"Coming, coming." Howard's said as he pulled his hair into a ponytail while walking to the door. "One second."

The door to the apartment clicked, then creaked open. Howard peeked his head out, rubbing his eye. He was wearing a pair of gray sweatpants and a sweater stamped with 'RUSTBORO CITY UNIVERSITY'. He took a sip of coffee from his Aerodactyl mug, before looking up.

He spat out his drink and slammed the door in Zev's face.

Shit. Shitshitshitshitshit. Why was Zev here!? He kept trying to push the Rocket Beast and the incident at the smuggling house out of mind. He had avoided running into him for so long. Out of sight, out of mind. As long as he had been away from Howard, everything would be fine.

Emphasis on would.

Symbols? Languages? Damn. Curiosity and fear warred. Could he tell him to leave? No, not likely. Zev outranked him and outgunned him. If he complied, he could get the Rocket Beast out of the way. Maybe he could learn about those black crystals that Zev had used. That way, he could avoid them in the future.

The door creaked open again.

"Sorry..." Howard's voice was quiet, nervous. He looked up at Zev. Time to let the vampire inside. The door widened, giving a full view of the piles of artifacts that filled the apartment. A crystal skeleton gleamed dully in the corner. "Come in."

---

Zev Harcourt

"As you say." Howard said evenly, silently thinking about a bloodied rug and dead officer. Like the one you were giving a tour? He thought, face paling.

It was almost amusing to watch Zev watch shadows. In this apartment, that was almost impossible. There was nowhere to hide. The room was small, and it was stacked to the ceiling with unique artifacts. There were more of them in this apartment than there were in the smuggling house that Zev had been forced to observe at.

Yet Howard could relate. Half of his vision was gone. He could never fully shake the feeling that something was in that darkened half of his sight. Something ancient and primal: the fear of the unknown. It was an itch he could never fully accept.

Maybe that was why this man terrified Howard. Zev was a void that swallowed understanding.

"Hm." Howard looked at the pencil sketch thoughtfully. "Interesting."

His eye flicked up.

"Where did you see this?"

---

Zev Harcourt

"Figures, because I don't recognize it." Howard said, looking up and scratching his chin. "If it's unique to Ultra Space, then you're lucky. I don't have to waste time digging through archives in Rustboro or Slateport."

Howard's eye watched the dancing crystals. Was it just him, or was light bending around them? As he continued to stare at them, Howard felt like he could hear the dying screams of-

Stop. Don't remember. Let that moment be erased from history. Howard looked up at Zev, before focusing on his eyebrow. There was nothing threatening about an eyebrow.

"Languages and symbols arise from the necessity of the civilizations that create them. It's why the Megalopolan script is distinct from our own. I can look into it for you, but I'll need to dig through everything I have on Ultra Space. Don't get your hopes up, though." Howard sipped his coffee for a moment, pondering what he was going to say next. "Beast... Your crystals are, erm..."

Howard put down his coffee and made a vague gesture with his hands.

"Flashing."

---

Zev Harcourt

Joy. Not only had Team Rocket's most dangerous Beast been gifted with obscene, otherworldly powers, but he had also lost control of them. Absolute spectacular. Wonderful.

Was Zev influencing the crystals, or were they influencing him? Howard stared at his coffee for several seconds as he considered the implications of this. Why, in some cruel twist of fate, were these crystals given to someone as inhuman as Zev Harcourt? Zev was a killer, but so were half of the people in Team Rocket.

Clean that up. The words echoed in Howard's mind as he looked up. Zev was different. Howard was confident of it. His apathy, his uncaring demeanor. Was everyone in Team Rocket like Zev, and Howard just happened to see him commit a horrible sin first, or was he genuinely unique?

A mad dog, given power. It was hard to put a collar on one once let off its leash.

"Why?" He asked. "What does this mean, moving forward?"

---

Zev Harcourt

'We'. Right.

