparently this guy wants to speak to me."

...

We walked out of the station and I immediately spotted the guy from the train. With his short black hair and tourist clothes, he looked on edge. No, the better word was nervous.

I stopped in front of him, Alex and Robert somewhat behind me. "You wanted to talk to me?"

His blue eyes betrayed a hint of fear, before nodding. He rubbed the back of his head, looking uncertain. I assumed he was only around the age of twenty.

"You're Zeno?" He asked.

I nodded. "Yeah?"

"And," he looked hesitant, but asked, "Are you not here to kill me?"

I blinked. "Come again?"

He looked taken aback. "Are you not?"

"No," I shook my head. "Of course not. What made you..."

A memory. No, memories. People I had hunted. And a warning.

"Let this be a warning to all those who leave or oppose Team Rocket. We will not hesitate to kill you. Next time something like this happens, there will be more bodies dropped."

Right as my mind had come to the conclusion it had been reaching for, the person in front of me confirmed it. "I thought you had come to kill me because I had left Team Rocket."

"What's your name?" I asked, my eyes closed.

"Preston," he responded, fear in his voice.

I saw the file. I had memorized all of them. He had died in an incident that seemed somewhat suspicious as there was no body found, so he had been on my list, just not at the top since he had only been a grunt.

"I don't know how long you've been running," I said, looking him dead in the eyes. "Because if I was able to find you by accident, then you better keep running. If Team Rocket knows your alive, then you're dead. They will kill traitors."

He looked scared now, but also more confused. "You mean, you're not going to kill me?"

I shook my head once more. "I already said no. Besides, I've left that life behind as well. I, like you, am no longer part of Team Rocket."

His eyes widened in surprise and tears welled in them. "Oh thank Arceus. I barely managed to get away from the organization over a year ago. I always thought you would be the one to come after me. When I saw you on the train, I just didn't know what to think."

I felt conflicted. I was sorry for him, but I was also scared since Alex and Robert were seeing and hearing everything going on. I had told them my story before, but this time, they were actually seeing someone genuinely afraid of me because of my evil reputation. But, I only had myself to blame. So, it was up to me to fix this.

"Look," I put my hand on his shoulder, causing him to jump slightly, but he didn't pull away. "I know what you're feeling. Proton gave me a visit when he visited me in Alola. Nearly killed my friends too."

I looked back at them, hope burning in me. Relief washed over me as I saw their kind smiles, both probably knowing how much conflict was going on inside of me.

I looked back at the former Team Rocket member. "That fear, the one resonating deep within you, I know it well. I don't blame you for that fear of me. It's well deserved."

"But," I smiled. "If you're willing, let me help you. I can tell you a place where you'll find a couple people like us, runaways from Team Rocket. It's the least I can do."

Preston's eyes glimmered with hope. "You- you would really do that?"

I nodded and he nearly broke down into tears. "Thank you. Oh Arceus, thank you. All this running, sometimes I feel like at the end of the road will be Team Rocket waiting for me."

"No more," I said. "You won't have to run anymore. And if you ever end up having to, you won't be alone. Head to Vaniville Town, second house on the left when you enter through the main gate. There should be a couple familiar people there. I'll tell them to expect you."

He nodded, wiping away his tears. "I don't know how I can thank you, not after suspecting of you having come here to kill me."

"I don't deserve your thanks," I said, smiling sadly. "Just remember, you're not alone anymore."

I watched him leave back into the station and I felt something within me. I had given him hope and in return, had given myself some as well.

"You okay?" Alex asked, concerned as she gently held my hand.

"Yeah," I said, staring at where Preston had entered the station. "I think so. I was always so concerned with what my friends thought of me, that I had forgotten what the people I hunted were feeling. That fear, it was so real. So deserving."

"But," I set my gaze. "I've changed. I know that. But that won't stop many from fearing me. I have to do something about that."

"Alola didn't make much headlines since it wasn't really connected to any other region," I said, holding up a hand, closing it into a fist. "I'll win the Kalos League. I will continue to help stop the threats in this region, even if it makes national attention. I will let the world know that I am no villain. I will let them know that their hope can be placed in me!"

An interesting chapter for sure. I hope you all enjoyed it and the multiple things I included in it. Whenever I get an update out, whether it be this weekend or the next, it will be for TMR 2. If you haven't read the first Mysterious Region book, you should while you wait for updates for LDOC. It's way more original than this series and fleshes out a lot of details and lore. Anyway, till next update. Toodles