Evening all. Yes, I know I'm late. For that, I apologize. I'm going to attempt to finish this shortly, just sorting some RL stuff out. Either way, slight updates to the story overall, and the next two chapters will be reworked as I need to to be happy with the ending. Again, thank you all for the reviews and the desire to see the end of this, and yes, my fans of Guardians of Rota, too. I'll get around to that, I promise. Likely after this. Anyways, without further rambling on my part, Chapter Three.
Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon, obviously.
Chapter Three
Private Warehouse, Celadon City, Kanto
The fast paced clickity clack of keystrokes filled the office overlooking the warehouse as Gary Oak and Max Maple both worked on their firewall intrusion skills. With the grand opening of the casino two weeks away, the crew had been extremely busy with early preparations.
Paul, as part of his cover, had shown up at Team Rocket's HQ with a false name and history, offering to join up. After a grueling week of initiation, he finally managed to convince them of his loyalty. He began slowly feeding information back to the crew about their vehicles, numbers, equipment, and procedures. Ash and Gary had spent the better part of that morning going over it all and figuring out what exactly they could do with the information.
Dawn had also begun her con, dyeing her hair light brown and posing as an investor from Unova. Using her new alias as Alto Mare-born movie executive 'Isabella Lorenzo', she had managed to gain Giovanni's attention and get a room in the casino during the two weeks of finishing work under the guise of a movie executive, looking to use the casino for an upcoming movie shoot.
Along with her personal recommendation to avoid the veal and that the bathrooms in the hotel were amazing, she had forwarded them a detailed floor plan, Giovanni's daily routine, names of several of his top security people for Paul to get close to, and her keycard which Gary was able to duplicate easily.
Misty, with vehicle specs in hand, had been sent out with May to scout out the local car dealerships to find what they would need for their getaway vehicle. The two had sparked a small friendship, if slightly awkward on Misty's part at times.
Max and Gary had quickly evolved into the team's support center, with Gary handling most of the technical aspects and Max supplying the team's gear. The twenty-three year old Hoenn native had managed to rig together a series of stripped down smartphones into small earpieces, allowing for remote communication simply by talking. Gary had been busy setting up backdoor programs to be slipped into the casino's computer systems, assuming Dawn or Paul could get close enough to do so.
All the while, Ash continued planning out every aspect of the heist, in vivid detail.
"What about an earthquake?"
"Ash, do you have any idea how difficult it would be to stage an earthquake?"
Every last, insane, detail.
Gary sighed. "Ash, go take a nap. You're losing it. So far you've suggested we rob the casino under cover of a fire, flood, during the Pokémon Tournament on opening night, and now an earthquake. Go. To. Sleep," he told his friend, emphasising the final words.
Ash took one last look at the floor plans on their projector before nodding. "Alright. Wake me up if anything goes wrong," he informed Gary, to which Gary rolled his eyes.
"Don't worry, you'll be the first to know. Now get out of here and let Max and I work, will ya?" he told his friend with a smirk.
Reluctantly, Ash finally left the command center, hobbling over towards his room for a nap.
"Was he always like this?" Max asked, spinning in his office chair to face Gary.
Gary gave the boy an amused grin. "What, a paranoid, obsessive control freak?" he asked before shaking his head. "Nah, he was pretty laid back, ridiculously so at times. But people can change," he continued, his grin fading slightly, staring off into space. "A lot can change when you blink."
Honest Harry's Used Cars, Celadon City, Kanto
"Seriously, this is like the twentieth car dealership we've been to, Misty! Can we just pick something and go? I'm hungry…" May whined to her redheaded friend as the pair walked through the car dealership.
"You're exaggerating," Misty replied as she began looking at one of the vans on the lot. "This is only our sixth stop. And we'll go to every one from here to Saffron City if need be until I find what I need," she explained.
Being the perfectionist she was, Misty refused to settle for 'close enough' when it came to her auto body work. Meticulous down to the smallest detail, she was determined to find the exact make and model van that Team Rocket used in their organization.
Finally, after what seemed to May like eons when in actuality was only a few minutes, Misty finally smiled triumphantly. "This is it!" she informed her Hoenn friend.
May sighed in relief. "Finally," she replied with a smile.
