pokebox | LOCKED TO ardent

LOCKED TO ardent

The first thing he noticed was the off-white ceiling and plain walls. It didn't occur to him that there was anything weird about that for a minute or so, instead he sat up, glancing around at the unfamiliar room. The bed he was lying in wasn't particularly hard or soft - not as comfy as the one at Hope's Peak, but it wasn't uncomfortable either - and there was a desk beside the bed with a set of clothes, a note, and two red-and-white balls. Mondo reached for one of the balls without thinking, only stopping himself when his memories of the previous days came flooding back like a tidal wave.

Fujisaki. How could he forget, even for a moment? Fujisaki had come to him, seeking help, expressing a desire to become stronger, and what had he done? He'd blacked out. No, that wasn't right - he'd blacked out and killed the kid. Mondo's fists clenched and he drew his hand back. That's right, then there had been a trial, just like the first time someone was found murdered in Hope's Peak Academy. Monobear had called them all down there and they had gone over the evidence. Well, if by "they" he meant Naegi, Kirigiri, and that jackass Togami. First they had outed Fukawa as Genocider Syo, then they'd blamed Togami for altering the crime scene, and then...

...And then the truth had come out. If he hadn't been so careless with what he was saying, Fujisaki's secret would have been safe and he wouldn't have hurt Ishimaru, his aniki. Of course he had noticed the way Ishimaru reacted - the screaming, the denial, the tears, the desperation - and Ishimaru had voted for someone else. Even when he had acknowledged his defeat, Ishimaru hadn't. Ishimaru had believed in him until the very end - but he shouldn't have. He had betrayed not only Fujisaki's trust, but Ishimaru's as well.

It was a good thing he hadn't gotten away with murder though. Mondo doubted he could have lived with himself if he had. Even the execution wasn't that bad - from what little he remembered of it. It could have been worse; he could have been chained to a signpost and bludgeoned to death by millions of baseballs. He still had nightmares about Leon's death. He didn't even know Leon all that well. No, Mondo's death had been relatively quick and he'd gotten to ride a motorcycle one last time. There was something freeing about that, something he doubted he could ever really put into words. His last action had been his favorite. Maybe that was suiting.

So why was he here? Why was he waking up? He was dead, he was sure of that. He was equally sure that this wasn't Hope's Peak. There weren't any windows in the room, which meant that he could be underground, but he doubted Monobear would have let him live after the murder. He hadn't gotten away with it; he hadn't "graduated." So where was he?

Mondo finally got up, snatching the note off the top of the clothes folded on the desk. There was a large, red "R" on the shirt front, but Mondo ignored that for the time being to scan the note. Apparently he was now working for an organization known as "Team Rocket." That title meant nothing to him and he set the note aside, picking up the clothes next. It was a very standard uniform that looked like it would be way too tight-fitting for his taste and Mondo set that aside as well. Finally, he picked up the red-and-white balls, turning them in his hands curiously. He wasn't a Super High-School Level Baseball Player, but he might be able to use them as weapons if he needed to. He tucked those in his pocket and turned to the door. He expected it to be locked. It wasn't.

The hallway was just as nondescript as the room, though the ceilings were a bit low for his liking. Mondo picked a direction at random and started down the hallway, absently wondering if he could find some way back outside. It felt like it had been a long time since he had seen the sun.

He was stopped on his way by a shorter, scrawny man wearing that uniform (yeah, it definitely looked like it would have been too tight on him). The man frowned at him and pointed one gloved finger down the opposite hallway. "You should be heading to your first day of training! Why aren't you in uniform?"

"Fuck off," Mondo replied, shoving the smaller man out of his way. The guy definitely looked older, so he could assume that this wasn't the school. No one else was in the school after all, right? Just the fifteen of them - well, eleven of them now (did he even count anymore?) - and the person controlling Monobear. Mondo brushed that thought aside; this wasn't the school. That was what he would focus on.

He didn't find his way out. His sense of direction had always been good, but that was on the roads, in the open air. He had always gotten turned around in Hope's Peak as well, but never like this. He couldn't believe he'd managed to wander in a circle, finding himself back in front of the room he'd woken up in. Maybe this was some kind of trick; he couldn't move on until he'd gone to his first day of "training" or whatever.

The man in the Rocket uniform came walking down that hallway at just that moment. "Gotten yourself lost, huh?" He sneered. "Just follow this hallway and hook a left. The training facility's there. You'll meet the other new recruits and get started on your two weeks of training."

Two weeks? Like hell he was going to hang around for that long. Mondo rolled his eyes and followed the man's directions, ignoring the shout for him to get back and change his clothes.

