It's hard to believe that it's been five years since this story began and I'm only now getting Chapter 40 done. Life sure has a funny way of majorly side-tracking me. And here I thought I would have been closer to Chapter 100. But I suppose this five year mark was meant to be. It sets up a whole new set of evil that Zack and the others will be coming across time and again in future chapters. So Happy Fifth Anniversary of Zack's Adventurous Life! May Chapter 41 be written soon after and Chapter 42's rough draft be finished.

Chapter 40: The Poke-Thief

Following our trainers close behind, Ted, Skitty, and I ran towards the commotion that we had heard, wondering just what was the reason for behind said commotion, a question that was about to be answered as we ran up to said area that had said commotion occurring at hand, hoof, and paw, if that was even applicable. What was I thinking on? My thoughts were sadly interrupted as something came flying out from a building and landed with the other pile of inside décor that now lied strewn about, causing us to stop as to avoid getting hit.

"What's going on here?" Laura asked as someone from inside the building came stomping out, screaming and hollering in a fit of rage; people who had stopped to watch the scene before them as the guy grabbed a broom and began whacking it against the building he came out from.

"That does it!" he yelled angrily. "I've had it! This is the last straw!" The guy whacked the broom against the building several more times before the broom's handle gave way and snapped, sending small chips of wood flying. Still in a rage, the guy threw what remained of the handle down and took a look around at the surrounding people watching him, all of whom took several steps back in response to the glare he was giving off. He soon came to rest his eyes in our direction, specifically upon my master. "What do you think you're looking at?"

"N-nothing," he replied, flinching in response to the man's outburst towards him as he started advancing towards us. "We were just wanting to see what was going on."

"Why?" the guy snapped. "So you can give me trouble too?"

"N-no sir," my trainer said again. "We were just-"

"I'm not going to give you any chances to ruin my business either!"

"Sir, please!" Laura pleaded, "We only-"

"Laura, look out!" my trainer yelled as he got in between the two of them, the guy grabbing his coat collar as a few people finally moved to diffuse the situation. Luckily, Ted was long ahead of all of them. I simply watched as the guy collapsed suddenly, his grip on my trainer loosening, being caught by the last second before hitting the ground.

"Are you all right?" my trainer was asked as he was checked up upon.

"I'm fine," was his reply with a bit of a cough. Knowing the fact that he was all right, I turned my attention down to Ted who stood just behind the guy who had made a go at my trainer, a single claw lightly touching the back of his leg.

"All right Ted!" Skitty yelled. "Way to show 'em who's boss!"

I turned a fraction back towards Skitty as she yelled, only to find her facing the opposite direction. I stared blankly at her for a second before looking back at Ted who was now looking straight at me with an amused smile upon his face before returning my attention back at Skitty, feeling compelled to ask her the question that was gnawing at me. "Skitty, who are you talking to?"

"I'm talking to Ted, of course," Skitty replied as she looked back at me.

"You do realize Ted's behind you, right?" I asked, pointing in the direction he was in.

Skitty craned her head further around, almost completely facing backwards. Had she gone a few inches further, I'm pretty sure her head would snap into place like that. It was downright creepy just to watch her do that. She remained silent for a minute as she stared at Ted nevertheless before snapping her head back straight ahead asking, "If Ted's over there, then who's that?" I followed Skitty's gaze towards the building several feet from where we stood to see our reflections being cast in the window. "Assimilation is in progress! He will pay for carbon copying!" All I could do was watch after her as she said that in a trance-like state, not bothering to comment as I focused my attention back upon the human whom Ted had stopped with his odd ability of body paralysis.

"Thank you," I heard the guy say as he was placed in a chair someone turned upright. "Is the boy all right?"

"He's fine," said the human who caught the guy earlier as he fell. "No damage done."

The guy turned his head towards my trainer despite being told that no harm was done and said, "Sorry. Didn't mean to."

"It's all right," my trainer replied with a smile. "No harm done. I can understand how stressful it can be to be overwhelmed with work."

"Actually it's not the fact that he's overwhelmed with work," said the guy who caught said worker guy. "It's actually-"

A vehicle approaching cut him off before he could explain, said vehicle being driven by a familiar blue-haired woman wearing a uniform. "Is everything all right over here? she asked as she drove up, getting off her ride.

"Officer Jenny!" my trainer said. "What are you doing here?"

"Hmm?" the police woman questioned curiously. "Do I know you?"

"We met in Cerulean," my trainer said. "Don't you remember? The bank robbery?"

"Cerulean?" she questioned again, looking confused. "You must be referring to my cousin."

"Your cousin?" Laura questioned.

"That's right," the police woman replied. "Every Officer Jenny you meet all look alike and are named Jenny."

"That explains it!" Laura said. "It's just like how every Nurse Joy is named Joy and looks the same as well."

"Exactly," the police woman said. Remind me never to be in the same room with them. My mind might not be able to handle it.

"Getting back to the matter at hand, I'm afraid the situation has occurred once again, Officer," said the guy who was about to explain just what said situation was. "Dimitri's store was targeted this time." The police woman only sighed in response. "We know you've been trying your best to catch it, but we can't continue to let it roam so freely and do as it pleases."

"I know," the police woman said looking kind of glum.

"Excuse me," my trainer said. "But will somebody please explain what you're talking about."

"Oh right!" the guy said, realizing we were still here. "I do apologize. I'm Pete by the way."

"Very nice to meet you," Laura said.

"Likewise," Pete said with a smile. "As I was about to tell you though, it's not the stress of work that caused the store owner to flip out. Rather, within the past week, our stores have been robbed of its main goods. Food, water, easy carrying furniture, and more."

"That's odd," Laura said. "Why would burglars take all that and not money?"

"Because the burglars aren't really burglars at all," Pete replied. "In fact, the burglars is just one and he's nothing more than a pokethief."

"Isn't that somewhat similar to a thief?" my trainer asked.

"Not if the pokethief is a pokemon," Pete replied. "Tell me, have either of you seen a Drowzee upon your arrival?"

"A Drowzee?" my trainer asked as he pulled out his Pokedex to look it up.

"A Drowzee?" I questioned as I turned towards Ted.

"The pokemon who ran into me," was his reply.

"Oh," was all I said as I looked back in the direction we had encountered him, thinking back to what he looked like.

"That's right," Ted said as he noticed my look. "I forgot that you haven't had any encounters with Psychic pokemon throughout your life."

"So, Drowzee are Psychic type huh?" I said, looking back down the direction we encountered him.

"So that's a Drowzee," I heard Laura say as my attention shifted towards them. "He's the one that ran into my Teddiursa and dropped all the food he was carrying."

"We didn't know he stole all that," my trainer said. "Had we known we would have stopped it."

"It's quite all right," Pete said. "There's no way you would have known it was stealing our essentials."

"Well if there's anything we can do to help, just let us know," my trainer said.

"The offer is appreciated," Pete said with a half-hearted smile. "But I'm afraid that it's out of anyone's hands now. Not even Officer Jenny has any say against them."

"You called them, didn't you?" the police woman asked, finally having an input on the conversation.

"Betty did, actually," Pete replied. "I am sorry, Officer. Something has to be done. My wife and I can't sit idly by and let that Drowzee run us dry." The police woman bit down upon her thumb, a mixture of a troubled look and worry upon her face.

"Who's them?" Laura asked after a moment of silence.

The police woman sighed as she turned about and walked back toward her motor bike and leaned against it. "They're a specialty group that deals in handling unruly pokemon, whether they belong to someone or not; an agency that people fear just by the mere mention of three letters. They are known as... the D.C.A.