Gavin approaches with caution.

This kid likely couldn't contend with him alone, but there's no guarantee that he is alone. This could be a setup from the League, or from one of the rival gangs who always seemed to think they could tread on Rocket's turf.

Sharp eyes pick out shapes in the gloom.

"You may want to tell your Pokémon to stand down." His deep voice rumbles in the quiet. "You don't want to give the wrong impression."

For his part, he appears to be alone but for the miasma that shrouds him.

"Who says I don't appreciate caution?"

He's a cautious man himself. It's why, in spite of the illusion that he's alone, several shadow Pokémon stalk nearby. They're not so far from the ocean, and his patron's presence can be felt. He's prepared, if this turns sour.

"I offer advice for your sake. My Pokémon are trained to kill."

They wouldn't hesitate, if it seemed like their master was in any danger. There seems to be no hint of that thus far, and Gavin's shoulders are relaxed. One hand rests at his side, the other lifting a cigarette to his lips. The cherry blooms in the dark, grey smoke mingling with black miasma.

"We can go over the once I know you're certain. This isn't a decision one can come back from."

Gavin listens, silent and intense, as Asher Baran shares his story. It's one he's heard before, for certain; he wasn't fond of children in Rocket, not even teenagers, but for those who felt they had nowhere else to go? Rocket could be the family they'd never had. It had become Gavin's family, in time.

He puffs on his cigarette, exhaling slow.

"I will never ask you to take a life. Work under me, and there will be only one who can make that request." While not an outright statement of his rank, the words are telling enough. Only one man in Rocket can supersede his will. His fellow underbosses could challenge it, but why should they? "We have trained killers. If your talents are suited elsewhere, your hands need not be bloodied as well."

He is beginning to understand, through Rockets like Alexandra Briarwood and Rowan Wrynn, that there is value in allowing their agents to make those choices for themselves. Better a clean conscience than a defector, after all.

"We offer room and board at headquarters, and you'll keep a cut of the earnings from jobs you take. Have you any other expectations?"

Humor, albeit brief, presents in the tug of a smile.

The question of education reminds him all too well of Rowan Wrynn's own assumption that Rocket affiliation might wholly consume one's life; perhaps they needed to market themselves better. So, he tells Asher Baran the same thing he'd told his brother.

"I earned my PhD in Kanto." He'd still been a grunt, even. "What work you do for us may cut down on time you have to yourself, but so long as you are adept at time-management, it should never eliminate it completely. A normal life is possible."

A shadow passes overhead as his SHADOW CORVIKNIGHT swoops down to land on a nearby roof.

"Room and board includes food," Gavin continues, patient. The question about contests is unexpected, but he offers it consideration. Chu-e Choi comes to mind, though Gavin's not sure how interested the former underboss is in contests post returning from the dead. "I know of several individuals who have shown interest in the contest circuit. I'm sure you'd be able to find like minds. We're not devoid of outside personalities and interests, you know." He smiles a little, at that.

Bright embers scatter as Gavin taps on his cigarette.

"You'd have your own space at HQ, yes." The questions, many as they were, don't seem to bother him. "Anything else?"

Reaching the end of his cigarette, Gavin drops it to the ground and crushes the cherry beneath his heel before pocketing the butt. (No one likes a litterbug, after all.)

"Excellent."

He'd come prepared for outcomes both good and ill, and so Gavin doesn't hesitate to launch into explanation.

"There's a warehouse not far from here where the League store confiscated goods from the harbour. Pokémon, weapons, cash... all of it is useful to Rocket's ends. Do you think you're up to the challenge of breaking in?"

From inside his blazer, Gavin produces a map that he hands the kid.

"This is the estimated layout of the place. Might've been a few alterations since the last time we raided it, so keep an eye out for that. If you don't think you can get past the guards, I can always create a... disturbance."

On the roof nearby, Corviknight quarks.

"That is entirely up to you." His smile curves his lips just so, but never meets his eyes. "This is a test, after all. I'm not going to give you all the answers."

He wasn't throwing him in entirely blind; he'd be there for back-up with his shadows if anything went amiss, and he'd given the building's floorplan up to help Asher Baran get a head start. But if he wanted to prove that he was Rocket material, he was going to have to pull his own weight.

"Handle the mission however you please, and take what you think looks useful."

While Asher Baran scouts the warehouse, Gavin keeps his attention on the truck. The engine runs even as the rangers loading it talk and laugh amongst themselves, informing their intention to leave with whatever cargo was inside. That was fine, so long as they didn't return to catch Asher in the act.

When his Aerodactyl circles close, Gavin signals it and instructs the DARK PREDATOR to tail the vehicle. Now, at least, they'd have warning in case the rangers doubled back.

No alarms yet.