It's no wonder Luther was so guarded when he called out his name. Once Luther's Darkrai appeared, Dakota began to doubt Luther's identity.
Having already encountered the Rabble, his first instinct was to assume Luther was one of them.
After all, capturing a legendary Pokémon requires considerable strength and a fair amount of luck. These Pokémon rarely showed themselves to humans, and most were resistant to being captured.
"Aren't you curious how I caught my Darkrai?"
Dakota shook his head. "Not curious."
Luther choked, the conversation was instantly killed. "Do you even know how to talk?!"
Whatever. Even though Dakota wasn't curious, Luther decided to continue.
"My Darkrai was also being hunted by a group of people. It ran away injured, and I happened to run into it."
Dakota, who had been feeding Salamence, suddenly turned around and stared intensely at Luther as if a vicious creature were hiding behind his eyes.
He took a deep breath and forced his emotions down.
"Where?"
"I met Darkrai on the road from Duckweed Town to Snowpoint City. As for where it was ambushed, probably somewhere near Canalave City."
Both Darkrais heard them talking about their past and drifted away.
"Looks like your info isn't useful to me. My Darkrai was ambushed near Veilstone City."
Dakota was disappointed that he couldn't find clues about the Rabble by comparing their stories. But then something clicked, and he looked at Luther in shock.
"You know them?"
Luther didn't answer. Instead, he picked up a bowl of food that had been prepared for later and handed it to Mai.
"Give the Pokémon a late-night snack."
Mai accepted the food and walked toward the Pokémon.
Dakota watched her leave, thoughtful. "You don't want her to know?"
"I just don't want her to know too much," Luther corrected. "Back to what we were saying, I don't just know them. I've personally faced off against their strategist."
Dakota's hand trembled and he spilled the food he was feeding Salamence.
Luther waited patiently for Dakota to clean up and put the food on the ground so Salamence could eat on its own.
"They're called the Rabble. They formed roughly twenty years ago."
"Twenty years?" Has the Pokémon League not noticed at all? How is that possible?" Dakota questioned.
"You must've heard what happened in Hoenn. That organization was exposed within three years of forming. Maybe their ambitions began earlier, but once a group is fully established, traces are inevitable."
"You fought their strategist head-on. That means you know what they're doing, don't you?"
Dakota's expression made Luther certain of one thing.
If he wasn't an incredible actor like Shiran, then he was a Pokémon Trainer with genuine grit.
"I've seen...and I've heard." Luther spoke softly. "A man named Shiran described what they do like this: Medical progress requires death and experimentation to advance. Research on Pokémon should be the same."
Luther hated remembering that day because of that sentence.
It was cold, coercive, twisted logic.
"No one knows how they manage to stay so well hidden. From what I've learned, some of them have even infiltrated the International Police."
Dakota was completely stunned. This statement shattered his worldview.
He quickly realized that everything they were discussing had gone far beyond what two people who had just met should talk about.
He didn't believe Luther was careless enough to reveal all this without caution.
"You must think I've said too much. That this isn't something two people who just met should discuss."
Dakota didn't try to hide his thoughts. He nodded.
"Your anger is real. That's what I felt." Luther looked at Dakota and continued, "What you saw in that hideout may not have been as horrifying as what I know, but there's still clear disgust in your eyes."
"You want the Rabble destroyed. That's enough." Luther extended his hand toward Dakota.
Dakota was stunned. No one had ever invited him so directly before.
He understood exactly what Luther's outstretched hand meant. From the hatred Luther couldn't hide in his eyes, Dakota knew he couldn't refuse.
Dakota clasped Luther's hand.
"This is the first time I've been convinced by someone in such a short amount of time. Have we even talked for twenty minutes?"
Luther smiled. "The fact that you didn't hesitate means you're a qualified Pokémon trainer."
"The way you say that makes it sound like I should be the villain here." Dakota joked, something he rarely did.
Because of his impression from the anime, Luther had instinctively viewed Dakota as the "villain" who defeated Ash for a while after arriving in this world.
However, upon further thought, Ash losing simply meant that his skills weren't as good.
Dakota's ability to capture a legendary Pokémon depended on opportunity and having a team capable of standing against it, Pokémon that had been trained over time through effort and work.
Dakota, Luther, and Ash were all just Pokémon trainers. In that sense, there was no difference between them. The handshake between Luther and Dakota marked the moment they shifted from strangers to true allies.
Both Darkrais let out a breath of relief. From their perspective, their Trainers were both strong and shared a deep hatred for the Rabble. If they could join forces...
Following Luther and Dakota's example, the two Darkrai quietly slapped their hands together in a tiny handshake of their own. Having both been targeted by the Rabble, they now shared common ground.
After exchanging contact information, Luther finally relaxed.
When dealing with the Rabble, the more allies the better, Luther knew that well.
Unlike Cynthia, he didn't have the boldness to charge straight into their base with Garchomp and flatten the place. Cynthia had already warned him that fighting the Rabble head-on when they were equipped with enhancement devices was unwise.
Mai watched from afar as Luther and Dakota shook hands and started chatting happily. She wanted to leave, but thinking Luther might still have things to discuss, she stayed crouched down, watching the Pokémon feast.
Dakota glanced behind Luther at Mai and spoke lightly.
"Looks like you care a lot about her. The Rabble dragged her into something before, didn't they?"
Dakota's instincts were infuriatingly sharp.
Luther let out a soft laugh but didn't answer. Instead, he tossed another handful of branches into the campfire.
"I just have a few more reasons than most people to want the Rabble gone."
Suddenly, the fire crackled intensely. Sparks swirled upward as the wind lifted them into the night sky, flickering and fading.
Watching the flames leap, Dakota didn't continue the topic.
If nothing unexpected happens, an extra chapter will be posted tomorrow.
(End of this chapter)
You can read ahead up to 30 chapters on my Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/darkshadow6395