"You seriously met Grimsley?" asked Hilda. Her excitement showed through her wide smile.

"Yeah, I did. I even battled him," said Hilbert. He was just as, if not more, ecstatic as his sister.

"Did you win?"

"Fuck no. His bisharp one shotted Houndour."

"He used Bisharp on you? That's probably one of the strongest pokemon of Unova, that's crazy!"

"Right?"

The twins continued fanning over Grimsley before Hilda talked about her day. Walking through the park, seeing a sketchy shop, and watching Cress battle. They were so caught up in their conversation they didn't notice the knocks on their door. At least not until the small knocks turned into loud bangs. Both twins jumped. Hilda was the one who decided to answer. From the knocks she assumed it was Cress. She was proven right after opening the door.

"You two are coming with me, right now," he said. "I'll explain why on the way there."

He began walking away, towards the elevator, and Hilda and Hilbert quickly followed him. His demeanor was different from normal. He was more on edge. Hilda noticed he looked the same way he did back when he battled the two gang members.

While they were curious, the twins held their tongues until Cress had already been driving for a minute.

"So, where are we going?" asked Hilbert.

"There's gonna be a fight between some gangs. Normally I wouldn't get involved in these, but my friend is one of the leaders for one of them. So, I kind of have to."

"Then why are we going?"

"Needs all the help he can get."

Nothing more was said, until Cress came to a stop. He had haphazardly parked in between two cars, nearly crashing into both. Cress slammed his door when he got out and began half-running up the sidewalk. Hilbert and Hilda had jogged to catch up. Hilda assumed Cress was walking up to the park, but he instead sharply turned down an alleyway.

When she entered, she saw two men in the middle of it. They wore similar colors to the people she saw earlier. Hilbert recognized the two guys as the same ones that came out of the narrow street. Same clothes and chains. They both had a pokemon standing beside them. The two recognized one, a pawniard, but didn't know what the other was. Though they figured it was where the gang got their name, seeing as their tags and chains matched it.

The two guys noticed the trio and turned to them. Before anyone said anything, Cress removed his glasses. The guys eased up a bit.

"Oh shit, wasn't expecting you, Cress."

"Where's Klin?"

"In front of the shop."

Cress marched past the two guys. He said nothing more to them. He said nothing to anyone who looked at him in the alley. Hilbert and Hilda felt a bit nervous. They got weird stares from everyone. Especially Hilbert. While he could normally brush off someone looking at him weird. It was another thing when there were over a dozen people with their eyes on him. On top of that, he was on their turf.

"Sup, Klin," said Cress. Hilbert hadn't realized but he was right outside the shop Hilda told him about.

"Oh, hey. Surprised you actually came."

"Said I would, didn't I," said Cress. "You know anything about the other gang?"

"It's the Bascs. But I think they got some Prime helping them."

"Great...Know where they're coming from?"

"Prolly anywhere, just focus on wherever the fighting starts," said Klin.

Hilda only saw him for a minute earlier, but she could tell Klin was stressed. When he had met with Cress before, he seemed chill and easy going. But now it was different. His eyes darted around wildly. His shoulders were raised like he was making himself bigger. Hilda saw the same levels of tensity in other members of Klin's gang.

Even Cress, who Hilda synonymized with being calm and collected, was on edge. Seeing so many people uneasy was starting to affect her. The only one who was calm was her brother. When Hilda looked at him, she saw that he wasn't looking at anyone. He only looked at all the graffiti, like she did when she first came here.

Looking back to everyone else, Hilda became more anxious. Her chest felt tight and it got harder to breathe. Having so many strangers around, all of who gave off an aura of restlessness, was overwhelming to her. She stepped closer to her brother and put a hand on his shoulder for support.

Hilbert looked to Hilda. Looking at her face he knew she was distressed. While it wasn't as bad as his sister, Hilbert was also feeling uneasy. He wanted to leave. To just relax in the hotel room or hang out somewhere. But he knew he couldn't. Instead they had to take part in a gang fight. Hilbert wanted to say something, but the moment a word came out of his mouth, someone screamed.

Everyone in the alley turned their attention to one of the openings. The one Cress and the twins had come through. One of the two guys came flying from it. His body rolled as it landed. A loud bellow was heard and a bouffalant came charging through. The second man who was on watch was on its head. He was tossed the moment the bouffalant stopped charging. The man's body hit a wall and he lay near-motionless. A few members of the Klinks began releasing their own pokemon. Hilbert and Hilda saw more and more of the pokemon in the shape of two gears. Before anyone called a move, a few more pokemon came charging from the alley opening. Just as many, if not more, people came in behind them. Some of them wore clothes similar to the two guys Hilda watched Cress battle. The rest had different colors.