Misty began checking the vehicle, kicking the tires and examining several of the bits commonly overlooked when buying a new vehicle, such as brake pads, condition of the frame and underside, among other things.
Crawling back out from under the van, she walked over to the front. "May, can you get this door opened?" Misty asked, indicating the driver's door.
May frowned in confusion, but shrugged, pulling a pair of bobby pins from her hair and set to work, popping the van's lock within seconds. "There ya go," she replied. She was surprised, though, when Misty didn't hop into the driver's seat, instead pulling the door open and sticking her head under the dashboard.
"Yeah, figures they'd try that," she muttered before closing the door. Satisfied that she could fix the van and use what was wrong with it to lower the price, she beckoned to May and began heading towards the main office, a slightly rundown-looking building, to talk the salesmen down.
Entering the small building, Misty and May immediately noticed a man with greasy hair and a suit that looked like it had been sewn together from a set of outdated living room drapes. The man smiled as soon as he caught sight of the pair.
"Well, well, welcome to Honest Harry's Used Cars! You won't find a better deal in Kanto! Now, how can old Harry help you lovely ladies?" he asked, causing both girls skin to crawl slightly as he walked over, sizing the pair up.
"We're interested in the dark grey van, end of the lot. Sticker said twelve thousand?" Misty inquired.
Harry's grin widened even further. "Yes indeed, little lady. You won't find a better deal in all of Kanto, or my name isn't Honest Harry!"
Misty snorted, glancing around the slightly grimy office with distaste, arms crossed. "I'll give you six, up front," she replied without missing a beat, much to the surprise of both May and Harry.
"N-now, listen here, lass," Harry began, "That's the best deal you'll find in Kanto. I've looked it over personally, and I give you my word that the van is in pristine condition. Twelve thousand is my final price," he defended himself.
May rolled her eyes. "Come on, Misty, let's just pay him and go. I'm hungry," she whined.
But Misty simply grinned, ignoring May. "If that's pristine, you're either a crook or an idiot," Misty told the man bluntly. "The frame's got erosion in several spots, the brake pads are almost gone, tires are almost bare, and you cracked the odometer," she listed, counting off on her fingers.
May had to stifle a laugh as 'Honest' Harry's face cycled through a series of emotions rapidly, before finally settling on disbelief. "You broke into the vehicle?" he asked.
Misty simply grinned wider. "Doesn't deny any of it, of course. I'm fairly certain that odometer manipulation is a crime in Kanto. As for how I got in, you left the van unlock. I simply took the opportunity. Now, my offer stands. Six thousand, up front, for the van, and we all leave happy."
May began giggling behind her hand as she watched Harry's face turn various shades. 'She's good at this,' the brunette realized.
Harry, on the other hand, was rapidly backpedaling, his earlier smile long gone. "Listen, I'm sure we can come to some sort of an arrangement," he started, still attempting to negotiate.
Misty just nodded. "Agreed. Six thousand, in cash, and you won't have an Officer Jenny knocking on the door after we leave. Deal?"
May glanced between the two individuals, a grin on her face at how easily Misty managed to twist the greasy shyster around her little finger.
After a long sigh, Harry nodded. "Alright. We have a deal. Six thousand. I'll go get the paperwork drawn up," he replied sourly as he headed back to his desk.
Misty smiled to herself before glancing at May. "Alright, so I bought the van, you're buying lunch. Deal?" she asked.
May's grin widened as she nodded. "Deal."
Celadon Game Corner Casino, Celadon City, Kanto
"Yes, we'd love to use the main floors, at least three suites, probably several shots in the kitchen, and likely an elevator sequence at some point," Dawn explained to her gracious host, the well dressed Giovanni Sakaki.
The two of them sat in Giovanni's office on the twentieth floor of the nearly completed Celadon Game Corner Casino, which afforded Dawn a spectacular view of the surrounding city. They were currently in the process of discussing the specifics of whether Dawn's company could utilize sections of the casino for her upcoming film.
"Miss Lorenzo, I think what you're asking is doable, but I've some questions regarding your requests," Giovanni explained as he folded his hands on his expensive mahogany desk.
"Pokéstar Studios expected as much, Signore Sanaki, which is why I was sent," Dawn replied, utilizing her acting skills to pull off a spot on Alto Marian accent. "Ask away."
