Hell-Sung

“I’m going to be honest with you. Our goals are not the same, but your goal might still have piqued my interest. I—or rather we—would be willing to help you in any way we can, as long as your guys don’t get in the way of our goals. It’d save us both time and resources by not being rivals in this region, as two organization that actually can assist each other.”

As his trainer was being serious and picking her words carefully, the Zoroark’s attention was on the Houndoom whose sight didn’t leave the pair for even a second. Kuro narrowed his eyes, almost glaring at the other pokémon. Being stared at like this by a complete stranger of a pokémon was not on his list of “likes”. And if asked to, he’d gladly try and dispose of anyone who dared to look at his trainer the way the Houndoom did, too.

But none of those things were part of Ailis’ plan, and the blonde shoot a glare at the Zoroark once she noticed it looked like he was ready to jump on the other pokémon. “Play nice…” she whispered. At least it seemed to work, as Kuro laid down near her feet, closing his eyes as if deciding it was a perfect time to take a nap.

Enyo ignored the fox’s actions. She may have disliked the creature, and would have loved to meet his challenge, but this was neither the time nor place to start picking a fight with the animal. But she didn’t avert her gaze either. A fight was something she was prepared for. There had always been a chance for one to crop up with this woman during their conversation that Enyo was barely following, but it so happened, she wouldn’t be the one to throw the first strike. She knew well enough that wasn’t what her master wanted, and that it might place them into awkward situation with whomever this woman was in charge of.   

But her fur rose, and her muscles tensed when the other Pokemon seemingly became more hostile. Ready for a brawl with the stranger’s partner at any given moment, as she rose to her feet in front of her master. Lips pulling back into a snarl as a warning, letting him know that if he dared to move, she would most certainly bite back, and hard.

But he was settled by his master’s words, and Enyo relaxed ever so slightly as a result, not wanting to mark her master’s reputation. Her short fur slicking back down, as her tail flopped back down. She wasn’t a fan of this pair at all. They were hardly worthy of any sort of trust, but her opinion was based solely on her dislike for the fox, as she viewed him as a threat. Leaving an unpleasant feeling in her bones, and the flames within her boiling at the back of her throat just in case he wasn’t content with calling things off. 

      A sheet of paper was pulled from between the folds of a stack. It was a wonder he found exactly what he wanted in such a mess. Only a higher power would know that secret. He stepped forward, hand outstretched to take it. His eyes skimmed over the paragraphs and after a prolonged silence, cleared his throat. Jules looked over the sheet as Cerberus spoke again, soon giving a nod in acceptance. As far as he was concerned, the hostility from Enyo was the last thing he would have to worry about now.

      “I’ve heard,” Jules paused to recall the rumours. Snarky grunts had returned with complaints that someone wrecked their business. “Couple people said they caused trouble. Wouldn’t mind meeting ‘em.”

      And he would. Oh, he needn’t hold back this time. The prospect seemed even better with the knowledge that he would do all of this with the boss instead of a whiny grunt. He’d been told about how the boss handled matters in whispers before, but all the tales seemed too vague or far-fetched. 

His smile brightened slightly at the words. “Oh? Wonderful.” If only for the reason that he wouldn’t have to explain anything about the situation to the boy, as a vague understanding of the problem was good enough for him. After all, this wasn’t something that needed understanding, and Cerberus, by no means, had any intention of playing ‘nice’, or ‘talking’ this out anyone who dared believe they could stick their nose into his team without facing dire consequences for their actions.

“Neither would I.” His gaze turned to the Houndoom. Her head pricking up, and her rage stolen from Jules in order to meet Cerberus’s. Her tail flicking hard against the ground, and her lips peeling back to reveal her massive fangs, saliva dripping from her jaws.

“I’m glad.” He turned his attention back to Jules, as did Enyo. “I look forward to working with you.” Well, more so, he looked forward to ridding them of a few unwanted problems without having to worry about anyone’s morals getting in the way. Or so he hoped, from what he had been informed of about the grunt.

