Chapter 10

"Assignment: Lockerbie and New York"

Being a reporter is never easy, yet its rewarding. But the good news is at least I proved myself as a top ranking reporter for CMN. But with it, came more of a responsibility to cover stories that other reporters would not. Given that I was hoping for Psyduck and me to spend time with Tim, his dad and Pikachu, the news that I would get that I was being sent to Scotland to cover the Pan Am 103 crash came as a complete surprise.

"Psyduck," I heard my Psyduck quack as he handed me some last minute items to put in my suitcase. "Psyduck."

"Thanks, Psyduck," I said, taking a small video camera and putting it in my suitcase. "Too bad it has to be during Christmas, isn't it? Having to go on assignment? But, it seems that Tim and Harry might be on assignment too, so we are all in the same boat, aren't we?"

Psyduck responded with a somewhat sad, "Psyduck."

Stepping in front of the mirror to ensure that the two-piece jacket and short sleeved dress black suit I was wearing was presentable on me, I proceeded to grab my black overcoat to make my way over to Narita when the phone rang.

"Hello?" I asked, knowing just who was on the line. "Uh, Roger, I was just about to head over to the airport. What's going on?"

"Oh, sorry to trouble you, Lucy," he said, calling from the CMN office. "I just wanted to inform you that your cameraman is meeting you at the airport."

"So he is."

Roger took notice of the fact that I was on assignment just before the Christmas holidays and felt like he needed to reassure me.

"Lucy," he said. "I'm sorry that I had to do this, but the news waits for no one. Comes with being a top news anchor, isn't it? Don't worry, I'll pay you time and a half while you are reporting on this like all the other anchors are. It's about Tim, isn't it? His Pikachu?"

"Yeah, we just spent last night Christmas shopping and we were going to spend Christmas together, me, Psyduck, Pikachu, him and his dad."

Roger then had some news for me that brightened up my spirits.

"Well, the good news is, love," he said, looking at a piece of news that had just come on his desk. "The United States Government is calling on Pokemon related law enforcement to investigate whether Team Rocket bombed the plane."

Hearing this was no surprise as I sat down on the end of the bed and listened carefully.

"Is this about that phone call that went to the US Embassy in Helsinki?" I asked. "The one I reported on back on December 5th?"

"Exactly, love," Roger replied. "There were also 25 students from the Pokemon League Academy in Israel that were on board."

I could feel my stomach drop upon hearing this. This furthermore raised my suspicion that Team Rocket could have bombed the plane because the students were on board. Now, the urge to go to Scotland and investigate continued to grow.

"Any survivors from the plane?" I asked. "Any of the students survived?"

"Sadly, no," answered Roger. "If it's any consolation, Lucy, you are not only sharing the story of what happened in Lockerbie, but also keeping the families informed. They want justice."

Now, I was beginning to get more and more determined to do my part.

"Let's not jump to conclusions, Roger. Talk later."

Hanging up the phone, I threw on my black overcoat, grabbed my purse and with Psyduck in tow, we left my apartment to do what needed to be done.

"Well, off we go to New York, Tim," I said as Tim, Pikachu and I arrived at Narita Airport to catch our 11am flight on Pan Am to New York. "So much for having a relaxing Christmas after all we've been through."

"Yeah, too bad. So much for spending time with Lucy," Tim sighed, feeling dejected at having been denied the opportunity to spend time with his lover. "Wonder what she's probably doing right now?"

"Probably going on assignment," I guessed as the car stopped in front of Terminal 1, where Pan Am was based out of. "Besides, we need to figure out how Team Rocket, if possible, put an explosive Pokemon aboard one of these planes."

There was, of course, a very good reason why we had been assigned to fly Pan Am. You see, Pan Am was the official airline of the United States, but also for Pokemon trainers because of the so called security it has to protect anyone flying their planes. Placing our suitcases in front of a Japanese Pan Am employee, we watched as he and another agent searched out bags.

