Steven Stone set down his phone slowly, as if the device itself was brittle. His stomach churned, at what little of the description Lazarus had given him.

  'Steven, your heart rate is elevated.' Metagross's voice resonated in his mind, calm and clinical. 'Deep breaths. Small sips of water. Your mind is clouding.'

  Steven ran a hand down his face, fingers pressing against his eyes as if he could somehow erase the mental images Lazarus's call had conjured in his head. They were no doubt much worse and the thought made him sick. He reached for the water glass on his desk and followed Metagross's advice, taking small, controlled sips while forcing his breathing to steady.

  The scene had he saw it in person he believes he would have thrown up just like Lazarus had. Hell, just hearing about it over the phone had nearly been too much.

  He set down the water and began typing on his keyboard, already beginning to document the situation while it was fresh in his mind. His fingers moved automatically across the keyboard as he reviewed what Lazarus had told him.

  On route to Fortree City. Absol had led him off the main path - that disaster-sensing instinct that people feared so irrationally had proven its worth. A weathered log cabin, isolated, and possibly deliberate it's remote location. Lazarus said something had felt wrong the moment he entered. Absol had knocked over a table, revealing a hidden entrance beneath.

  Steven made a mental note to tell Lazarus to not enter strange places like this. In the future to report them to the League instead.

  The underground corridor had been cramped, made of metal and covered in sound dampening materials, clearly designed to muffle sound and contain... whatever was kept down there. Someone had invested significant money into hiding it.

  And what Lazarus had found in that hidden space...

  Steven's jaw clenched. A Zweilous. A psuedo legendary Pokémon in its second stage. A particularly dangerous one at that. Dragon-Dark type native to Unova. Not a Pokémon that should be in Hoenn at all considering how closely each owner of psuedo legendary Pokémon is watched by the League. The fact it was in Hoenn at all? It could cause a international incident with Unova. They are particularly defensive about who has them. The blind line of Pokémon are particularly volatile and was even more so after reaching it's final stage and gaining sight. The last war Unova was a part of Hydreigon were used as a particularly effective weapon against Paldea.

  Taking another deep breath he continues typing about what Lazarus had pieced together. The Zweilous had evolved from Deino, lost control in the confined space likely from stress if he had to guess, and eliminated its captor. The rest of the details were things Steven was actively trying not to think about. Survival in isolation with no other food source painted a picture he didn't want in his head even if he was sure how the Pokémon had survived.

  The only silver lining, if it could even be called that, was that the victim can't be identified. Odds are if they could be it would cause even more issues.

  This was their main base of operations. At least from what Lazarus had found. Several other cages in the underground facility. Nearly starved Pokémon of various types and regions, all confined in that metal hell. Some rare, some common, all suffering. Evidence of a long-term trafficking operation that had somehow gone completely undetected. It infuriates him to know it was under his nose.

  He pulled up his direct notification for League emergencies and began composing a priority message to the Fortree City Ranger station. The Pokémon not falling under Lazarus' preview needed immediate rescue and medical attention. The site needed to be secured as evidence. The International Police would need to be notified and involved to see if any of the Pokémon had previous owners.

  His phone buzzed. A text from Lazarus: 'Zweilous is remaining calm and surprisingly curious. Though it is concerning, the heads aren't arguing. They are acting as a cohesive unit. Even when eating. They didn't fight over the food I managed to give them which isn't natural from what I know of the species. The heads seemed to share... I won't complain about that but to my understanding they should be in a constant battle with one another for dominance over the single body they share.'

  The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  A few moments later another text came though. 'I managed to find food and three Ultraball in a back room. Who ever this fucker was they clearly had big plans, rather ambitious and frankly crazy. They had planned a strike on Fortree Pokémon Center. Actually wanting to use the Deino once they reached it's final evolution to attack Fortree City and steal as many Pokémon as they could. Odds are several of the Pokémon down here were stolen for either a similar purpose but it seems unlikely. As for Zweilous and a Pokémon he added to his personal team is cause for concern... He managed to poach a damn Dratini Steven. This guy either had some serious connections or was extremely lucky to poach it from under the Blackthorn clan's noses in Johto.'