                  The regular cryptic message he was left with caused Fumio to be far more alert than the usual.  His shift at the Pokémon centre had been without incident thus far, aside from a rather anxious Furfrou which sank its fangs into a fellow nurse’s arm and now snoozed away after having been sedated.  Simple precautionary measures, nothing more nothing less.  He was waiting for that man to waltz his way into the centre as per norm, with that nonchalance which seemed all too characteristic of him.  A checkup for his team once a month on the dot.  They always came to him, regardless of how many nurses were stationed in the premises at the time.

And, perfectly on time, he made his way the Pokemon Center. After all, Fumio would be expecting him. It wasn’t as if his visit was surprising in any way. The other nurses ignored him entirely, likely thankful they didn’t have to deal with him, or his Pokemon, when he walked in. That, and all of them were aware of the fact that he was only willing to allow his Pokemon to see one person.

Ziarae only smiled, as the man scolded the Houndoom, who whimpered at Burton as an apology, only earning another laugh from the ghost. 

“I suppose, but I believe you have the bigger handful here.” He laughed lightly, watching, as Enyo’s fur stood on end. Her intense gazed fixed on the ghost while she used every ounce of willpower she held to not lunge for the Pokemon, or worse.

“Well, I suppose I should be thanking you for willingly taking the time to talk to a complete stranger. You probably have a lot of things to do, so I’ll do my best to make this brief.” The smile she had greeted him with just a moment ago was now slowly fading. After all, this was a serious matter she had come all the way for.

“Let me ask you first. How much do you know about the yakuza?” she asked. “You see… We’d hardly want to end up being enemies with you. Neither of us would benefit from something like that. So I came here today, wondering if you’d be willing to—let’s say—play for the same team.”

“Stranger, or otherwise, it makes little difference to me. I assume your reasoning for coming here is of value to you, if you took the time to break into my facility.”  Though her expression had taken on a more serious note, his tone remained carefree, and the smile upon his lips remained. He was relaxed, and, if he was being frank, cared very little about the entire situation. If she hadn’t become hostile by now, she likely wasn’t going to. Cerberus, despite hos often he created trouble, had a surprising knack for understanding the human mind, and humans in general. The same could be said for Pokemon.

He leaned back against his desk, ignoring Enyo, as she sat down beside him. Her gaze never removing itself from the woman, or her Pokemon, even if Cerberus’s had a tendency to wander. Though, he was hardly dismissing, or ignoring her. It wasn’t in his nature to do so. 

“Hmmm, I know a bit.” Or rather, a decent amount given his background, but it had been years since the topic had come up, for it had been a popular one in the numerous gangs he had been a part of. Not nearly much recently, though, for he had little reason to become involved with them. 

It was protocol to report to the boss whenever returning from a job, so Ryuu walked over to Cerberus’ office the moment he returned to their headquarters. Not even bothering to knock, he opened the door to the office and leaned against the door in the doorway.

“I’m back now and everything is handled.” He moved his kiseru pipe up to his lips, then removed it as he breathed out some tobacco smoke. “Some of the grunts screwed up, but I managed to fix everything before it got too bad. You really should teach them a lesson or two for this, Boss.”

When the door creaked open, Enyo’s muzzle snapped up from the poor toy until she noticed who it was, and lazily dipped her head back down to gut the duck. Cerberus’s gaze shifted from the poor toy to the door, as he suppressed a groan, and the thought of, well at least it’s not one of the other two.

“Ahh, thank you, Ryuu, that’s wonderful news.” So maybe he let the grunts get away with a few too many things, but isn’t that what he had admins for in the first place? “I don’t have another mission for you, but would you, perhaps, considering dog sitting? I think she would just adore your company.”

      Damn dog. He’d come here for work reasons, not an animal that was up in arms the moment a stranger disturbed nap time. His stare was broken as the boss began to speak.

      A sly smile quirked the corners of his mouth. “Good to know.” At least this organisation didn’t feel the need to hassle their grunts to be the “good” kind of criminals, if there was such a thing. “So what do you need instead?”

