Chapter 01

Isolation and Downgrade

Part 1

The rhythmic beeping of the electrocardiogram resounded throughout the room, beating at the girl's eardrums. It was an almost enigmatic sound to her. She did not know what it was about it, but there was something almost nostalgic about the sound of the functioning electrocardiogram. Was it the humanness of that normal heart rhythm or perhaps the nature of the sound that seemed to echo something of human society? No matter how much she dwelled on it, she could not pinpoint the reason beyond those vague questions.

But, that was fine. That sound was comforting.

It meant she was still alive and stable, after all.

The muscles in her upper eyelids struggled to contract, but she slowly opened her eyes enough for light to start pouring in and for her to get used to what would be a large amount of light. At least, that's what she expected.

But, as she forced her eyes fully open, the room was dark with the only light being a faint glow coming from the electrocardiogram which had its electrodes stuck onto various points on her body. Rather than forcing her tired body to sit up, she simply stayed, turning her head about her neck, trying to get a better picture of where she was.

Unfortunately, her night vision was not strong enough that she could detect everything in the darkness. The glow of the EKG screen could only illuminate so much as it pointed to a curtain that was likely surrounding the bed she lay on.

"Where…am…I?"

As soon as her question came to an end, the lights on the ceiling all simultaneously switched on, burning into her eyes as she forced them shut and reflexively pulled her right arm over her eyelids, blocking as much of the light as possible while cringing in pain. She was lucky the cables connecting the electrodes to the EKG had enough slack that her sudden motion did not pull it and knock it over.

As she kept her eyes closed, she heard the sounds of curtains being pulled back before a sing-song female voice began to emanate.

"Ah! I guess turning on all of the lights was a bit too much for you~. Though, it's a good thing you didn't hit your head. We may have wrapped it up and put you on pain killers, but hitting that wound would not be an enjoyable experience for you."

Once again, she slowly forced her eyes open, allowing herself to get acclimated to the now present light before finally being able enough to open your eyes fully. As she finally was able to get a good look around her, the first thing she saw, aside from the ceiling peppered with lightbulbs, was the woman who had been speaking to her. Her long, wine-red hair was tied into a ponytail and almost over-shadowed the glasses of identical color she was wearing. She had her arms crossed, accentuating the ample chest hidden beneath her suit which was concealed by a white coat.

"Well, given the look of your pupils, I'd say you've acclimated enough to the light. Oculomotor nerve—functional. I'm sure you have many questions, but let's go through mine first and I'll answer everything you have to ask. So, first. Do you feel any pain?"

"No, though I can't really move much." She said, struggling do anything more than force her fingers to close up into fists.

"Well, that's to be expected. Even if there was no outstanding head trauma, the gash on your forehead was not the prettiest sight to behold."

"Forehead?" She tried to move her arm to reach for her forehead, but to no avail as her muscles seemed to be refusing to move her arm more than a few millimeters. Despite this, she did come to notice an unusually tight feeling on her forehead combined with the rough feeling on the back of her head. It was likely that a gauze or some bandage had been placed onto her head. "Huh…"

"Well, I guess I should introduce myself. Call me Aina. I'm the doctor who took care of you after you were brought in. What's your name?"

"It's…Anabel."

Part 2

"She wasn't showing any signs of head trauma in the MRI. There were no abnormalities when I gave her a physical check-up. However…well, this is strange, but…" Aina scratched her head before pushing her glasses up the bridge of her nose as she looked to the two agents who had brought Anabel in. "She has virtually no memories. She was only able to tell me a few things. Aside from her name, she was able to tell me that she is from Hoenn, that she is a powerful trainer, and that the last thing she remembers was defending some tower in Hoenn. Aside from that, her memories are vague, fuzzy, or just non-existent. Though I do have to question the accuracy of the latter two statements."

"Her statement about her strength as a trainer may not be unfounded." 100kr said. "You might want to take a look at the list of Pokemon she had in the Pokeballs on her person." He handed Aina a seven page report kept together by a single paper clip.

As she looked through the report, her eyes widened. "This…isn't a joke, right?"

"Doc, does this look like something we'd make a joke report for?" 000 replied with a stern face. "InterPol really doesn't have the time for joke reports. Everything you see on this is 100% accurate."

