"I would like to know more about that legend, if you will," a deep voice said behind their backs.
They all turned to face the newcomer, surprised. A man was standing at the entrance of the cave, his features hidden against the light. He was tall. Even though his face was in the shadow, an aura of confidence and… power seemed to emanate from him.
"Who might you be… ?" the elder said, her voice suspicious but firm.
The man sniggered and moved forward. He was wearing grey clothes. A golden 'G', symbol of the Team Galactic, was shining on his chest. His stance wasn't threatening, but his simple presence was intimidating. Looker felt a drop of sweat running on his forehead.
"It's him !" Lucas exclaimed as soon as the newcomer's face became visible. "He's the commander I told you about !"
Looker was confused, unable to say a word. This man, he was not Saturn. No, this deep voice, these spiky blue hair, these hard features, it was…
Four days earlier, Looker was in the Great Marsh, in Pastoria City. The Great Marsh was one of the main tourist destinations in Sinnoh. Thanks to it, Pastoria City, a small village lost in the marsh, had become a major economic area, hiring hundreds of people. But Looker wasn't there on a sightseeing trip. Since his meeting with Lucas in Veilstone City, he had investigated on the content of the Galactic warehouse. It appeared that what the Team Galactic used to store in the warehouse was a bomb. They planned to make it explode right here, right now, in the Great Marsh.
"Be wary, Croagunk, this area is dangerous," Looker said to his partner. "The Team Galactic is a major threat, but in this marsh the wild Pokémons can be aggressive too. I have a mission for you, of capital importance. While I hide, waiting for the Galactic Bomb to be placed, you will have to patrol and keep the wild Pokémons far from this spot. Do you feel you can do it ?"
"Gunk !" Croagunk said, determined.
"Good ! I'm counting on you ! Be careful !" Looker patted the head of his longtime partner and the Pokémon went in the ditchwater, disappearing behind the reeds and tall grass. Looker, as for him, hid near the entrance of the Marsh.
Soon, a single Team Galactic member entered the Marsh. He seemed stressed, his eyes glancing all around him. He had a box in the arms, the bomb ? He went deeper in the Marsh, and Looker discreetly followed him, trying not to make a sound. The Team Galactic member stopped. The area had nothing special, but it seemed to satisfy him. There, he kneeled, open the box and placed the bomb. He pressed some buttons, and a "click" indicated that the bomb was activated.
"Phewww, I did it…" the Team Galactic member whispered to himself, apparently relieved. He wiped the sweat from his face and ran to the exit of the Marsh.
Looker had to act quickly. This bomb had to be defused ! As soon as the Team Galactic member was out of sight, he ran to the bomb.
"Damn, I've never seen this kind of bomb before !" he exclaimed, trying to understand how to neutralize the device. He tried to find a panel where he could have access to some wires, but he couldn't find any. A screen was displaying a countdown. Only two minutes before the explosion.
"Stay calm, there must be a way to defuse it…" he whispered. The bomb had several protuberances. If his instinct was right, that was where the explosives were situated. If only he could remove those parts from the detonator…
With the help of a knife, he finally succeeded in removing some of the explosive heads. But that was hard and long, and the countdown was coming closer to zero. There were still some explosive heads on the bomb, but he didn't have time anymore, he had to go or his life would end here !
He took the heads he had removed and ran away as fast as he could in the ditchwater. Behind him, the bomb exploded, throwing him in the air. Everything became black.
When he opened his eyes, everything was blurry. He had the feeling that someone was talking to him, but he couldn't hear anything because of the whistle in his ears.
"… hear me ?! Hey ! Can you hear me ?! Are you okay ?!" a blurry figure was whispering.
Progressively, Looker came to his senses. There was a man with a strange mask in front of him. Above him, to be more precise. For an unknown reason, Looker seemed to be lying on the ground. But it was wet, his clothes were drenched.
"Where am I ?" he weakly asked.
"You're in the Great Marsh, there was an explosion ! Are you okay ?" the man replied. "Do you hurt somewhere ?"
"Oh, the Great Marsh… I remember," he said. So the bomb had finally exploded. "Looks like I'm not dead," he added with a laugh.
"Can you get up ?" the masked man asked, offering his hand.
"I think, yes." He grabbed the man's hand and get up with difficulties. All his body was sore, but he didn't seem to have anything broken. Good news. "I'm the inspector Looker of the International Police," he said. "I tried to defuse the bomb. I removed some explosive heads, but I couldn't neutralize it completely."
"You did a great job, inspector. Thanks to you, the damages to the Marsh are minor. It's fortunate that you were able to run far enough before the explosion. By the way, I'm Crasher Wake, the gym leader of Pastoria City," the masked man introduced himself.
"Did you see a Croagunk somewhere ?" Looker asked, worried. If Croagunk had been near the explosion… No, he couldn't think about it.
"Uh ? Well, there are several Croagunks here in the Great Marsh."
"No, I mean my Croagunk."
"I'm sorry, I haven't seen any Croagunks…" Crasher Wake said with a sad face.
"I must search for him," Looker declared. He started going in a random direction, but it was hard walking. Looked like his leg was hurt after all.
"Wait ! You're going nowhere in this state," Crasher Wake said, catching Looker's arm. "You need to see a doctor."
