Oscar eyes the admin cautiously, a lollipop hanging loosely from his lips. When he was called to this safehouse, he wasn't sure what he was expecting. Even now Gavin's demeanor gave no hints to their purpose there. It created a strange vibe, spurred on by Gavin's dire tone and peculiar question. He didn't seem like himself today.

Nevertheless, Oscar did not delay his answer. "I heard the stories. Used to hang out with Abner, before he disappeared. He told me--a lot. Maybe Too much."

Oscar looked down, reflecting on what he knew of the Kanto beasts. Oscar was no push over, but those guys were on a completely different level. Violent, aggressive, border-line psychotic. The imagery of their tales alone sent shivers down Oscar's spine. He looked to Gavin from across the room, an expecting look washing over the beast's face as he rolled his sucker around in his mouth.

What was Gavin going to have him do?

Cillian Quinn

Oscar's right; Gavin's not himself.

"Could I have one?"

He gestures vaguely at the lollipop sticking from the corner of the Beast's mouth, remembering that Oscar carried a cigarette case full of them on previous occasions.

Maybe too much. Gavin closes his eyes, sees Kanto's fires burned behind his lids.

"There's a business down the street from Blackwell's day." The younger, he means, but it's irrelevant now. All that matters is the mission. Orders are orders. "Turns out they've been cutting us a raw deal for as long as they've thought they can get away with it." It had been THEO BECKETT to sniff out the dissent. Naturally. "In Kanto, the mere thought of the Beasts would've been enough to keep them loyal. They were feared."

He had shied from them, once, mouse in a lion's den. Then he'd vowed to become one of them. Now, their bloodthirst, their reputation was his to direct.

Gavin turns his gaze on Oscar.

"We're going to teach them to fear you."

Oscar happily offered a lollipop from his cigarette case to Gavin, though his expression didn't soften. He listened intently to Gavin's words, growing more uneasy as the underboss went on. Fear him? Oscar's brows furrowed. His body shivered slightly, a subtle nod to his body's reaction to violence. 

It wasn't that Oscar feared being violent. No no, quite the opposite; he enjoyed it far too much. Back in Alola he was nothing less than a fiend, a horror that was both feared and hated throughout the region's underworld. What Gavin is implying, to raise Oscar to be equal to the Beasts of the past, it was like offering an addict their vice.

Oscar craned his neck, sucking in his discomfort before it became too obvious. He pulled out his cellphone and looked to Gavin, "What's the business? I'll have some people bring the proprietor here for a chat."

Cillian Quinn

Gavin accepts a red lollipop from the case, pulling off the wrapper in a brisk motion before popping it into his mouth. Cherry, he thinks.

He doesn't miss the way oscar clayton shivers, isn't sure whether to attribute it to excitement or nerves. The white-haired Beast offers no words of concern or protest, however, only posing a question, and so Gavin assumes his comfort.

The lollipop shifts against his cheek so that he can respond.

"I'll text you the address."

Sliding his own phone from a pocket, he does just that.

"Sending our grunts, or your own people?"

As Oscar waited for the text to come through, he would answer Gavin curtly. "Both, I've hired some grunts to my staff. They do errands for me when needed." As soon as the address came through, Oscar read it over a few times before making a call. As the phone rang, the beast would lean against one of the walls and stare off into the ceiling. At this point it was the only way to keep his nerves under control. At last someone picked up.

"Hello Evan, I need you and Mr. Gareth to pick somebody up--you know, the usual method--no he doesn't need to be pristine just alive--at least try to be discreet--yeah the address is..."

Oscar read out the address and gave the location of the safehouse they were to bring their wayward business partner to. Once the details were settled Oscar would hang up and turn back to Gavin. It would be a bit before they would get here, so it wouldn't hurt to have some light conversation while they waited.

"So since you're compromised I'm guessing you won't be making it to the summer tournament? Got an preview of the stadium at an investors lunch, it's pretty out there architecturally." 

Cillian Quinn

"Smart."

He shifts the candy around in his mouth as Oscar talks over the phone. It's soothing, in a strange way — not unlike the familiarity of a cigarette's filter between his lips, though without the wash of calm at the end.

Also without the risk of lung cancer, so there's that.

He's distant enough in his thoughts that it takes several seconds to process what Oscar is saying. Summer tournament. Right. An alternative to the Pokathalon that traded years with the sporting event that had consumed a few weeks of Gavin's life.

Cavalli's life, he supposes. Oscar's right: he's compromised.

"Could get another disguise, I guess." He shrugs. "What do you know about it, other than the arena"

Oscar nodded slowly, attempting to get a hold over his own anxieties as Gavin spoke. It was weird doing small-talk ever since the Aoi incident, the ordeal had warped his view of the underboss a tad. Oscar had always admired Gavin's viciousness, almost to a weird level that Oscar totally understood but wasn't proud of. It was fine and dandy to go all out in battle, but what went down in that room left a bad taste in Oscar's mouth.