She looked down through the papers, staring down at that long list of data on six Pokemon. The first three were nothing out of the ordinary. It was not unheard of for trainers to have an Espeon, Alakazam, or Snorlax. It was the other three that drew her attention.

Entei.

Raikou.

Latios.

Each of those names evoked a distinct image, clad in the air of legend. A beast that walked surrounded by a blazing inferno. Another who's run would bring with it destructive thunder and lightning. A dragon who would only open his heart to the most compassionate of spirits much like a hero's sword in some ancient tale.

Aina could not even begin to comprehend what this girl must have gone through in order to befriend these legends.

"Her amnesia. How bad is it? You said she still had a those four pieces of information left in her memory. Is that it?" 100kr clenched his fists, continuing to stare into Aina's gaze.

"Well, aside from that, she can't remember anything else. Her semantic memory seems to be mostly intact, though, and her mental function tests show no abnormalities beyond that. "

Feeling like they had run into a complete dead-end with this girl, the three of them sat and stared in silence before Aina once again spoke up.

"So, what are we going to do with her? She asked me multiple questions, but I'm not at leisure to disclose any of InterPol's secrets to her, so I didn't speak. She seemed quite annoyed when I left after asking all my questions and avoiding answering hers."

"Exactly how much did you answer?" 100kr almost did not want to ask. Based on what Aina was saying, the answer was most likely—

"Nothing."

100kr looked to 000, who reciprocated the gaze, before looking back to Aina. "That may not have been the best option. I know that you can't divulge information, but being evasive may not have been a good course of action. She is a teenager, after all."

"She didn't come off as the type to rebel or get angry for hiding information. If anything, she was merely disappointed, though understanding...though I may have promised to answer her questions before I began to squeeze information out of her..." The doctor began to scratch at her cheek and let out a nervous chuckle.

"In that case, let's just do the briefing ourselves." In the end, 000 decided it was simply best for the two involved officers to explain what was going on to the girl who lay in a hospital bed.

"It would probably be easier for us to delineate what information can get out anyway, so let's just look at this as an opportunity." Looker gave one last look to Aina suggesting she was in the clear.

Part 3

The two agents would go and talk to the girl who they had rescued. That was the plan. At least that was supposed to be the plan. But, as 100kr reached Anabel's room with no sign of 000 in sight, a slight sense of dread and panic began to waft over him. Even if he was an Interpol agent, speaking with a likely troubled teenage girl was hardly an easy task.

As he walked alone into her room, not a single sound besides his own footsteps echoed throughout. That was likely the reason why he ended up catching the girl trying to force herself to sit up.

"Arrête, mademoiselle Anabel!" The man shouted, reaching for the tired patient's shoulders.

"Eh?!" Confused by the sudden language shift of the man speeding towards her, she found her hand slipping from the bed and her body falling back and to the side before the man's hands brought her to a halt. As she gazed into the face of the man who had both startled and saved her, he put her back onto bed.

"That's why I said to stop, Miss Anabel." Looker gave a quick sigh of relief.

"Next time, I'd appreciate it if you'd try speaking in English, Mister..." Anabel's voice tapered off as she raised her eyebrows, questioning whether or not she knew the name of the person before her.

"My name is-" 100kr stopped as he realized that giving out his real name was a bad idea. Though, giving his current codename was going to be a mouthful. "For now, just call me by the codename Looker."

"Mr. Looker."

"That's it." Looker said, placing her back on the bed before pulling up a chair for himself. "Though there's no need to be formal with me, Miss Anabel...then again, I guess I was the one who set that tone there."

"It's fine." Looker's eyes drifted over Anabel's hand closing into a fist and opening up again as she spoke. "Formality feels more familiar for me, in all honesty. Though, I can't be certain why anymore."

Looker let the silence linger for a few moments. In the end, he was unable to fully comprehend her. How could he, after all? She was merely in an unfamiliar location with nothing but strands of information on who she, herself, was.

Was it his place to encroach on that barrier she had put up?

"Are you feeling alright?" In the end, that decision was purely up to the girl. However much she would allow him to know was something she had complete control over.