Only a couple of the pokemon Hilbert and Hilda recognized. One was the bouffalant, only because their favorite restaurant chain had it as their mascot. Another was a blitzle, a very common pokemon for beginner trainers. Besides those two, they didn't know any of them. One was small and rather round, mostly red in color with some yellow, like its eyebrows. It spewed fire from its mouth. A pokemon coming from behind it had blue skin and was covered in wool. Its tail ends in a yellow sphere.

Many Klink members had begun withdrawing their own pokemon and attacks soon flew back and forth. Hilbert and Hilda froze as they watched the fighting. While they had battled before, and had seen countless battles on TV, what they saw didn't compare. The pokemon now fighting were far more brutal. Their attacks were seemingly wild and unpredictable as opposed to the calculated and precise attacks trained pokemon have. Some of the trainers themselves were almost getting hit with moves.

The twins were scared to draw their pokemon. Scared to really say anything. Scared to even run away. They really didn't want to get hit with a stray attack. Behind them, there wasn't much noise. Hilda thought about running. Going back and heading through the park. Just get away from the gangs and be in the public eye. Her idea was short lived as when she turned around she saw some more pokemon running through the alley's opening. The Klink members near the entrance all jumped out of the way to avoid getting hit. Before the new pokemon could attack, the members threw out their own and more fighting began.

"Shit..." said Klin. "Cress you go help over there. I'll help with these guys."

"Got it. You two, with me," Cress said to the twins. Klin headed to the front and Cress the back. Hilbert and Hilda forced to follow.

"I know you two are probably freaking out, but relax. Just pick someone to fight two on one and you'll be fine. Like..." Cress looked around for someone he thought the twins could take on. He pointed to a fairly large pokemon that had just come into the alley. A person coming up right behind it. "That one. It's a crustle. Weak to water and rock. Good luck."

Cress didn't wait for the twins to say anything. He just ran off towards someone who was fighting off three attackers alone. Knowing it was a bad idea to stand still in the middle of a mass battle, the two ran towards their target.

As he ran, Hilbert grabbed one of the pokeballs and released his pokemon. While he had more experience with Houndour and Pidove, his newest pokemon, Palpitoad, had yet to battle with him. He was quite curious to learn of his strength. As soon as Palpitoad was released, Hilbert ordered him to attack. He had used the pokedex to look over his moves once before and hoped he had remembered them right.

"Palpitoad, use Bubble Beam on that crustle!" Hilbert shouted. Luckily, the pokemon he had yet to use performed perfectly. Palpitoad launched a stream of bubbles from his mouth. All of which hit his target. The crustle did its best to take the hit. Putting its front claws in front of it, bracing itself. It was obvious the attack hurt, but it remained standing.

"Crustle, Stealth Rock!" yelled the pokemon's trainer. The crustle slammed its claw onto the ground with a cry. The ground shook a bit and then small bumps grew on the ground's surface. Though Palpitoad didn't seem bothered.

Not wanting Hilbert to fight alone, Hilda tossed out Cubchoo's ball. The little pokemon emerged with a smile. He let out a soft cry before landing on the ground. The small cry turned into a sharp yelp, when the bumps he landed on turned into sharp rocks and rose and struck Cubchoo. The rocks quickly sunk back and Cubchoo fell over.

"Cubchoo!" cried Hilda.

"Damn it...Palpitoad, Mud Shot!"

Palpitoad's cheeks puffed up before he released a large flow of mud at Crustle. Its attempt to shield itself with its claws took too long. Mud landed on its face and in its eyes. The crustle didn't move, keeping still to shake its head and rub its eyes.

Hilda watched her pokemon. Hilbert watched the opponent's pokemon. Cubchoo writhed for a few seconds after taking damage, but did get up. Hilbert could hear his sister let out a sigh.

"Is he fine?" asked Hilbert. His eyes stayed on the crustle whose eyes were now cleaned.

"I think so..." said Hilda. She looked at Cubchoo who pawed at some dirt on his fur. He then looked up to Palpitoad next to him. At the crustle. Then glanced at the surrounding area. All kinds of people and pokemon fighting it out. Different noises surrounding the area. Cubchoo sat down and covered his eyes. His body shaking.

"Oh...Cubchoo!" yelled Hilda. Her sudden loudness startled Hilbert, who turned his head to her. Cubchoo uncovered his eyes and looked to his trainer. He could see her face had a worrisome expression. But it had something else. A bit more of a pleading look.