Giovanni smiled and inclined his head. "You haven't mentioned much about the movie itself, or your timetable. I assume you realize that it will be several months before access can be given, correct?"
Dawn smiled and nodded her head. "Of course. Pokéstar Studios understands that you and your casino will be very busy within the next few weeks, with your grand opening and all. We wouldn't dream of interrupting that, of course. As for the movie, we're hoping to begin filming of The Celadon Scandal in the coming fall, based around the lives of a ruggedly handsome, down on his luck professional gambler and the beautiful but lonely hotel heiress. And your casino is the best place in either Kanto or Johto for our shoot. All told, it should only require a week of shoot time."
Giovanni began tapping his index fingers to his chin, his hands still folded, contemplating. "I think we can come to an arrangement, though I'm beginning to wonder if Pokéstar Studios sent you thinking that I'd be more agreeable based on your place of origin," he observed with a smirk.
Dawn simply smiled. "Signore Sanaki, I can assure you that Pokéstar Studios would never stoop to such an underhanded tactic," she purred, even know they both knew he was right. Or at least, he was right about her cover story. "We are, however, very glad you've taken the time to hear our offer, and I personally thank you for the accommodations you've been gracious enough to allow my use of. I look forward to both the grand opening and the upcoming tournament."
"Well, the Celadon Game Corner Casino is happy that Pokéstar Studios has taken an interest in us for your movie. With that in mind, we can begin narrowing down an exact timetable and agree on a suitable amount," Giovanni replied. "Until then, please, enjoy the casino, and everything Celadon City has to offer."
Dawn rose from her seat, giving Giovanni the brightest smile she could muster. "I'll take you up on that, Signore Sanaki. Let me know when you wish to continue this conversation, and we'll discuss it. Perhaps over dinner? I hear the restaurants in Celadon are simply exquisite," she offered.
Giovanni nodded. "Indeed. We can discuss it at a later time, though. If you'll excuse me, I've still got a business to run."
Team Rocket Headquarters, Celadon City, Kanto
"Hey, you! Give me a hand with this!"
Paul grunted as he marched across the busy garage towards the van that his new 'comrades' were unloading, giving them a hand offloading it's current cargo. In this case, a shipment of firearms from Sinnoh.
As he began hauling the hard shell gun cases into the armory, Paul ran a hand through his hair. His newly dyed red hair. He had Gary update one of his old IDs, specifically that of Dylan Quinn, red-headed mercenary for hire from the Sinnoh region, for his use in infiltrating Team Rocket. It had taken him a week to pass through their initiation, which, compared to his past experiences as a hitter and retrieval specialist, was nothing.
"Come on, grunts, hustle! Giovanni wants those guns offloaded, cleaned, and ready to fire by tomorrow night!"
Paul rolled his eyes as he listened to the barking Team Rocket Admin, a man with a bad attitude and blue hair, which of course reminded him of a certain troublesome blunette. Pierce, his new boss.
"You, new guy! Quinn!"
Paul sighed and looked over to where Pierce was overseeing the unloading. "Hnn?" he grunted in response.
"When we finish offloading, Giovanni wants you on the range. Gotta make sure you're up to scratch for the opening."
Paul stared at the blue-haired man for a moment before nodding. "Alright," he replied gruffly. Inside, however, he was smiling. 'Finally, something fun,' he thought to himself.
Twenty minutes later, Paul wandered into the soundproofed shooting range, noticing three Grunts and Pierce himself. Nodding to the Team Rocket Admin, Pierce waved him over to one of the open bays, a pair of safety glasses, pair of earmuffs, an assault rifle, and a handgun sitting there waiting for him. At the far end of the range were a series of targets, each in the shape of a standard human adult.
"In Team Rocket, we expect a certain level of marksmanship from our members. Do well enough and I'll see about having you posted for the casino opening," he informed Paul. "Fail to meet my expectations, however, and I'll see you offloading trucks for the next twenty years, understood?"
Paul simple smirked, running a hand through his hair. "Perfectly," he replied as he walked up to the bench, donning his ear and eye protection and picking up the handgun and magazine next to it. Checking them both briefly, he slapped the magazine into the receiver of the pistol, cycled the chamber, removed the safety and began taking aim. Doing the quick calculations in his head, he fired off three consecutive rounds down range, each hitting the target he was aiming for dead center.