"Physically, I feel light-headed. Mentally, well, I'm pretty in the dark since Aina decided that she couldn't say anything to me about my situation beyond whatever was directly relevant to my health."

Somewhere in the back of Looker's head, the annoying image of that doctor winking and sticking her tongue out wormed its way in before he promptly shut it out.

"Though, I've been able to put a few points together." Despite her general position, the girl seemed all to willing to talk. In all likelihood, the entire prospect of being left alone in a hospital room while she was too exhausted to move was mind-numbing. Looker's sudden appearance was a wonderful solace from all of that. "Given my lack of episodic memories and the injury on my head, I've probably been involved in some traumatic incident. Aina mentioned that she couldn't divulge information and you mentioned your codename. Putting those together, I can only surmise I've been placed under protective custody by some law enforcement agency and given the restriction of information flow, I can also guess you're probably not some local enforcement but higher up or more clandestine. Possibly a national secret service or ICPO." The girl turned her head back onto the bed to look at Looker. "Does that sound about right, Mr. Looker?"

Looker sat in silence for a few seconds before he let out a chuckle. With how bleak things had been recently, moments like this were all too welcome. "You have a good head on your shoulders, Anabel." He needed not say anything further for the girl to be satisfied that she had figured something out. Her face told him all he needed. It was as if her situation she had been left in the dark in had finally been given some guiding light. Disappointment was finally wiped away by satisfaction.

"I am simply an agent of the International Police, as you had guessed...or half-guessed. My colleague and I found you, injured and unconscious, at the site of an operation we were working on." Looker paused to think on what to say next. "Unfortunately, that's the best I can give you. Details are generally classified but we found you washed up on Poni Beach and took you into protective custody."

"Where?"

"You've never been to Alola before?"

"Considering that Poni Beach didn't ring any bells but the name Alola did, I doubt it." Instead of either disappointment or relief, the girl simply faced back up to the ceiling with flat affect and sighed. She was getting a full picture. Or at least as full as she was going to get at this stage. "What's going to happen?"

"Well, that would have to wait until you're well—"

"I don't mean immediately." Despite being confined to bed, the girl seemed quite lively to say the least. "I'll eventually be out of protective custody at some point. But I have no idea where to go. What's going to happen?"

Yet, despite that liveliness, Looker could see the hints of despair trickling around her. It was an understandable feeling. The girl had only four pieces of knowledge about who she was and the world around her was a big place. Eventually she would be released from Interpol's custody and she would have to wander around with no aim.

"I can't say." Looker swallowed his pride and his desire to comfort her as he brought out the honest truth. It was hardly like this was the first time he had been forced to swallow that bitter pill that was reality today. "That's something you can only leave up to yourself. So, just rest and mull over it."

With that, he got up and stood right next to the girl's bed. "And, at the very least, I'll do my best to try and help you however I can."

Part 4

"Agent 100kr, due to your performance on the beast subjugation operation, we have decided to take you off of the international defense division and place you on the local investigation division."

The two agents, Nanu and Looker, stood in a simple office, facing an office desk. Despite where they were, there was nobody on the other side of the desk to sit on the swivel chair behind it for now. Instead, a rectangular display behind the chair showed a rectangle saying 'Sound Only'. But, the female voice speaking down to the two seemed to hold enough of a presence that neither of the men could escape.

"Before I hear any objections, I want to make one thing clear. Even if the mission was a success, your hesitation costed us the life of an agent who had a crucial role for these types of operations. You may not have killed her, but her blood is now on your hands, 100kr." As the entirety of the responsibility for her death was thrust onto his shoulders, Looker could only stand there and take it, all the while clenching his fists and digging his nails into his palms.

She were not wrong. It was his momentary hesitation and his softness that caused that girl's death. That was reality and that was the cross that he would have to bear.

"Even so, the entire operation was risky to begin with! Agent 40Z's death was a risk from the moment you sent us the tactical plan! It was you all who chose to have her be the bait!" Nanu immediately interrupted. The man who had once chastised his hesitation was now standing as his shield.

But despite Nanu's attempt to defend his colleague, Looker could not face him. His mind stayed transfixed upon his own sin.

"I would advise you to watch the tone and avoid trying to push the responsibility upon your superiors. This was the most reliable and efficient plan possible given the resources we had and she accepted that plan fully aware of the risks. It was on you two and nobody else to mitigate those risks."