"Crustle, use Slash!" called out the opposing trainer. The crustle began scuttling towards Palpitoad and Cubchoo. Its claw raised and glowing. Hilbert knew he should issue a command. He wanted to order an attack. But after the first two attacks, he knew Palpitoad was too slow for the speeding Crustle. Hilda inhaled and then shouted to Cubchoo, who was still watching her.

"Cubchoo, use Icy Wind!"

Cubchoo looked from Hilda and to the Crustle who was only a couple meters away and gaining distance fast. Despite how he felt, Cubchoo stood and faced Crustle. He opened his mouth and a breath of cold air quickly flowed forward. Crustle was hit with the full blast. Its whole body covered in a rather thin ice it didn't lose its charge completely, the crustle was slowed from the ice attack. Enough time for Palpitoad to ready itself.

"Use Bubble Beam!" ordered Hilbert. Palpitoad did as he was told and puffed his cheeks before launching bubbles at his enemy. The crustle was only a few feet away, but Palpitoad's attack landed and pushed Crustle back quite a bit.

"Damn it! Crustle, Rock Blast!"

Crustle tried to ignore the pain. But from the damage of the water attacks and the slowness from the ice, its movements were far slower. It had reached into the ground and lifted up a chunk. As it readied itself to launch it at the palpitoad or cubchoo, Hilbert had ordered a second Bubble Beam. This one hitting the rock, crushing it to bits, before hitting Crustle. Pushing it back even further. This time Crustle didn't get up. Its eyes remained closed and its body still. The fight was over.

"Shit..." muttered the rival gang member. He returned Crustle to its ball. As the red light enveloped the pokemon, a new sound was heard through all the shouting and pokemon cries. Sirens.

The loud sirens seemed to pierce everyone's ears, as members of both sides began withdrawing their pokemon and running away. Most of the non-Klins ran into the park or through the first passage they came through. The Klins themselves ran to the far end of the alley. Or some ran with the enemy. The fear of being caught by the police outweighed the risks of being with rival gang members. As people ran past them, Hilbert and Hilda stood still. They weren't sure where to go or what to do. Hilbert returned Palpitoad then began to think. Trying to think of a plan. With all the people and sounds, it was hard for him.

While Hilda normally would wait for Hilbert to think of something. She ignored him this time. After returning Cubchoo, she looked for Cress. She figured he wouldn't leave her and her brother when police were involved. Her assumption proved correct when she saw blue hair coming towards her.

"Cress! What do we do?" asked Hilda. Hilbert snapped away from his thoughts and turned to see Cress walking up to Hilda.

"Relax, we can hide out in Klin's shop until the police leave. He owes us that much at least..." Cress said. He turned away from the twins and began heading towards the garage. Hilda quickly behind him. Hilbert lagged a bit behind, but he did still jog as to not remain too far back. The sirens were much louder than they were a minute ago. As the trio approached the auto shop, they were stopped by someone else who was entering.

"Hey, you sure about those two? We've never seen them before."

"Can either keep watch on them inside or leave them to the cops."

"Fine, but you're responsible for them."

"Whatever," Cress said as he lightly pushed the person to the side. Hilda and Hilbert followed him in. They had to walk in single file as half the entrance was taken up by a staircase. Once past the staircase, the passage opened up a bit, though was still narrow. It was another few feet before the corridor turned into a room. A room filled with people. Some people sat on a couch, others on chairs, and others just standing or leaning against a wall. A few sat on the floor.

All of them members of Klins. Hilbert didn't recognize any of them by name and Hilda only knew of Klin. But they both did know they were all outside with them. Battling the other gang. All except one. There was one man sitting in the middle of the couch, his arms outstretched on the back and one leg on the other. Whoever he was, they knew he hadn't fought. His clothes were too clean. His body was too relaxed. Everyone else, even Cress, were still uneasy. And their clothes had all kinds of dirt or tears on them. But the man was clean and calm. He also had his eyes closed, though quickly opened them upon Cress entering the room. The hallway had carpet, but the room had tile. So Cress' steps were much louder.

"Oh, Cress!" said the man. "Didn't realize you were here."

"Hey, Kla," said Cress. The two men slapped each other's palms before Cress walked past to a table. On it were some liquor bottles. Cress grabbed one and used the table's edge to open it. When he got it opened, he started back towards the hallway. As he passed the couch, Kla spoke up.

"So, how was the fight?"