Howard wanted to believe that Zev was talking about Team Rocket. That would make everything much easier. Much simpler. Much more manageable. Much more easier to understand. Yet there was a common failing among archaeologists, and historians in general. They all preferred their own interpretation of the data they had.

They wanted to believe in something, so they did. Howard couldn't do that. He couldn't look at Zev and accept that the Rocket Beast had the best intentions in mind for Team Rocket, or for anyone other than himself. He wanted to believe that Zev was still on his leash.

But he couldn't.

"Ourselves. And you." Howard finally whispered, leaning forward. "We're all in Team Rocket for our own personal reasons, in order to fulfill some objective. We lack direction. Synergy. Loyalty."

The coffee mug clicked against the table as Howard put it down.

"If we're fueled by our desires, what happens when we reach them? Where, then, does it leave you?"

---

Zev Harcourt

The rune disappeared into Zev's pocket. Howard silently filed away the symbol for later. He could redraw it and do some research for himself. He wouldn't find anything, not in Hoenn, but perhaps he'd find something elsewhere. An answer in another world.

In another universe.

There was a change in demeanor as Zev transformed his body into an unholy obelisk that sucked the light from the room. He was a testament to all that was eldritch about the world and what was beyond. Ultra Space, the DRK Triad, parallel universes? They all lurked in the shadows that those crystals cast. Or they would, if there was any light for a shadow to form from.

"I see." Howard whispered without looking up. His lips were pale, his voice hoarse. "Then I wish you the best."

There were people, both on the side of Team Rocket and the Pokemon League, who would fundamentally oppose Zev Harcourt. Howard was not one of them. He was a small, irrelevant man who simply stuck to his passion. He had no commitment to the organization known as Team Rocket. He was simply in too deep to ever escape the shadow it cast.

Isaac Merlo 's advice echoed in his ears. That Zev was far worse than Howard knew.

"I didn't think you were capable of making such a proclamation. You're confident." Howard stood up and stretched. The Key Stone embedded in his eye gleamed slightly from under his eyepatch, despite the darkness. "Of course, I'm no threat. There are far more interesting people worth your time. Incidentally, do you know why black gemstones are loathed?"

The archaeologist locked eyes with the Rocket Beast.

"They hide faults that clear ones don't. When you excavate and wear one, it's difficult to tell if one is of high quality, or if it's... just another rock."

"What you're hunting for in this universe... is it related to that sun?" Howard cocked his head. "I'll look into it, if it means you'll let me stay out of your way."

---

Zev Harcourt

"Your hands, you mean." Howard's eye never left the black crystals, before flicking up to the Rocket Beast. "Yes, Beast. I will look into it. Glory to Rocket."

That's it. Be as unthreatening as possible. You're not a threat to him. He knows it. Howard bowed his head respectfully, with a hint of fear. He was an ant, hardly worthy of notice from a man chosen by the god of another world. An Avatar chosen by a being that influenced history at large had no reason to look down.

Light came from the sky—from above—after all.

Howard watched Zev leave the apartment, taking his darkness with him. Light returned to the apartment, and Howard began to shudder. The door slammed shut as Zev Harcourt disappeared. Out of sight, out of mind. Yes, out of sight, out of mind.

■■■ was gone.

Howard collapsed back onto the couch, breathing heavily. He held his head in his hands. "I can't do it." Howard whispered, eye frantically crossing the room to glimpse at the collection of artifacts. The crystal skeleton dully glowed in the corner. "Nobody can beat him. It's over. It's over. It's over."

"I just wanted to study history. I just wanted to protect it..."

Protect it? He couldn't even defend his own home. He avoided ■■■'s ire, but only because he knew how to stay out of his way. Maybe if he stayed insignificant, the shadows would forget him.

He wasn't brave enough. He wasn't strong enough. He could change nothing.

Howard Slayte leaned forward and wept.

---

Zev Harcourt