      The answer arrived soon enough. To be truthful, the proposition of a job with Cerberus surprised him. Why would someone want to waste their time mucking about with the ones at the very bottom? It wasn’t as if he felt inadequate, in fact, he felt perfectly capable of doing what he needed to do. Regardless, he expected an Admin to do something like this in his place.

Unlike the Houndoom, Cerberus ignored the countless problems she spied in the grunt in order to focus on Team Evolution itself. While Enyo might have only seen the sheer amount of issues that came with the grunt, Cerberus was a curious person by nature, and enjoyed getting, no matter how brief, the chance to understand each and ever person within his organization for he wasn’t one to simply accept everyone who confessed a random desire to join them. 

“Then I take it you’ll accept the job?” He asked before diving into any details. “I do hope that it will interest you,” He stated, turning to his desk to grab a file from within the messy stack of papers that even Arceus likely couldn’t have made heads nor tails of. No one had ever claimed the boss of Team Evolution to be an organized man for a reason.

Offering the boy the report, “It seems a vigilante group has recently begun destroying our ships with when they reach Syenite Port.” With a grin he looked at the other. “I suppose they think they’re accomplishing something.” He shrugged.

   The mentioned Floatzel, of cream and orange fur, stands onto her back paws and casually chews on the back of her trainer’s shorts Soft whimpers and whines escape the often jovial and active Pokemon as the veiled laboratory of soot and ash infiltrates her nostrils. “Fl–FLO!” Marina turns away and slaps her paws onto her coal nose, to then sneeze and violently spray water jets and glides to the other side of the headquarters. The trainer’s brows furrowed at the sight and shook her head,  fully aware that her troublemaker would be at it to flood the premise in no time. All that mattered at the time being was notifying and having the superior making an entrance outside of his room. She swore he was similar to that of a pent-up teenager, always listening to his thoughts or some eccentric music on his headphones (if he could have any without the likes of Enyo tearing them apart). 

  A loud groan escapes her as the cacophony of rising and grouchy grunts were slowly pooling around her. Glances and glares were starting to form like daggers in her back, which trailed down her spinal cord and effectively made her shiver. “Sir!” Cecilia raised her voice and those, already looking over the remains of the ineffective members that seemed to solely depend on them. Several mutters and humored conversations loom around her and she refrained from gritting her teeth. This wasn’t the first ploy in which the other had downright ostracized her in the early morrow; even the leader of the organization had time schedules for his own doings. 

“Cerberus,” her voice lowered to that of a low harsh whisper, “open the door and help the problem.” If only the words spoken reflected her cutthroat attitude as the smog overflowing cloaking the entirety of the pristine walls. She would’ve been fortunate enough to glance down and catch sight of her own bare feet. “Or so help me—”

  Squeeaaaak…

The administrator glances back and raises a brow, “Gordon?” Several blinks and adjustments later, the Rampardos wasn’t a daydream in her mind as the shorter dinosaur Pokemon stands there, with a Skitty squeaker toy. He hasn’t grown out of the chewing stage, despite the rapidness in evolution and training with his trainer, she reflects. As one of the two youngest members in her team, including Averis as the other ‘baby,’ most of his animistic and brutal means of acting on whim was fairly common. The sleep-deprived woman motions over her Pokemon with her index and middle fingers towards herself, and, the creature obliged and lazily shuffled over.

 “The fact you aren’t bothered by this…” Cecilia shrugs to herself and motions the sight of her head to the door as she was standing, facing the Rampardos. He looked to and fro, from her to the door, and the door to her. “Go for it..” 

Squeeeaaak..

  The Rampardos lowers his head and aims his cranium for the blockade, separating whatever is on the other side from her goal. As she snaps her fingers and signals towards the door, Gordon charged towards the door and bashed through the metallic door, watching it fly across the cramped and narrow room. The smog shortly rolled into it and infiltrated the lair of the experiment and companion. Not that it bothered her too much anyways. Gordon blinks, fixating his gaze on the leader and his companion, Enyo. He had been much of a problem since his arrival on the premise, yet, it seemed his trainer always was able to excuse his actions. –And he wasn’t aware of the damages he often caused. The prideful Pokemon wags his tail, chewing on Skitty toy.

