A desperate, pink neon light flickered on and off inside the dark, narrow alley. The electronic roars of a sports car raced down the neon-lit street of Lilycove. Within the darkness, two figures emerged, both wearing robes and cartoonish masks. The female wore the visage of a smiling Haunter, while the male wore the face of a violent Hydreigon. The Haunter mask peered from around the corner of the alleyway. Once the coast was clear, she let out a shoulder-sagging sigh.

"These masks are hard to breathe through, aren't they?" Her silvery-blue hair cascaded down to her waist upon lifting the Haunter mask off her face. Her metal-blue eyes were revealed, the soul behind them stern in expression.

"I figured it'd be easier for you, Karen. You so love to hide your intentions, you may as well be wearing it all day," the Hydreigon mask chuckled. It was a playful, yet dangerous chuckle, and he lifted off his mask. His night-blue hair flared out like wings on the side of his head along with a long and sharp bang jutting from the front of his sly face.

"Well, aren't you just a charmer, Grimsley of Unova," she sneered at him, leaning against the crumbled alley wall.

"That's Grimsley of the Unovan Elite Four to you, missy." Grimsley bowed a bit, his blue, ringed eyes narrowed in delight.

Karen stomped her foot. "Enough. We were so close! If it weren't for that idiot girl, then…"

Grimsley pulled a golden coin from his pocket and leaned against the opposite wall from Karen. "Man oh man, it was quite the spectacle. Just fascinating how that Crimson risked it all for her little gang. Well, there's no point in complaining about the cards we were dealt, hehe."

Karen watched in annoyance as Grimsley flicked the coin a few times, each twang irritating her further. However, Karen crossed her arms, her grin slick with slick.

"Well, you're the only loser here. Don't you need to report to your queen after this?" Karen placed a finger on her chin just as the twanging stopped. "I wonder what she'll say when you tell her a meddlesome girl was what caused you to fail."

Grimsley clicked his tongue. "Careful, Karen. You wouldn't want an enemy in me. After all, us Dark-type specialists should stick together. As long as the hero of Unova is playing Elite Four in my stead, I can search for this Gemstone Thief for as long as I need. The queen doesn't care about my mishaps. Only the results."

Karen raised her eyebrows. "If it weren't for me, you wouldn't even get a meeting with Striker in the first place."

Grimsley coughed, his composure broken and repaired within a mere millisecond. "Tch, I have more leads with or without you, sweetie."

Karen strutted up to Grimsley and placed a gentle hand over his beating heart. She brought her lips close to his ear and whispered, "In any case, you should start with these Red Hoods, darling. They put the fear of Ho-oh in that old fool."

She let go of him, and Grimsley watched as she disappeared into the alleyway. He went back to flipping his coin, this time his eyes trained on it like an Arbok watching prey across an uncrossable river.

I'm not down on my luck just yet. I'm the one holding all the cards…

The coin glimmered pink under the neon when Grimsley snatched it mid-air. He chuckled to himself as if he'd plotted something sinister. Donning his Hydreigon mask, he stepped out into the neon streets of Lilycove.

Yes, the hero's father, captain of the Hoenn Police Force. He'll know much more.

A/N: Hello all! Back with another one. It'll be a double post, next one should happen within day or two to start Episode 5! I hope you're all as excited as I am! Thanks for sticking around!

Cheers!