"Excuse me," I said, catching the agent's attention. "Sorry to interrupt but, how long has Pan Am's security system been in Tokyo?"

Both agents gave each other a confused stare.

"Since 1986, why?" asked the agent as he closed Tim's suitcase.

"Well, we think that, how should I put this?" I asked. "That someone might have smuggled an explosive Pokemon through your airline's security system in West Germany."

One of the agents proceeded back towards the check in counter and I felt as if he was going to rat us out for trying to stick our noses in places where it didn't belong. A few moments later, the Pan Am supervisor came out from behind the desk.

"Hello," he said, bowing to us in greeting. "Did you say explosive Pokemon?"

"Yes?" Tim asked, feeling somewhat taken aback.

"Who are you?" the supervisor asked.

"We're detectives," I answered, showing my badge to the supervisor along with Tim. "From Ryme City. We're being sent to New York to investigate Pan Am itself whether it accepted warnings a few weeks ago."

He looked down at his watch for a moment and then turned back to look at me and Tim.

"Come with me," he said, gesturing us to follow him. Why was he calling us to the back? Did he know that we have a long flight over the Pacific to catch? Still, we did as he told us to do.

"Sit down," he said, gesturing us into his office and having us sit down in front of his desk. "This warning…you said, regarding Pan Am Flights out of Frankfurt. The warning that came out of Helsinki, yes?"

"Pikachu."

Sighing, the supervisor sat back in his chair in deep thought.

"Bastards," he muttered.

"Excuse me?" I asked.

"Those Yankee bastards, why didn't they listen to me?" he remarked bitterly. "After what happened on the Clipper Ocean Rover years ago, they should have listened."

Hearing that a Pan Am Clipper was in his sentence made both of us feel a sense of wonder as to what was happening.

"The Clipper Ocean Rover?" Tim asked. "You mean, that Pan Am 747 that had an attempted bombing over the Pacific six years ago? It killed a 16-year-old Pokemon trainer and injured his parents before landing in Honolulu. I remember that, somehow."

"Did you bring up the incident at Pan Am?" I wondered, looking up at the clock to ensure that we would make our flight.

"Because it originated here at Narita," the supervisor said. "I was questioned by Pan Am and the Federal Aviation Administration. I answered every question they asked of me and I told them…they should do something to protect passengers flying out of here…such as banning Pokemon from flying in the cargo hold. Because Team Rocket will always find a way to carry out attacks against our passengers and crew."

Pikachu felt nervous upon hearing this, but I calmed him down by rubbing my hand in his head.

"Now, with what's going on in Scotland," he continued. "It just brings back memories of that day."

I then noticed a picture on the supervisor's desk and could see that his emotions had a purpose. There was a picture of a young 16 year old sitting on his desk.

"That boy," I said, nodding if I could pick it up and study it. "This looks like the boy killed in that attempted bombing."

"Yes," he said firmly. "Toru Ozawa, he was my nephew."

"I'm sorry," Tim said, producing a look of sympathy on his face.

"All i want to do is to honor his memory by insuring that what happened to him doesn't happen to anyone else. But those money grubbing fools on Park Avenue put profit over safety especially if Team Rocket is more than likely behind this whole thing."

Looking up at the clock, the supervisor gestured us to get up and catch our flight to New York. But before we left, he had one more word to say.

"Go get those motherfuckers," he answered in a determined voice. "Team Rocket and those Park Avenue money grubbers."

With those words said, we left the supervisor's office with a renewed sense of determination in our case to finding whoever was responsible and bringing them to justice. During the long 14 hour flight to New York/JFK, we knew that we would need to hit the ground running and fast, interviewing those who were witnesses to the emotional chaos on December 21st at New York's busiest airport.

At the same time in terminal 2, Lucy and Psyduck were boarding their British Airways to Carlisle via London/Heathrow to witness firsthand the horrors of what happened in Lockerbie on the shortest night of the year.