   Cecilia rolls her eyes and promptly slithers between the gap from the door frame and her Pokemon and outright trespasses into Cerberus’ private quarters.  As the administrator fixates a gaze upon him, to his Houndoom, and back to the pair in general. “Can you hear me now?” 

  Meanwhile, the excited Rampardos cocks his head at the sight and wags his tail as he was typically the “morning” type… And managed to knock over several disoriented grunts who were passing through, trying to catch eye of the fire. Most went flying back down the hallway.

But it appeared she wasn’t going down without a fight, her obnoxious banging rattling in both of their ears, as they lazed around on the bed. This was Rowe they were dealing with after all, and if Cerberus had learned one thing since she had moved to her current position, it was that she was stubborn. Even at five in the morning, in a fire, too, he had to give her credit where it was due, she had the energy to be shouting at him from beyond his room while likely trying to have to convince the panicking grunts that this wasn’t that abnormal, and that everything would somehow be fine. Truly, she must hold a rather difficult job for everything he made her put up with. Did he pay her enough? Definitely not. Not for what she had deal with. And he was very much one of the factors that called for a raise in her paycheck.

Yet, as much as he would love to continue to ignore the poor woman completely, for he still wasn’t technically required to start for the day, a small noise made him consider otherwise. Both Houndoom, and owner sitting bolt upright at the very distinctive, and likely deadly- Squeeeaaak that rang against the walls of his tiny room. Exchanging glances with another, as dread began to set in. There was only one thing that awful noise could have been, and it spelled trouble for them. A lot of it. Enough to send Enyo’s entire life flashing before her eyes while Cerberus glared at the door’s thick frame, as if judging whether or not it could withstand a powerful impact.

Conclusion: Not a chance in Hell. 

“Well, Enyo,” Cerberus stated, turning to the loyal canine. “It’s been nice knowing you.” She whimpered softly, lifting a paw from her face to set it upon Cerberus’s hand, reaching down to lick at his fingers. The only bright side to this was the fact that if the door flew straight, it wouldn’t bash into his bed, but he wouldn’t bet his life that a certain rampaging beast was going to take pity on his room, or him, for that matter. With Enyo in tow, they wiggled down to the end of the bed. The canine shifting onto her trainer’s lap, and ducking her head. Deep, crimson eyes staring at the door, as both watched it intently.

And sure enough, a defining squeeeaaak sounded.

And the door blew clean off. The massive Pokemon’s thick skull bashing hard into its metal frame that never stood even a ghost of a chance against the Rampardos, not even twitching at the slightest hint of resistance from it. Bashing hard against the wall beside Cerberus’s bed before it finally collapsed on to the floor in a dented, and shattered mess. Meeting its untimely demise at the dinosaur equivalent of a puppy.

Cerberus rose his hands to his mouth in an attempt block out the smoke that was now freely entering his room, while Enyo made a sad effort to growl at the other Pokemon, but with all of the smog in the air, all she managed to do was choke on her own tongue. “What a spectacular entrance,” He breathed bitterly into his hot palm.

The woman was quick to enter the room, not giving the canine or her owner the chance to flee. "Crystal,” He mocked, as he swung his legs onto the floor. Not prideful enough to deny the napkin that was handed to him. Taking it quickly from her to replace the hand that had been shielding his mouth. But poor Enyo could do little other than gag. Her tongue hanging out of her mouth, as she tried to resist the countless stenches bashing her poor nose to its death.  

“Enyo, come back for now.” He pulled her Pokeball from his belt, calling the poor canine back to the safety it provided for her before unhooking another to call out his Gengar. The ghost happily leaping out into the smoke-filled room, and far better suited to endure both it, and the odors it created, for Enyo had little tolerance when it came to thick scents.