Since he was now in Sinnoh, Looker decided to investigate directly in the field. At night, he went in a bar known for being disreputable, in a dirty and creepy neighborhood. It was hard to believe that he was still in Jubilife City. The neighborhood was poor and dirty, and the bar smelled bad alcohol and drugs.
He immediately found what he was searching for. Two people, a man and a woman, obviously belonging to the Team Galactic, as indicated by their odd haircuts and their ridiculous spacesuits. They were drunk. Perfect, he thought. He sat at a table behind them, not to close, but close enough to hear them.
"And then… I told him – hic ! – I told him to give me his Bidoof, even though I – hic ! – don't care about Bidoof !" the man said.
"Ahahah, nobody likes Bidoof !" the woman laughed, and drank her booze directly from the bottle.
"Do you think the boss – hic ! – the boss will reward me ?" he asked.
"Sure, you'll – hic ! – you'll become a commander for stealing a fucking Bidoof…"
"That'd be awesome… I'd be closer to the boss, maybe I could – hic ! – finally understand why we do all this…"
"Ahaha don't make me laugh, idiot !" she said, hitting the table with her bottle. "Only a great – hic ! – a great man like the boss can understand !"
"Yea, you're right… the boss is so cool – hic ! – he's awesome… I'd like to be like him."
"We're so lucky to work for – hic ! – such a great spirit ! Plus, he's… he's – hic ! – he's sexy…" she said, blushing, and drank a sip of alcohol.
"Ehhh ! And me – hic ! – I'm not sexy ?"
"Pffff, compared to the boss you're as ugly as a Purugly !" she answered coldly, turning her head.
"You're mean… – hic !" he drank. "If I become a commander – hic ! – you'll agree to go out with me ?"
"Hum… maybe. But there's no – hic ! – no chance that you'll become a commander ! You're too stupid !"
"And if I insist, you'll go out with me now ?"
"You'll give me the Bidoof ?"
"Yes !" he cried happily.
"Well – hic ! – okay then !"
She grabbed his hand and together they staggered to the exit. They would probably find a dark alley and have sex behind the trash bins. Looker sighed. What he had heard had let him skeptical. The boss they were talking about, who was it ? They seemed to hold him in high regard. Was it the CEO of the Team Galactic, this young man named Saturn ? He doubted it. He had seen Saturn's picture on the website of the organization, he was quite slender and small, he looked more like a boy than a man. He doubted any woman would call him sexy, or any man would want to be like him. But who then ? That would have been so much easier if he had heard a name !
Anyway, the theft of Pokémons was confirmed. It was unlikely to be the same theft that Cynthia was talking about, so there must be several thefts. And they spoke about 'commanders'. Yes, that was certain, they were acting as a group. But what was this group ? Was it the Team Galactic, or a random criminal group of which some members happened to work for the Team Galactic ? He couldn't be sure yet.
The only thing he knew for sure was that a group of thieves was acting in the region. Discovering and arresting them was a job for the elite inspector ! Yes, now the serious work began !
Ten minutes after the departure of the two drunkards, he got up and left. Outside, he heard groans and moans coming from a dark alley. Just as he had predicted, he thought.
After he got back in his small hotel room and prepared himself a hot chocolate, he decided to look again for information on the web. Now that he knew what to look for, maybe he would be more successful.
Indeed, after spending a few hours digging on every site he could find, he arrived on an interesting forum. A password was necessary to enter the forum, but he could easily crack that with a program used by the police. Yes, there he was ! The forum was designed in a futuristic style, all in light gray. On the main page, the title of the forum was "For a new and better universe !". Yes, that was obviously the Team Galactic's secret forum !
First of all, Looker checked the members list. Hum, of course, they weren't stupid enough to register with their real names… The forum had five administrators, probably the leaders of the organization. Their pseudonyms were 'Commander Blue', 'Commander Red', 'Commander Purple', 'Commander Gray' and 'Boss'. All the other members had pseudonyms too.
He spent a lot of time reading the pages of the forum. Globally, he didn't see anything illegal. Of course, even if the forum was protected with a password, they wouldn't risk saying anything that could be discovered. But he learnt something interesting. The boss of the Team Galactic, the one the two drunkards have probably been talking about, he seemed to be considered almost like a living god. These people believed he could really create a new universe.
So after all, the Team Galactic was like a sect ? But why would a sect use a research institute as a cover ? Maybe they wanted to give credibility to their beliefs with scientific studies. That made sense. Now, what he had to find out was if this sect-like organization was dangerous or not. Well, considering the Pokémon thefts, the answer should be yes. But he couldn't find any proof on this forum. Apparently, they wrote nothing this important on the web. If he wanted a prof, he'll have to find it himself.
After a very short night, he went out with Croagunk and decided to discreetly follow a member of the Team Galactic, to see if he committed anything illegal.
