Though Gavin's miasma cannot render him invisible, its dark purple hues blend well against the night and provide some cover against potentially prying eyes. Somewhere nearby, a streetlight flickers and dies as an Eelektross drains its bulb.

A simple text is offered to Jayden in return.

In position.

He has found some benefit in the Hatchery, the strange and unusual Pokemon birthed within a source of scientific marvel, but that won't stop him from taking full advantage of whatever he and Jayden might be able to pilfer from within.

This was Jayden's plan, so Gavin awaits his signal.

jayden cross

With access to several ground-types, Gavin opts for a subterranean entrance through the basement. His Steelix has spent the past several hours DIGGING her way through the earth at an agonizingly slow pace to ensure the quiet creation of a tunnel.

ROCK SLIDE collapses the entrance after Gavin is inside, and his shadowed Dhelmise phases through the barrier of the concrete basement wall Steelix had dug up to with PHANTOM FORCE. Once inside, and assured of its solitude, the ghastly anchor ALLY SWITCHES with its master and Gavin experiences the jarring sensation of displacement.

The room is dark, lights out, no sound but for the hum of electrical equipment that had disguised his point of entry. He crouches down, listening hard for any signs of movement within and shoots another quick text to Jayden.

AP3.

Access Point 3. He would make his way out of the boiler room and into the basement proper, then up the stairs.

Dhelmise appears beside him, blood-red seaweed whispering across the floor.

LMK when upstairs coast clear.

jayden cross

What to some might seem a stroke of luck raises the hair on the back of Gavin's neck as his skin prickles. A business such as this, successful as it's been, should not be empty.

So when Jayden opens the basement door, light from the floor above cutting across the steps to fall upon the underboss' severe expression, he mounts those steps with grim countenance. His fingers still curl around the pokeball belonging to his Dhelmise.

"This could be a trap." It's whispered, barely audible. "We need to be careful."

jayden cross

Gloved hands carefully handle a few of the vials. Gavin tucks them into his coat, then steps up next to Jayden as the other calls for his attention. A box. Seemingly harmless at a glance, but...

"Careful." At risk of sounding like a broken record, Gavin says, "We don't know what's in it."

He casts an anxious glance around the room, half expecting to be jumped.

"Is it heavy? Perhaps we can take it with us, open it somewhere safe."

jayden cross

LEGACY

JAYDEN X GAVIN

THE HATCHERY IS INDEED ABANDONED. Having been closed down for unknown reasons, the ranch and building is barren. There are no Pokemon. No owners.

Just like the immediate aftermath of Necrozma's attack, the silence here is deathly.

Sprawled across the walls, a message is written:

THE MORE THERE IS OF ME, THE LESS YOU SEE. WHAT AM I?

Further investigation would reveal perhaps, markings on the ranch ground or building walls, that fit the marks of a SPRINGTIDE STORM attack.

Cillian Quinn jayden cross