The training facility was more decorated than the hallways or the room, and well-lit at that. There were several other young men (wearing that hideous uniform), all gathered in the center of the room, talking quietly. It looked like the instructor hadn't shown up yet. Mondo was tempted to leave, but this might be his best chance to get information on this place. He frowned for a moment, before walking up to join the others. He stood at least a head taller than them, which made him stick out even worse than the clothes he was wearing. Not that he cared.

"What's this "training" gonna consist of anyway?"

None of the other men seemed to know, and Mondo began to wonder just how badly things were going to go. It wasn't like it could be any worse than Enoshima being stabbed through by spears in the gym, right?

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Ishimaru's room was as clean and organized as expected, but Mondo had expected to find... well, more in it. It didn't look much different from the room he woke up in this morning. Couldn't Ishimaru at least decorate his room to make it feel a bit more like home? Or maybe he was planning on moving out of this base and getting a real house! It sounded like too much work (and effort) to Mondo, but he wouldn't be surprised if Ishimaru was saving up for his own place. Ishimaru really was like an adult in most ways.

He wasn't surprised when Ishimaru started getting changed in front of him, but he did turn his attention to the strange case on the table, reaching for it without waiting for permission. He opened it and glanced at the shiny pieces of metal, lifting an eyebrow and setting the case down without asking.

"Huh? Oh yeah, there was some note from Team Rocket or whatever, that hideous outfit they wanted everyone to wear, and..." He reached into his pocket and held up the red-and-white balls, "these. I've got no idea what they do, but I figured I'd better take them with me. They look important. There might have been other things, but I was more focused on getting out of there. I... wasn't sure if we were in the basement of the school or something."

"I thought the same thing - I woke up and wasn't sure if it was some new portion of the school we had yet to see properly. It was disconcerting; I don't blame you!"

He settled on the edge of the bed to work out the lacing on those knee-high boots of his, though he glanced over at Mondo and the capsules he was holding up for a second; Ishimaru considered telling him to try opening them, promptly remembered that this world blessed some people with three-story rocksnakes upon arrival, and was left with a...vaguely horrified expression on his face for what must have looked like no apparent reason, but he couldn't exactly say that he cared. "Well, when we get outside you can open them, but for now leave them alone. Please. I'll show you what's in them when we get outside."

"What's in them?" Mondo looked at the balls skeptically. "They don't look like they can fit much." He didn't miss the odd expression on Ishimaru's face though, and he had to wonder what that was for.

Mondo wasn't one to wait patiently though, and after a moment he started toward the door, calling back over his shoulder, "C'mon, hurry it up already!" He was far more eager to head outside than he was to see what was in the capsules.

"All right, aniki, have patience!" Honestly, it was probably fortunate for Mondo that Ishimaru was a creature of habit - it would have taken a while for most to get ready to his standards, but doing the same thing every day for years tended to make one efficient, if nothing else.

And it really was a matter of falling back into doing the same thing - he had exchanged the Rocket uniform for the white school uniform, red armband and all. Exactly like he had been back in their world.

"You'll have to show me where you're staying as well, though that can wait for when we return! I don't tend to like staying down here much longer than I have to, during daylight hours; once training is concluded in the morning, I like spending time back aboveground."

He was wandering around as he walked, picking up that trainer case that Mondo had been looking at earlier and pocketing it, as well as finding the 'gear in the pockets of his former outfit and taking that as well. "Let's go, then!"

"What are those for? I get that... thing is like a cell phone, but what's that other one for?" Mondo paused for a moment, and then added on to that, "And what about training? What kind of training are you doing here?" He hadn't really thought about it before, but it figured that Ishimaru did some sort of exercises (preferably not radio exercises, that was just weird). He could only imagine Ishimaru declaring that one has to train both their mind and body! or something along those lines.

But he was content to follow his friend for the time being. He tried to keep track of all the different hallways, but quickly found himself completely lost within the base, relying on Ishimaru to get him out of there. Not that he really minded; it was nice to spend time with Ishimaru like this.

Hey, hey! One's body is a beautiful gift their parents gave them; it's only right to maintain it properly!

...speaking of, Ishimaru seemed to have decided somewhere along the line that they were going to be taking the stairs; at least it was only a couple of flights up to get the ground level, and his pace didn't slow any on the stairwell.

His rate of speech didn't seem to have slowed any, either, though his response to Mondo's questioning was a casual one, or at least as close to casual as Ishimaru tended to get. "Ah, I usually oversee the new recruits in the mornings - they have to be introduced to the organization properly, to keep everything running as smoothly as possible! You've seen how disorienting it can be to wake up here; we want to avoid too much chaos and confusion at the outset! However, there's more to training than that; it's something I can illustrate for you better once we're outside! And then we can discuss the badges as well - that would be what's in that case."