  Steven stared at the message with incredulity and a growing headache. Of course, as if it wasn't bad enough, there was a poached Blackthorn dragon. One they no doubt have been searching for.

  Steven typed back: *Find out which ball has the dragon in it... Once you do message me and I'll come personally to collect it. Do not, I repeat DO NOT lock eyes with that dragon.'

  Running his hands through his hair he could feel the stress this was causing. Not only was the newest Pokémon Lazarus was going to adopt going to be a registered man-eater... He found a poached Blackthorn dragon. The fact that dragon was here would be paperwork and a lot of strain on Hoenn-Johto relations probably effecting Kanto as well. Lance would likely be happy the dragon was returned but the Blackthorn's as a whole would likely be displeased at the fact the criminal was here in Hoenn.

  Steven took a few more deep breaths to keep himself centered. He began typing again adding a new Pokémon to Lazarus' file the notation: 'Zweilous (female) - confirmed man-eater. Circumstances: survival necessity, confined environment, no alternative food source.'

  The words looked stark and damning on the screen but it was necessary.

  For most, it wouldn't matter much. Drake, one of the Elite Four, had three confirmed man-eaters that were too dangerous to remain wild. The public didn't care because they were Dragon-types, and Dragon Masters were expected to handle dangerous Pokémon. It was part of the mystique, the power fantasy and implied with the species.

  But Lazarus was different. He was already marked as a Dark-type specialist by association if not official classification at the number of the type he has. Four Dark-types in his care, all with documented trauma or behavioral issues. Technically, Tyranitar probably qualified as a man-eater too - wild Tyranitar didn't discriminate when defending territory - but without concrete evidence, that designation stays off the books. A technicality and a fortunate one.

  Adding a confirmed man-eater to a Dark-type specialist's file regardless of if that Pokémon is also a Dragon? It was signing his social death warrant, even if Lazarus didn't realize it yet. Lazarus probably wouldn't care even if Steven tried to explain. Even if it wasn't really Zweilous fault for his continued social elevation and the elevation of Dark types he needed to keep a mark like that off his record. Perhaps give the dragon over to Drake and let him handle it. Lazarus would no doubt refuse. Seeing it as his responsibility as the one who found them.

  The public will see it eventually. Trainer records weren't truly private, not when reporters filed information requests or gossip spread through League channels. When they did, the narrative would write itself: Dark-type trainer with a dragon that killed and ate a human. Never mind the context. Never mind that the Zweilous was a victim. Never mind that the deceased was a criminal that harmed Pokémon.

  Dark-types plus violence plus human death equaled villain in the public's mind. It was a simple conclusion to the masses.

  Steven's hands clenched into fists on his desk.

  'Steven. You cannot protect him from all consequences of his choices. He likely knows yet is set in his path.'

  "I know," Steven said quietly. "I can't help but want to see to it that the planned result comes to pass. He's making it harder on himself and us by relation. Perhaps I should send him off to Unova? Now that he has a Zweilous Alder will no doubt want him there due to having it."

  Pinching the bridge of his nose, and squeezing his eyes shut Steven sat there for several moments quietly. Trying to think of some way he could spin this to the League and the people of Hoenn.

  'Steven. Your stress levels remain elevated. Recommend brief meditation or physical activity to process emotional response.'

  "I'm fine, Metagross." He replied with a slight grumble.

  'You are not fine. You are managing. There is a distinction.'

  Steven huffed a quiet laugh despite himself. His partner was right, as usual. He stood from his desk and walked to the window overlooking Ever Grande City. The late afternoon sun painted the buildings in gold and amber.

  Somewhere out there, Lazarus was probably sitting in the dirt with a dragon that had killed and consumed a human. Likely petting it and saying it was a 'Good Dragon.' Proving that he is a better person than the world ever accept.

  He lifted his phone and made a call, to his personal contact in the International Police, Looker.

  "This is Steven Stone. I need to brief you on a major trafficking operation we just uncovered. I'm going to need you to fast-track some paperwork... And send people over immediately. We will need assistance with about sixteen different half starved Pokémon that need to be returned to their proper owners..."

  It was going to be a long night. But if they just shut down part of the trafficking network and saved those Pokémon? It would be worth every minute of bureaucratic nightmare that followed. At least, it is what he'd have to tell himself.