"If you were out there you would know," said Cress.

"You tryna say something?" said Kla. He now had both feet on the ground and his elbows on his knees. His body ready to stand up. The other Klink members all went quiet and looked at the two men.

"Relax, didn't mean anything by it."

"Sure sounded like you did."

Kla was now standing, his chin turned up at Cress' back. His face a full one-eighty from before. Now irritated and aggressive. Cress stood still, only turning his head to keep an eye on Kla. His composure was calm. Though Hilda noticed he slipped his hand into the pocket he kept his pokeballs in. Kla began to reach behind him.

"How bout we take this outside then, huh?"

"You sure about that? With police as spectators?"

No one said anything. Not the twins. Not any of the Klinks. Not Cress. Not even Kla. The gym leader and gang leader stared at each other, neither so much as moving a muscle. Eventually, Kla scowled and turned his back to Cress. He sat back in his spot on the couch. Though instead of a smile, he now had a look of lour. Cress turned his head back straight and went forward. He said nothing to the twins, but gestured for them to follow. Hilbert and Hilda thought they were going to leave the building, but instead Cress led them upstairs.

While the bottom floor consisted of just a living room and hallway, the upstairs had a few rooms. The staircase went into a small corridor, which itself turned into another one. Straight from the top of the stairs was one room, its door closed. To the side were two doors and an open doorway. Cress went through the doorway, which led into a kitchen. While not large by any means, the kitchen still managed to fit a round table kept at one side. One person sat at the table. Klin.

"Oh, hey," he said.

"Hey," said Cress. After a brief greeting, Cress sat beside Klin. Hilbert and Hilda sat hesitantly down next to Cress. Neither felt like they belonged, but also that it felt wrong to say anything. So, they sat in silence.

"So how was your fight?" asked Cress.

"Not great. Was forced into someone who had a darumaka."

"I take it the fight didn't go well?"

"Wasn't so bad, the other dude was a shit trainer. Just kept trying to get strong attacks off, even when my klang kept dodging them. How bout yours?"

"Fought sorta two on three. My stoutland and someone's pawniard against a dewott, frillish, and blitzle. The frillish went down almost instantly. The fight was over before we even heard the sirens."

The young men laughed at their easy victories.

"So, what's with those two?" asked Klin. He pointed at Hilbert and Hilda with the hand he held his drink in. The twins were a bit surprised at suddenly being talked about.

"Just some newbies I had to watch over."

"They NGs?"

"Not yet," said Cress. "But probably soon."

Hilbert had no idea what Klin or Cress meant. When he looked to his sister, he learned she also had no idea. They sat in silence as Cress and Klin talked more. Even when they talked about them they stayed quiet. At least until they were talked to directly.

"So, you two. What are your names?" asked Klin.

"Uh, Hilbert."

"Hilda."

"How you two liking Castelia?"

"It's nice..." said Hilda.

"Never been a part of a gang fight," said Hilbert.

Klin chuckled. "Yeah. Castelia's probably a lot different compared to Striaton. Should've seen the city just a few years ago."

"Things used to be crazy here," added Cress.

"Fights like that one almost every day. Not just in alleys but parks and sometimes on main streets. Was like that until Grimsley joined the Elite Four."

"What does Grimsley have to do with anything?" asked Hilda.

"Because of him, most of the cities started having strict regulations on battles. Like limiting where people can battle. Not to mention harsher sentences for battling where you're not supposed to."

"On top of all that, the fines you can get are crazy. Thousand minimum," Klin and Cress explained.

"Didn't know we were risking that much whenever we got into fights back home," said Hilbert while looking at Cress. His voice rose on the last few words. Cress chuckled.

"Relax, in Striaton it's not nearly as bad here. If you stay in designated areas or on the outskirts of the city, battling's fine. As long as people don't get too hurt."

Hilbert rolled his eyes and propped his head on his palm. His sister laughed seeing him in a bad mood. Cress grinned, but had turned away from the twins. He instead looked towards Klin.

"Y'know, Klin, I'm actually kinda glad we're talking right now."

"Really? Why?" asked Klin, taking a sip.

"Because, I have a proposition for you. Something that can raise both you and all of the Klinks to new heights," said Cress. Hilbert and Hilda both looked at him in question. They remember hearing a similar phrase from him before.

"Go on."

"About seven months ago I went to this one woman, who used to be a chemist, and brought her on to the team. One of her big things about her was she wasn't always conventional with her work. Sometimes used her lab to produce some products to sell on the side. Had her create something special for me."

