As soon as Mint landed on the boat and raised defensive barriers, Zev turned to his Tentacruel. "Get us out of here!" he roared over the thunder of the storm and waves. [break][break]

The Jellyfish Pokémon obeyed at once, using SURF to manipulate the water to their advantage. Still, it was rough going, fighting against Kyogre's terrifying influence. Zev held on to the nearest object bolted to the ship's deck, gritting his teeth against the jostling ocean and freezing rain. [break][break]

Eventually, though, they cleared the storm. Kyogre's wrath became more and more distant. Zev relaxed his grip and stepped toward the railing, watching as the black clouds gave way to blue sky. Already, his brain was processing what just happened, as well as its ominous implications. [break][break]

"Did you get the data you needed?" Zev asked Mint, eyes still trained on the dark horizon.

TAGS – mint frost[break]
NOTES – mission

[attr="class","pkmn"]

Zev raised an eyebrow at Bryan's voiced reservation. "You mean Boss Monroe?" [break][break]

Truth be told, Zev had never met Ulysses Monroe. In all his time as a contractor with Team Rocket's Kanto branch, he'd never met the Boss—whoever that had at the time. After all, Monroe had ruled as Commissioner of Hoenn before dahlia goode. [break][break]

"No. I don't get 'the creeps'," Zev said, turning away from the whiteboard map to walk over to his desk. "I have to assume Monroe knows what he is doing. Our rule over Kanto remains strong, and it's been seven years." [break][break]

Taking a seat, Zev tossed the sticky note pad and pen into a drawer. "Why does he bother you?" he asked Bryan, blue eyes pinning the Beast with a keen, assessing gaze.

TAGS – bryan delarosa[break]
NOTES – social

[attr="class","pkmn"]

It was not the future that greeted them. Instead, the Xatu transported Zev and Nenet to a main corridor of a high school, the walls lined with dark blue lockers. The hands of a large clock near the ceiling indicated just a little past noon—lunchtime. Students filled the hall, putting away their books, gathering with friends, and chatting animatedly together. [break][break]

A black-haired boy stood alone at his locker, his T-shirt hanging loosely on his skinny frame. So focused was he on his things that he didn't notice the approach of a group of older, larger boys. Their leader grabbed him by the shoulder and spun him, slamming him hard into the lockers next to his own. [break][break]

Despite his youth, his features were unmistakable. There was no mistaking the cold, dead look in his eyes. [break][break]

The lone boy was Zev at fifteen years old. [break][break]

In the vision, the noise of the other students drowned out whatever words were exchanged between teenage Zev and the group of boys who'd accosted him. They prodded him forcefully, laughed at him, jeered at him. When he tried stopping them from yanking his things out of his locker, two of the bullies shoved him to the ground for a beating. [break][break]

They scattered his things, chuckling at first, then screaming when they saw what he'd hidden away. Polaroid photos of Pokémon, their bodies cut open, their insides arranged outside their corpses in mimicry of something medical. Crude drawings of murdered humans, with careful notes on killing methods. A couple of non-fiction books on famous serial killers. About a dozen knives. [break][break]

Taking advantage of his bullies' shock, Zev bit the nearest one. A bloody brawl ensued. Scrawny and outnumbered, he suffered the worst cuts and bruises. Teachers ran over to stop the fight. Then they saw the paraphernalia strewn about, confiscated them, and marched Zev away. [break][break]

When both the vision and simulation ended, Zev stood in silence for a long moment. Time had faded the details of that old memory for him, dulling the pain and humiliation of the moment, but the vision had brought everything back with crystal clarity. And while he no longer mustered anger for the pathetic children who'd made his life a living hell, it was still a memory he did not savor. [break][break]

The school had called his parents, after all, and shown them his secret things. An appointment with a psychiatrist had followed, along with a battery of degrading tests and evaluations. [break][break]

After taking a deep breath to ground himself to present day reality, Zev glanced over at Nenet to gauge her reaction.

TAGS – Neffatari Nzingha[break]
NOTES – the rks simulation

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Zev raised an eyebrow at Theo's statement, allowing a measure of curiosity—or skepticism, should the other man interpret it that way—to show on his face. The more information shared between them, the more foolproof the plan for Mossdeep. [break][break]

"No, nothing specific yet. I'll factor you into the approach on the western side, with mint frost and his Patron. The smaller rocky islands off the coast will provide good cover for you." [break][break]

Pressing a few buttons on the machine highlighted that section of Mossdeep's coastline in a bright blue color. Zev entered Theo's information into the console, and a small marker appeared southwest of the island bearing Theo's name and face. [break][break]

"How exactly do you foresee things playing out?" Zev asked, looking back up at the underboss.