There was nothing the two agents could say anymore. They were currently standing under the weight of the organizations higher-ups, unable to anything.

"There are two reasons why your punishment is as light as it is, though. The first being that any life signatures from the beast had vanished meaning that despite the loss of infinitely useful bait, we still prevented any further damage or casualties."

While Looker was focused on his own sins, Nanu immediately clenched his teeth at the brazen use of the word 'bait' to describe that girl. He wanted to shout out. He wanted to shout out that her name was Patricia. That she was an outgoing girl with a tendency to tease everyone she met. That she aspired to be a hero who could bring some form of solace to the helpless just like the world had done for her. That she was not bait, but a human being in her own right.

But he didn't. In the end, he could do nothing but stand there. The world wasn't kind enough to let his words do anything more than fall on his superior's deaf ears.

"The second is that girl you picked up—Anabel. Based on her medical charts, her retrograde amnesia, and 40Z's past, she'll make an excellent replacement."

Those words sent chills down the spines of the two agents, but of the two, only the downtrodden Looker spoke up as the implication immediately became evident. "What do you mean, replacement…?"

"Tell me, do you know why 40Z was set as bait in the operation?"

"It's because she was a Faller—" It was at that moment that Looker finally understood what his commander was playing at.

A loud thud erupted as a the door opened up and shut from behind him. Looker did not even need to look to realize that Nanu had stormed out of the room. It was an understandable reaction. There was nothing he could do. Since the words had come from her mouth, there was no way they could object.

"We noticed the same retrograde amnesia in her that 40Z had reported when she was taken into custody. It's likely that the wormhole that the beast had escaped into when it devoured 40Z had expelled Anabel. If that's the case, then Anabel would be a very valuable pawn for us." Without waiting for any confirmation or confrontation from Looker, she continued. "With this in mind, your orders are the following. Once Anabel has recovered, you are to have her come to this office. We will be bringing her into InterPol's forces and you will be acting as her supervisor."

Part 5

"Do you think that was a bit overboard, ma'am?" A tall man in a pitch black suit and a pure white mask asked, standing at attention outside of an ornate pergola placed in the middle of a grand flower garden.

Fluttering and buzzing around outside the pergola were numerous Beautifly and Combee which were taking their time enjoying the sweet nectar produced by the various flowers. At the very center of it all was a single wooden table with a floral print saucer on it.

A slender hand reached to the side from a reclining chair and placed a matching teacup onto the saucer.

"Hardly. Interpol just lost a valuable piece. A single demotion was a pretty light punishment for his actions. Even if we were able to get a new Faller as a replacement, we still need to expend numerous resources to bring her up to 40Z's level. It doesn't matter how competent of a battler she is or what kind of Pokemon she has actually raised. She still needs proper training as part of law enforcement."

All the man could see was the back of the recliner. The girl's form and countenance lay obscured by the furniture. Despite that, he knew exactly what type of expression she had, though. After all, the manner by which she had thrown the stack of papers about Anabel on table was nothing short of quick and rough.

"It's a huge pain, but these kinds of things need to be dealt with properly. Even if I have to get my hands dirty, I have a duty to follow through and lead with my actions. That's what it means to be a Superintendent."

"Why not Nanu, then? Surely he would be better as a mentor. He doesn't have any of Looker's naivete."

"That man's too much of a wild card. He may be infinitely more fitting but we won't be able to manipulate someone with that much enmity towards us. At least in this case."

"I see." There was nothing more that the man needed to say. He was simply nothing more than her subordinate. That girl was one who had risen through the ranks of InterPol to the level of superintendent due to her own willingness to sully her own hands for the sake of justice. Her machinations were not something he could oppose nor were they something he should. After all, despite being her superior in age, she was the superior officer for a good reason.

Her scowl had disappeared as a huge grin now took its place. "Agent Looker is still competent despite his flaws. Competent, yet naive and loyal. The perfect traits to instill into our newest recruit, wouldn't you agree?"

A/N: All I can say is that I wasn't kidding about the irregularity. Hopefully, I can start writing at a more breakneck pace, but past experience has shown that really isn't the case.