Zev was not a conversationalist. Whenever he entered the break room to grab coffee or whatever lunch his wife had prepared for him that day, he pointedly ignored any other people occupying it. [break][break]

However, the conversation between two grunts caught his interest. Assassination, the woman had said. [break][break]

Despite the income he received from his position as a Rocket Beast, he continued to work as a contract killer. He liked the satisfaction of killing and keeping his skills sharp. The extra money in savings offered a measure of financial security, too. [break][break]

"Do you make it a habit of talking freely about the people you want to kill?" Zev asked the female grunt after her companion had left. His tone was detached, almost aloof. "People usually prefer to be discreet about that sort of thing."

TAGS – ameena abadi[break]
NOTES – social

[attr="class","pkmn"]

Ameena dried her mug as he spoke. A smile graced her expression at his question. She was used to hiding her intentions and her more unethical experiments, but Rocket HQ had proven to be a great place for both networking and conversations of the illicit variety. She let her hair down, so to speak, when she was here. [break][break]

"If I kept it quiet, I would not have the pleasure of imagining a trebuchet." She put the mug in the cabinet of loaners before turning to give him her full attention. "I have no issue keeping secrets, but I am used to killing as something necessary and dry. I want this to send a larger message. Unfortunately, the Galarian military does not train their Brigadiers for such a thing."[break][break]

She wished she had clear sight of his palms to assess any give-away callouses that might reveal more than his expression did. "Some of our colleagues have a better sense for finesse than others. My creativity is confined to a laboratory; fieldwork and violence has always been more calculated and rote." Her strong ties to Rocket were with the head scientists and a few other peers who were also not refined killers. "This could create political ripples among Galarian elites that might dissuade a hired gun, so I have resigned myself to endless brainstorming."

TAGS – Zev Harcourt [break]
NOTES – [break][break]

[attr="class","pkmn"]

The first rule of contract work was never to ask questions about why a client wanted a target dead. The answer was none of Zev's business. His business was solely to complete the job as instructed and receive payment for it. [break][break]

So despite all of the woman's hints, he did not rise to the bait. Instead, he sipped his coffee from a thermos and pointed out, "A larger message that disturbs the ruling class of a nation will cost a fortune. More if you add to the number of heads." [break][break]

"Few people can afford an assassin experienced and confident enough to pull off a job like that." [break][break]

The second rule was always to find out what a client was willing to spend before offering any kind of service.

TAGS – ameena abadi[break]
NOTES – social

[attr="class","pkmn"]

"The stakes should not scare off an expert assassin," Ameena considers, "and the nature of the scene should keep all focus on the death more than any assailant." Of course, all the planning and intention in the world couldn't guarantee that to be true. But she understood people pretty well with her background in psychology, and she knew just how cocky the higher ranks of the military were. Something so unexpected and shocking could really throw off the training of a few generals, seeing as several were her family and had merely advised - rather than see real action - for a decade or longer. [break][break]

But none of her personal experiences with many bigwig militants and even her large family could guarantee an outcome. Generous compensation was required. [break][break]

Her company was doing really well in Hoenn given the lack of competition in the market of information technology. Abundance Connections was doing fine enough to filter an inconspicuous amount of funds to her research. "Money is no issue. The real issue is finding someone competent who is willing to have me on site. I want to see it happen." It wasn't an issue of trust, as her dark and interested tone suggested. "I did my time offering overwatch on more than a few high-stakes missions in Galar. I would hope confidence is not the deciding the factor."

TAGS – Zev Harcourt [break]
NOTES – [break][break]

[attr="class","pkmn"]

Zev raised an eyebrow. "You want to go?" [break][break]

None of his past clients had ever wanted to be present during an assassination. Typically, they wanted a strong alibi to avoid tying themselves to the crime. [break][break]

Not only that, but they were more likely to get in the way and jeopardize the job. But if the grunt had the experience she claimed, then perhaps she wouldn't. [break][break]

Still, Zev had to be sure. "I'm Zev, a Rocket Beast," he said, introducing himself. He did not offer his hand for a shake. "What are your name and background, exactly?" [break][break]

Of course, he already planned to look up her file later in the member database. But what she decided to share about herself in that conversation would speak a lot about her as a person. [break][break]

What she valued, for instance, and what she wished to hide.