"We have to be stealthy Croagunk, that's a dangerous work !" he said.
"Gunk !" the Pokémon agreed.
"You know how it works. I watch him, and you watch my back, right ?" The Pokémon nodded in agreement. Looker readjusted the collar of his trench coat and frowned. He was excited, this job was thrilling, but he kept his head cool. Now he was risking his life, and the life of his partner.
Hiding behind the buildings, he followed his target, silent as the magikarp, stealthy as the persian, quick as the staraptor. He was an elite inspector of the International Police on a secret mission. He was a spy without fear. He was the right arm of Justice, the protector of…
"Heyyy, what's this old man doing ?"
What ? Had he been spotted ? Croagunk pulled his coat, requesting his attention. He showed his partner the source of the voice. There were three children here, a girl and two boys. Looker sighed with relief. At least he hadn't been spotted by a Team Galactic member. Speaking about that, where was his target ? He turned back. Oh no, the target had disappeared ! What a shame ! What could he do now ?
"Hey sir, are you a spy or something ?" one of the boys asked, a blond teenager whose hair was spiky on both side. At these words, Looker startled.
"Whaaat ?! How did you know ? How did you unmask me as a member of the International Police ?!"
"The International Police ? What are you talking about ?! Anyway, I don't have time to listen to your stories old man, sorry. I'm in a hurry !" he said. He turned to his friends. "I have to go now. Bye Dawn. Lucas, I see you soon !" He blushed and ran away, his scarf flying behind him.
"I asked you a question, kids. How did you unmask me ?" Looker asked after the blond boy was gone.
"We didn't unmask you sir, we were only making conversation," the girl said. She had long dark hair and a white cap, and was wearing a red coat with a heavy white scarf.
"We just saw you hiding behind buildings and found it funny," the only boy left added. He also had dark hair, covered by a beret, and was wearing a blue jacket, and a white scarf too. Indeed, the weather was rather cold.
"Heh. You claim you were only making conversation, do you ? But I know better not to believe that !" Looker answered. "No, no, no ! You recognized right away that I was someone extraordinary. That's why you spoke to me, isn't it ? Your power of observation is fearsome ! Quite admirable ! Well, now that my cover has been blown, let me introduce myself. I am a globe-trotting elite of the International Police. My name… I can't tell you. I shall inform you only of my code name. My code name is Looker. Now, what are your names, kids ?"
"Lucas, sir. And the one who left was Barry." the boy said, skeptical.
"And I'm Dawn…" the girl said on the same tone.
"Dawn ? Dawn ! Aren't you by chance Professor Rowan's assistant ?" Looker asked, remembering Drasna telling this name.
"Yes, it's me. Do you know Prof. Rowan ?" she said, still skeptical.
"Not at all. But you know some friends of mine. Their names are Drasna and Cynthia."
"Ohh, you know Cynthia ?" Dawn replied, her tone suddenly happier. "I found you strange, but if you know Cynthia, I believe you."
"Who's Cynthia ?" Lucas asked.
"You'll find out soon enough," Dawn told him. "If you become a strong trainer, you'll meet her."
"Listen to me, kids," Looker said. "If you're Cynthia's friends, I think I can trust you. Tell me, is the saying 'Don't be a thief !' familiar to you ?"
"Uh ? Don't be a thieve ? Of course," Lucas answered. "It's bad to be a thieve."
"Yes, that's correct. Taking what belongs to others is wrong," Looker continued. "Unfortunately, there are apparently people who don't heed these words. In Sinnoh, in fact, there are criminals stealing the Pokémons of others. I have, therefore, been on the lookout for characters arousing my suspicion." He paused and thought. No, he couldn't tell them about the Team Galactic yet. Only to be on their guard. "You are trainers, aren't you ? Open your eyes and be careful about thieves then. Also, I have a request. If you were to see me again, I ask that you don't speak to me, for I am on duty… Actually, yes, yes, you may speak to me. You must ! Not because I'm lonely, no, no ! You must inform me of bad guys ! You must inform me of any happenings !"
Lucas and Dawn were watching him with round eyes. Of course, they must be impressed to meet an elite of the International Police.
"Er, okay…" they agreed.
"Good ! I count on you, my friends ! Good bye then, until we meet again !"
"Yes, okay, good bye sir…" Lucas said, still troubled.
"Good bye sir, and if you see Cynthia, could you please tell her that I long to see her soon ?" Dawn asked, slightly blushing.
"No problem !" he answered, even though he wasn't sure when he would meet Cynthia again.
The two teenagers left and Looker was alone again. But his target was long gone.
"Ahhh Croagunk, what can we do now..." he sighed.
"Croag…"
"Yea, you're probably right… The only thing left to do now is going back to bed," he yawned. "Last night had been too short… But I least we've meet two interesting kids. I have the feeling that they will be useful. Yes, my policeman instinct tells me so."