Smirking, he dropped the magazine and cleared the chamber, setting the pistol down before turning his attention to the assault rifle. Having used similar in the past, he shouldered the weapon, picked up the magazine and inserted it into the receiver, pulled back the charging handle to load the first round, checked the safety and began taking aim once again, this time at a farther target.
'Stationary target, one hundred yards, standard human target,' he thought to himself as he adjusted his aim to suit the closer range, noticing the iron sights had been sighted in for the weapon's maximum range. As he settled into a firing stance, he regulated his breathing, bringing the iron sights down to minimum range, eventually exhaling and squeezing the trigger.
He smiled as the trio of rounds he fired off each struck his target perfectly. Nodding in satisfaction, he removed the magazine and emptied the chamber, setting them both back onto the bench. Turning back to Pierce as he removed his shooting glasses and earmuffs, he saw the Rocket Admin smiling as well.
"Impressive, Quinn. Alright, I'll put you on the roster for the opening. Now, let's get back to work, shall we?"
Paul nodded. 'Alright Ash, part one down. Let's hope this plan of yours works.'
Private Warehouse, Celadon City, Kanto
"Alright, Misty's working on the van, Dawn's getting more information from dear old Giovanni, May's got her infiltration and exfiltration all planned out, Max is finishing the last few touches on your asinine Plan C, and I've been in touch with six separate hackers putting this intrusion software together. Trust me, Ash, this will work."
'I love Ash like a brother, but there are some days I wish I was still a black hat,' Gary thought to himself as he rubbed his temples. Ash had been micromanaging the entire job for weeks now, and it was beginning to wear on Gary's nerves.
"I just hate leaving anything to chance, you know?" Ash asked as he looked over Paul's most recent report. The pair were the only ones left in the overseer's office at the moment, with Gary sitting at his desk and Ash lounging on the couch they had brought in. The rest of the crew were all either finishing up their work or getting ready for bed.
"Ash, this is bordering on obsessive. How you and Looker managed to get anything done, I'll never know," Gary replied sullenly as he continued working on his computer.
Ash simply nodded. "Usually with a lot of red tape and a fair amount of rule bending. We got good at circumventing the bureaucracy involved in the job, but we had to be really careful about it. Probably the cause of my rampant paranoia and tendency towards micromanagement," he explained as he continued looking through the report.
Eventually the clickity-clack of Gary's computer wound down as the spiky-haired brunet got up from his computer and headed for the door, pausing to look back at Ash. "Don't spend all night in here, alright?"
Shooting Gary a smirk, Ash nodded. "I'll get some sleep, don't worry," he assured his friend as the brunet made his way to his room. Ash, however, stayed for a few minutes longer, going over every single detail of the report, over and over.
"Lookin' a little tired there, Ketchum."
Snapping out his trance, he rubbed his eyes and glanced to the doorway to the office. He was greeted by the smiling face of May. Without waiting for a reply, she wandered into the room and flopped onto the couch next to him, a content smile on her lips.
"What are you still doing up?" Ash asked curiously as he set the report aside, shaking his head a bit to drive sleep away for a time.
May shrugged. "Misty needed a hand on the van's brakes. When I got back to the room, Max was asleep, so I figured I'd go poke about for a bit," she explained.
Ash nodded a bit. "I imagine your job makes you keep odd hours," he observed. 'Kind of odd, just being able to sit down and talk with her after all the chasing I did back in Hoenn,' he mused to himself as she nodded.
"Yeah, I've always been a Noctowl when it came to schedules. Max is the early riser of us. Me? I'd rather crash at three or four and sleep till noon," she told him as she began playing with her hair.
"I used to keep rather odd hours back in Interpol, but my schedule got really screwed up about two years ago," he told her.
May frowned slightly. 'That was about the time he stopped chasing me,' the girl thought to herself. She recalled her earlier conversation with Misty and began getting curious. "Hey, Ash? Can I ask you something? If you don't want to answer, I'll understand."
He frowned for a moment. "Can't promise an answer, but I'll do what I can," he replied cautiously.
May was quiet as she thought how to word her question. "What happened two years ago, exactly? You just kinda vanished for a while."