TAGS – ameena abadi[break]
NOTES – social

[attr="class","pkmn"]

Ameena couldn't suppress her smile. "Hearing about it secondhand will not be the same. I can make do with looking through a scope, but I have to witness it. It will be a proper eye for an eye." She had no interest in boring him with the full details of the man's crimes, as nearly all high-ranking military officials in Galar had bloody, dirty hands outside of what was permitted in war time or through their rank. But General Kaur had been among the group of men that killed her mother, she knew it in her soul, and it was time for retribution. When she sees her mother again in the dream realm, she has to report the good news.[break][break]

She made to shake his hand but aborted the motion. "My, my. Two head scientists, an underboss, and a Rocket beast. I keep finding myself surrounded by the big names without knowing it." They all behaved quite differently, too. She had expected all of the upper echelons of Rocket to be standoffish, but that hadn't been the case. [break][break]

"Ameena Abadi. Abundance Connections CEO, but more importantly, a scientist making headway on accessing the dream realm." Space and time distortions were an interest shared by most of the Rockets she had met to date, so she had no issue sharing her own area of contributions to its study. "My data has been a more relevant background for Rocket to date, but you can consider my military background and my company for any future favors you ask of me." [break][break]

Her understanding so far had been that networking in Rocket was an exchange of skills; it had helped create major breakthroughs in her studies, so she was more than happy to offer her blood and sweat to future colleagues. Some carefully protected their Rocket work, but she figured anyone she interacted with stood to benefit more from keeping her unethical research and cooked books secret than by exposing it. "I take it that your interest might stretch beyond the theoretical?"

TAGS – Zev Harcourt [break]
NOTES – [break][break]

[attr="class","pkmn"]

The woman's reason for wanting to be present during the assassination spoke to a personal matter. Regardless of what happened to her, she wanted revenge. [break][break]

Zev could understand that desire. He turned toward her, making his body language more open and accepting—something he'd learned early in his adulthood when he was still fooling people into believing he was like them. [break][break]

"I'm a contract killer by trade," he explained with the same detached aloofness as a man reading the newspaper. "I started my career in Kanto eleven years ago, after finishing my service in the Kantonian Army." [break][break]

How strange it felt, to discuss such mundane matters from a past life. Even though he still took on such jobs, he no longer did it under the moniker of The Black Hand. [break][break]

"If you're looking for an expert assassin, you won't find a better option in this whole region."

TAGS – ameena abadi[break]
NOTES – social

[attr="class","pkmn"]

The way he carried himself confirmed what he was saying. Coming from the military, she largely knew killers to either express excitement over the prospect or a sense of duty and inevitability. People who had enough years under their belt and enough exposure were more likely to treat death like a coffee run. It was unordinary but still a skill so honed it could almost be automatic or habitual if the individual had lost their sense over time, though Ameena knew only a small amount of killers who could maintain such cool without rendering murder an act without nuance and thought. [break][break]

And while she would want to put him in this category based on his tone and ease of conversation, she felt there was another layer there, something she could not name and could not even recognize. Something existing in the negative space of him, or perhaps something more abstract that could not be looked at exactly but could be observed in the peripheral if it could be observed at all. [break][break]

She was not a woman of conjecture, however. Evidence displayed time and time again that Rocket collaborations were fruitful, and Rockets only offered their talents when they were truly in possession of them. "I believe you," she said confidently. She knew better than to ask about that Kantonian service, as she'd yet to meet anyone who served in Kanto that hadn't had a horrific experience, but the curiosity almost beat out her manners. [break][break]

"It would be a privilege to see your work. Do you prefer encrypted data or physical intel?" Her company made the encryption easy, but she would be equally thrilled to look over what she had on Kaur and collect its physical weight in her hands.

TAGS – Zev Harcourt [break]
NOTES – [break][break]

[attr="class","pkmn"]

Zev took another sip of coffee. "Encrypted data. Use Team Rocket's internal network to send it to me." [break][break]

Keeping files organized was simply easier when they were digitized. But on top of that, it meant a lower risk of Neffatari Nzingha seeing anything she shouldn't know about. The less aware she was of the specifics of his contracts, the better off they both were. [break][break]

"I'll reach back out to you when I've reviewed them to set up another meeting. There, we'll discuss a plan for the operation and my payment." [break][break]

In the meantime, he fully intended to look up information on Ameena herself. Her background, her connections, and her reasons for joining Team Rocket. After all, it behooved an assassin to know exactly who he was working for. [break][break]

One had to be careful, after all, that they weren't walking willingly into a trap.

TAGS – ameena abadi[break]
NOTES – social

[attr="class","pkmn"]