TAGS – THEO BECKETT[break]
NOTES – social

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Nenet took Zev's hand, grounding him, drawing him away from the impotent rage rising within him. He turned his back on the two halves of Father Winter as the scenario transformed into a new one, bringing the pair to the cliffs of Alola. [break][break]

Zev frowned at the figure of the Xatu. It was not his first time with the bird Pokémon, so he knew what was to come. [break][break]

"We're about to see something from the future," he explained to Nenet. "That's what happened to me the last two times I was here. I saw a vision of me moving out of my apartment in Slateport, then another one of you wearing a wedding ring." [break][break]

He glanced over at Nenet. [break][break]

"At the time I saw them, I didn't know why I was seeing them. But then they came to pass." [break][break]

Little did he know, though, that the Xatu had other plans for him this time. [break][break]

TAGS – Neffatari Nzingha[break]
NOTES – the rks simulation

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At Grigori's motion, Chandelure floated into the records room. His unusual light illuminated the entire space, forcing back the shadows created by all the shelves, boxes, and filing cabinets. Imminent danger followed, dancing within his readied flames. [break][break]

"Leave them. It's fine if they escape; they can spread news and fear. And if they don't, that also works for us." [break][break]

Zev checked the time in the upper corner of his tablet's screen. He'd been lingering for a little too long in that alley. He tossed the device into the glove compartment and rested his hand on the gear shift. [break][break]

"And hurry. We can't afford to be seen leaving here."

TAGS – Grigori Sokolov[break]
NOTES – mission

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"I'll be leading the operation at Mossdeep." Zev had said as much in the group chat, and his promotion to God General had only solidified that decision in his mind. [break][break]

He tapped the end of his pen against the Space Center itself. "We need to secure the Space Center and Observatory for our own use. The resources there are valuable—not just the data, but the physical assets themselves. Satellites, telescopes." [break][break]

The memory of his recent argument with Neffatari Nzingha bubbled to the fore of his mind. Zev did not know if declan walsh cared as much about the building as she did, but it didn't matter. She cared, and that was enough for Zev. [break][break]

"We're still working on the plan for its infiltration, but don't worry about being one of the agents getting inside. We also need fighters to prevent League forces from reaching the building and interfering."

TAGS – bryan delarosa[break]
NOTES – social

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If Zev noticed how his words dug into Bryan, he made no comment of it. That Bryan had lost the boon of Xerneas was a fact, one he had to accept to face reality. [break][break]

"I'm thinking you'd be a useful asset anywhere," Zev admitted. "But since the majority of our forces will go to Petalburg, sending you along with them would only increase the margin of victory minimally." [break][break]

He wrote Bryan's name onto a sticky note, then peeled it from the stack. [break][break]

"Your presence at Mossdeep may draw League forces away from Petalburg, but even if it doesn't, we need as many strong fighters at Mossdeep as we can afford to deploy." [break][break]

Zev pressed the note against the whiteboard above a sticky note for the Space Center. [break][break]

"We need to ensure our victory there."

TAGS – bryan delarosa[break]
NOTES – social

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Cillian's ready response was welcome, though Zev had half-expected the underboss to express more reluctance at working directly with the Avatar of Necrozma. Blue eyes pinned Cillian with an assessing gaze. [break][break]

"We stand the best chance of retaining Sootopolis with you in charge of the defense. That means we'll need to work closely together to plan our strategy and ensure everything is executed perfectly." [break][break]

A subtle hint of black crystal bloomed unprompted on Zev's neck, stark against pale skin. [break][break]

"That won't be a problem for you, will it?"

TAGS – Cillian Quinn[break]
NOTES – social

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Zev only cared for treason against Team Rocket insofar as it interfered with his personal goals. His impassive stare accepted Howard's words for what they were as he tucked the admin's truth away into a mental file. [break][break]

He had made his own stance clear with the upper echelon of the organization, but for all he knew, they still saw Howard as loyal. An idiot, perhaps, but devoted to the crime syndicate's cause. [break][break]

Either that, or trapped in its jaws. [break][break]

As coughs wracked Howard's body, Zev stepped closer until he stood at the side of the bed. "What is it?" the Devourer asked, not because he was agreeing.

TAGS – howard slayte[break]
NOTES – social

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