Oscar craned his neck, contemplating whether he should answer the question or abruptly bring up his concerns. He was about to make up his mind when a knock came to the door. Oscar wasn't surprised, his boys worked quick. Oscar kicked off of his position on the wall and sauntered toward the door. He briefly opened the eye latch to make sure who waited on the other side was the expected party.

Two thugs and a tied up middle-aged man with a gag. Yeah that was about right. Oscar opened the door, letting the trio inside. As he closed the door he looked to Gavin. He gave a short nod, acknowledging that Oscar was going to take over from here. 

The thugs pulled out a foldable chair from the corner and set it up in the middle of the room. The tied up man squirmed as they sat him down, using excess rope to keep him attached to his new throne. Oscar slowly removed his gloves, staring at the man as the thugs stepped aside. As he cracked his fingers one by one, he would speak.

"I've been told--that you're shorting us on your payment. Was the amount that you originally agreed to not to your satisfaction?"

One of the thugs moved to remove the man's gag, but Oscar briskly snapped his fingers. "No no, keep it on." The thug backed off, and Oscar continued. "I don't blame you. When us scum see an opportunity we take it, it's just our nature. But what separates the successful scum and the dead scum is that the dead scum get caught. They see the opportunity and they rip through it without thinking."

The man's eyes were frantic, darting wildly as Oscar spoke. Oscar stepped forward, slowly making his way over to the man. "Don't worry friend, you're not dead scum yet. Just dumb scum." Oscar reached out, grasping the man's cheeks in one of his hands to maintain his attention. "I'm sorry that the terms of the agreement you made were not to your liking, but it is the agreement you made. If you want to go through the proper channels, perhaps we can renegotiate. Perhaps. I imagine the odds are less likely after this little stunt."

Oscar let go, and the man began to breathe heavily. He probably anticipated being hit. Oscar began to rub his hands together. "If you agree here and now to return to your agreed payment, I'll let you live. We'll be square and pretend like this never happened. Is that alright?" The man nodded eagerly, apparently having been scared straight. Oscar nodded, "Glad to see you have some self preservation in that scum brain of yours." 

Without missing a beat Oscar kicked the man in the chest. The impact sent the chair backwards, clattering on the floor as the man yelled through his gag. The thugs backed away, surprised by the sudden strike. Oscar put his boot onto the man's left most ribs and began to press down. As the man screeched Oscar shook his head, "Don't worry, I'm just settling your debt." 

Oscar continued to press until he heard a crack, and continued until he heard four more. The man's screech's grew frantic, the pain rattling through his throat like a siren. Once Oscar felt like enough ribs were broken, he would lean over the man to meet his eyes. "That should be enough to drain you of the money you skimmed from us. Hopefully more. We'll be watching, if you try to rip us off again I'm going to fill your stomach with rocks and toss you into the ocean." 

Oscar stood up straight before delivering one more kick into the man's mangled rib cage to further the damage. The man screamed once more before just crying like--well someone who got have their ribs broken. Oscar snapped his fingers again and the thugs lifted the man up. Without another word they dragged the wailing man out of the safehouse, closing the door gently behind them. 

Oscar looked at his hands as silence once again filled the room. "Why the fuck did I take my gloves off?"

Cillian Quinn

Oscar nods to him, and Gavin understands.

He takes a step back, literal and figurative, leans against the chipped-paint wall of the apartment. Though his height and sour presence alone could lend to some form of intimidation, he neither speaks nor exudes his miasma.

This was Oscar's show, now.

At first, Gavin expects the Beast might let the man off easy. It seems to be heading in that direction, and Gavin's more disappointed than surprised — Ozaki, after all, had been a point of contention. Gavin saw little difference here.

But the brutality of a Beast is delivered once their bargain is struck. Their victim is hauled out of the room, and Gavin and Oscar are alone.

"It's more visceral," he says, shrugs. "You did well."

Oscar nodded as he put his gloves back on, content in his performance. He took the moment to provide his own thoughts of his particular style of brutality. 

"Visceral, impersonal, quick and efficient. It's a style that suits me." He fastened his gloves, wiggling his fingers to make sure they had maximum mobility. The beast folded his hands and spoke frankly to his superior. "I find humans to be a lot like pokemon. If the training is too light, they won't do as you say. Too harsh and they'll bite back. I find that there's a middle ground where you can mix fear and respect to earn loyalty."

Oscar believed Gavin already knew this, considering how loyal and strong his own team was. Oscar moved toward the door, not waiting to be dismissed. He was a busy man after all. He took a moment to pause as his hand rested on the handle. He looked to Gavin with an unwavering eye, a small smile resting on his face.

"My loyalty is absolute. I fear you, but I respect you. I hope to talk more about that in the future." With that Oscar took his leave.

Cillian Quinn