"We aren't interested in pushing drugs," Klin said. He dropped his smile and looked Cress in the eyes.

"Yeah, I know you've said that in past. But trust me on this. It's something new and will hit like crazy. I just need someone to help distribute it and they can take a nice cut of the profits."

"We don't care about the money we could get from it. We don't push drugs, period."

Before Cress continued his argument, Hilbert and Hilda looked at the adults. Klin was straight faced. Cress held his grin. But both of their eyes were determined.

"Just think about it," started Cress. "Drugs don't just bring in more money, but more power and influence as well. If things go perfectly smoothly, you can dominate this city in a year's time."

"I already said, it's not about the money or power, or anything like that. Kla doesn't want to push drugs. Period," Klin said. To Hilbert and Hilda, his words seemed final. But Cress was persistent.

"You really gonna just do whatever Kla says? Even from Striaton I've heard rumors of the Klinks in rough times. Not so surprising, with someone like Kla as leader."

"Cress..."

"Honestly, I'm surprised you or anyone else hasn't made a move on him yet."

"Cress."

"If anyone's gonna do it, I think it should be you. You definitely will do a much better job than Kla. I was gonna ask him about about the deal but figured you'd be a better fit-"

"Cress!" Klin slammed his palm onto the table, making Hilbert and Hilda jump. The two instinctively reached into their pockets, ready to pull their pokemon out if need be. Cress didn't move and never stopped grinning. "I'm only going to say this one more time. We aren't interested in pushing drugs. And stop talking shit on Kla. Once all the police are gone, I want you three out of here as well. Got it?"

Cress put his hands up defensively. "Fine, fine. Just think about what I had to say, alright?"

"I'm not going to."

The two young men took long sips of their drinks before putting the bottles down. Cress did so gently, while Klin slammed his bottle down, making Hilda jump once again. Over the next couple hours, the twins didn't speak a word. Cress and Klin spoke very briefly every once in a while. The police outside remained there well into the evening. By the time the last one left, it was only barely over an hour until midnight. Not long after the police were gone, Klin ushered Cress and the twins out of the shop. As the three began walking away, Klin called to Cress.

"I appreciate the help today, I do," said Klin. "But, don't ever talk anymore bullshit on us or I'll beat your fucking ass."

Klin slammed the door after letting out his final word. Cress still wore a grin. The three walked through the alley in silence. Hilbert took the time to reflect on the day. Thought about the awkward time spent with Klin. Thought about the battle with Hilda. Thought back to him and Hilda discussing their day. He began to remember his meeting with Grimsley and remembered he forgot something.

"Oh, Cress!" he said as the three came out of the alley.

"Hm?"

"I forgot to tell you. When I met with Gri-I mean, you-know-who," Hilbert stopped himself when a random man came from his front. "He told me to tell you 'I'll do it'."

"Really?" asked Cress. His curiosity was piqued. "Did you give him the money I gave you?"

"Yeah, after he made me battle him."

"He made you battle him?" By now, the three were back at the car. Cress began laughing as he entered. He didn't stop until the twins were in. Annoyed, Hilbert began scowling.

"What was the deal you two even made?" he asked.

"I gave him a proposition where he helps me distribute the drugs and he gets a cut. He needed to see the money that could be made before he would agree to it," Cress said as he pulled out.

"So, you made a grand off the stuff you made then gave it to him?" asked Hilda.

"I made much more than that off of what I was able to sell. Remember when I gave you two that backpack with product and had you deliver it? Well, I only gave you about four hundred grams of the stuff. I kept the rest and sold it to some people in Accumula. For about a hundred grams I got five grand. Grimsley is only getting a cut, remember that."

"Made five thousand off just that much? That's crazy," said Hilda.

"In time, I plan on increasing the selling price, to maybe double. Just need people to realize how good the stuff is first."

"If you made that much from selling only a fifth of the stuff, how come you didn't have us sell it as well?" asked Hilbert.

"Couple reasons. One, I had already made deals with the ones you delivered to days before, saying they won't have to pay. Two, I got into contact with Grimsley just the night before and he said I would have to show him some profit if he was going to work with my brothers and I. And three, I didn't think you three would be able to sell any of it anyway," Cress chuckled to himself. Hilbert rolled his eyes and began gazing out the window.

Hilda opened her mouth to speak, but all that came out was a yawn. She was more exhausted than she realized and she knew her brother was feeling the same as she was. Cress' comments quickly left her mind and she only thought about getting back to the hotel and going to sleep.

Damn I took way too long. Better late than never I guess.

~~~Sikoh