"I'm fine ! I need to find my partner !" Looker cried, anger rising in his voice. He removed his arm from Crasher Wake's grip and continued walking. But soon everything was blurry again and he felt himself fall.
When he woke up again, he was in a bed. His clothes were dry. No, wait, he didn't have his clothes anymore. Instead, he was wearing blue pajamas.
"You're awake ? Good. We have matters to discuss."
Looker turned to the origin of the voice. A young woman in black clothes was seating next to his bed.
"Cynthia ? What are you doing here ?" he asked, surprised, and sat up.
"I bumped into Lucas near Valor Lake. He explained everything to me. Well, not everything. It was Crasher Wake who told me you were hurt."
"I'm fine. Just… groggy," he said, catching his head in his hands. "Please, don't tell Drasna about any of this, I don't want her to worry for nothing."
"Alright, I won't tell her," she answered with a half-smile.
"Do you know where's Croagunk ?" he asked with hope. But the blond woman smile faded.
"No… We didn't find him yet, but we're searching."
"I see…" Looker's eyes fell on the cover of the bed. Croagunk was still missing… If anything had happened to him… Looker would never forgive himself. He shouldn't have given such a dangerous mission to the small Pokémon. Sadness and fear were seizing him.
"To think that the Team Galactic would resort to terrorism…" Cynthia sighed and shook her head. "You are lucky to be alive, Looker. You very nearly died this time ! What on Earth were you thinking ?! Did you think about the people who care about you ?!" She tried to sound angry, but her voice was worried.
"I'm doing my job… Do… Do you think I put my life in danger for pleasure ?" He felt tears coming to his eyes. "You think I'm happy to put my partner's life in danger ? You think I don't know that…"
Cynthia was confused. Looker was a grown up man, a tough inspector accustomed to dangerous mission. To see him cry like that, it was unsettling. She took his hand.
"I'm sorry… That's not what I meant. You did a wonderful job and the inhabitants of this town are all grateful. You saved the day. But why were you alone ? Why didn't you ask for the help of the local police ?"
Looker wiped his eyes and snorted.
"The local police…" he said with a nervous laugh. "It appeared clear that the highest levels of the local police are corrupted when they refused to help me, even thought I had evidences about the bomb."
"Oh… Well that's… a problem. But I guess it explains a lot," Cynthia replied, thoughtful.
"You understand now ? I'm alone…" Looker sighed.
"No. No, you're not alone !" Cynthia said, determined. "Lucas and I can help !"
"It's too dangerous, I can't ask you that," he refused, shaking his head.
"You seem to forget that I'm the champion of the League. Don't worry about me. And Lucas… Well, he just keeps beating every Team Galactic member he encounters, I think he'll be okay."
"Is there anything I can say to make you change your mind ?"
"No," Cynthia smirked.
"Of course…" Looker said with a smile. "Wait… Since when do you know Lucas ?"
"Oh, I met him in Eterna City. And Dawn always talks about him." She stopped for a second. "I'm a bit jealous…" she added with a half-smile. In other circumstances, Looker would have told a joke about how threatened she felt by the young boy, but right now he wasn't in the mood.
"You said that you bumped into Lucas and that he explained you everything. That means he was chasing the Team Galactic member who placed the bomb ?"
"Yes. He obtained some information too. The Team Galactic used the power they stole at the Valley Windworks to build this bomb. Also, it seems it was just a test. Their real target wasn't the Great Marsh."
"So… they have another bomb, which they plan to use somewhere else… How troublesome !" He threw himself on the pillow. "As if I hadn't risked my life enough…"
"But this time you won't be alone !" Cynthia exclaimed. "Together, let's find this…"
She was interrupted by the door violently opening. A young boy with blond hair entered the room running.
"Look who I found !" Barry said, carrying something in his arms.
"Croagunk !" Looker cried in relief.
"Croa !" The Pokémon jumped on the bed and ran to hug his partner.
"Thanks goodness you're not hurt !" Looker found himself crying again.
"He was desperately wandering in the marsh, searching for you," Barry explained.
"What a relief," Cynthia sighed. "All's well that ends well."
"Thank you so much Barry," Looker said between two sobs.
"Hehe, it's nothing," the young boy answered, embarrassed. "I'm happy to help. Well, I must go see my master ! Bye !" Without another word, he ran out of the room.
"Master ?" Looker asked, confused.
"Yea, Barry thinks he's Crasher Wake's apprentice… Strange kid, isn't he ? Well, I'm glad to see that Croagunk is alright. Now I have to go too. Please stay here at least this night. You need to rest after today's event."
"I'm fine and I can't stay here. I need to figure out where the Team Galactic plans to place the second bomb."
"Stay here, or I tell Drasna that you're hurt," Cynthia threatened.
"… Alright, I'll stay…"
"And don't worry about the bomb, I'll investigate. I promise I'll call as soon as I know anything. So focus on healing, till the next time we meet."
"I see I don't have a choice ! Well, I count on you then. I wait for your call," he said, defeated.
"Yea. Bye Looker, see you soon," Cynthia said while leaving.
"Cynthia," Looker called.
"Uh ?" she uttered, stopping at the door.
"Thank you."
Cynthia stayed silent for a second and smile. "You're welcome," she finally said, and walked out.
Looker hadn't realized before how tired he was. Soon, he fell asleep, Croagunk in his arms, and slept soundly, without any dream.