Ash closed his eyes, a look of sorrow coming over his face. May was about to tell him to forget it when he answered. "Team Rocket happened," he started. "They killed my mother and Gary's grandfather in a driveby shooting in Viridian City. Giovanni's son, Silver, was our main suspect, and I left Hoenn to track him down. Eventually did, too. But the courts had other ideas," he explained bitterly.
"I'm sorry," May offered. "I didn't know it was a touchy subject," she explained, but Ash waved it away.
"It's in the past. Well, technically the present, considering our goal," he explained, throwing a small grin back onto his face. "Soon, Team Rocket will be a giant smoking hole in the ground."
"What'll you do then? After your crusade is finished, I mean," May asked, her inquisitive personality getting the better of her.
Ash shrugged, running a hand through his messy black hair. "Hadn't given it much thought, honestly. Don't think I could go back to Interpol after everything, especially seeing as I'm running a criminal crew to take down one of the most powerful men in the Kanto-Johto area. I don't know, maybe I'll become a private investigator or something," he mused.
May smiled, beginning to feel a bit sleepy. "You know, Max and I could always use another set of hands on our heists, and you are good in a pinch," she offered. "I don't expect you to actually take me up on the offer, but I figured I may as well offer, at least."
Ash's mouth twitched into something of a smile. "Let's get through the next week, first, then we can focus on the 'what comes after', eh? Still, I appreciate the offer," he told the girl.
Misty was heading to her room with May when she saw Gary exit the main office, heading towards his own room. When he caught sight of Misty, he smiled and began heading over towards her, while May went to her own room, only to exit shortly thereafter, heading off.
"Evening Red. How's the van project going?" he asked as he stopped by her, leaning against the doorjamb to his room, watching May head off towards where he left Ash. Misty noticed he was definitely looking tired.
She shrugged. "It's going," she told him. "Not sure where, but it's certainly going. May gave me a hand with the brakes, and I've got to get some decent tires for it tomorrow, but overall, we should be in business in the next few days," she explained, crossing her arms.
Gary nodded, his head looking heavy. "Ash'll be happy, at least. Boy needs to learn to take a break. At this rate, he's going to have sixty contingency plans by the time the Opening rolls around."
Misty just nodded, a smirk coming to her face. "That's Ash. A plan for everything. I'm surprised he hasn't gone gray yet from all the thinking and worrying he does," she replied, amused.
Gary smirked. "I'll check when we get through this. Assuming we actually do get through this," he added. "I'm still amazed you're actually still here, honestly. Why'd you even tag along?"
"Probably the money," she admitted. "Partly because… Well, because even though things between us ended badly, I still want Ash to enjoy his life. I can't really explain it," she admitted, scratching the back of her head.
Gary nodded in understanding. "He's a great guy, but you two just didn't fit, I get it. He was an authority figure, you're more of a rebel. Only natural you two would clash," he assured her.
"Then how do you two get along so well?" she asked with a smirk.
Gary shrugged. "We grew up together, and we're used to it. Besides, I'm a lot more laid back than he is, which means I get along pretty well with everybody outside of jobs. When I'm running a crew, though, I'm a bit more in control, but Ashy-boy's got the 'Control Freak' position sewn up entirely."
Misty chuckled lightly. "Yeah, a lot of people asked us how we tolerated each other. Never gave it much thought, honestly, though he was the first guy who actually stuck it out with me."
Gary frowned. "What do you mean?" he asked.
Misty smirked. "I'm a car girl, remember? Most guys, when they find that out, either treat me like I'm an idiot, or decide to ask me out, only to bail when they discovered my temper. Ash was the first one who didn't care, but he was married to his job, you know?" she explained. 'Why am I even having this conversation with Gary, anyways?' she wondered to herself.
Gary simply grinned. "Yeah, that sounds about right. Surprised you haven't killed Ash yet, honestly. But we can analyse that more some other time, perhaps over dinner?" he asked slyly.
Misty rolled her eyes. "In your dreams, Oak," she replied as she set off towards her room.
Leaving the brunet, she passed by the main office and threw a glance in out of curiosity. She saw Ash nodding off while reading a report. She was about to tell him to go to sleep when she noticed May sitting next to him, asleep against the couch arm.
She stood at the door for a moment before a smile crept onto her face. Deciding not to interrupt the pair, she made her way to her own room. And she was surprised when it wasn't images of the pair that stayed in her head, but Gary's words instead.