There were a few individuals standing sentry at the top of the stairs, obviously belonging to the organization if the insignia on their uniforms was anything to judge by; Ishimaru didn't seem troubled by their presence, and it was clear from the way that they shifted to allow him passage that they recognized him. "One of the new recruits is coming up with me," was all he offered by way of explanation, gesturing back toward Mondo as he did so, before pushing the door open and stepping into the lobby of the Radio Tower.

The place was brightly-lit, the sun streaming in from the large windows at the front of the room; Ishimaru continued speaking, business as usual.

"We aren't to mention the organization outside of the Tower; it's under new management now, and they aren't very popular with the public. It won't be that way for very long, but for now, we don't say anything."

Mondo followed, listening as Ishimaru explained more about the organization. "The badges?" He finally asked, curiously. "What, those little metal things? What are they for?"

The guards didn't look very tough, but neither had any of the other Rockets Mondo had seen so far. He merely flashed them a smirk as he walked past them, following Ishimaru out into a much larger room. Again he was tempted to press his face to the windows, but they were already close enough to the outside world.

"Yeah, I figured that much. Secret organization and all that." But the "new management" thing certainly was interesting. "So, are you part of this new management? I mean, you've got a job training new recruits and all, so it sounds like you're a bigshot here!"

"I answer directly to the people in charge, but I'm not one of them - it's like being on the disciplinary committee, where I have responsibilities, but not the same authority as the teachers. It's very similar to that!" He didn't seem bothered by that at all, however; if anything, he seemed proud of it. "It's a privilege to have a position like that here; they aren't easy to obtain! I'll take you to meet our superiors one day; I'm sure they would be interested."

The doors to the outside slid open surprisingly easily, despite how heavy they seemed to appear on first glance; even if the day was a bit on the warm side, he found the air outside to be pleasant anyway - he hadn't noticed this much of a difference between the air being pumped through the inside of buildings and the more natural feeling outdoors before Hope's Peak, but he hadn't stopped being grateful for it since his arrival here.

"As for the badges, that's what those capsules are for - go ahead and see what's in yours!"

It made sense that Ishimaru liked being in this sort of position, but Mondo couldn't imagine having to report to someone else like that.

But that thought was quickly brushed aside as the doors opened. He couldn't stop the grin, nor could he really slow down once he was actually at the doors. The air was fresh, not filtered or anything, and he could feel the wind and the sun and it was a wonderful feeling.

"Ah?" But he had heard Ishimaru's exclamation, and after a moment he pulled one of the red-and-white balls out of his pocket, looking at it curiously. "Alright, let's see..." Mondo attempted to pull the ball open, frowning when it wouldn't budge. "Hey, what's with this--?"

That was when he accidentally hit the button in the center of the ball. It popped open, releasing a red beam of light that quickly formed into the shape of... well, a lizard. It chirped happily at Mondo and tugged up its pants.

"Wh-what..." Mondo stared at the lizard thing, eyes wide. "What the fuck...? The fuck is that!?"

...well, clearly Ishimaru thought it was a chance to whip out his Pokédex and examine the pantslizard, give him a second.

"This world gives us all some sort of animal upon our arrival! We get two of them, but everyone starts with at least one."

No, really, this was fascinating - ...ah, right. Just. Let him look up from the 'Dex, grinning all the while.

"Are you familiar with those shows and games back home - with the monsters that you catch and befriend and battle with? I never watched them myself, but apparently they were popular. I'm told it's like that!"

"Why do we need an animal?" But Ishimaru said something interesting and Mondo focused on that instead. "Oh yeah, the games and shows and trading cards? So this is kinda of like that? Huh." It sounded weird, but judging from pantslizard over there, this was seriously a thing that was happening.

"So we've got a little monster-- ah, wait."

Mondo pulled out the second ball and released that creature. This one was a dark little helldog who barked in greeting. Mondo immediately got down to his knees to pet the dog.

"Ah, hey, look at that! Someone knows me pretty well, huh? What a handsome little guy you are! Hey, who knew they'd have helldogs here?"

Ishimaru laughed at that. "Some of them are very well-matched to their trainers! Others...not so much, as whomever hands them out at the beginning is a bit strange like that, but yours seem very well-suited, aniki!"

He pocketed the 'Dex again. "We train them to fight against one another - they seem to enjoy the challenge! And when they become powerful enough, we face Trainers of a higher caliber than the rest; that's how we obtain those badges! It's more of a personal challenge or an achievement than anything, but it's also our means of defending ourselves or proving ourselves to the locals - they place a lot of importance on these creatures and what one can do with them!"

"Hey, my pants aren't that loose!" But Mondo laughed, ruffling the puppy's fur before standing back up. "What did you end up with? You've been here awhile, so I'm guessing you've got more than the two you started with, right?"

Ishimaru's explanation sounded about right for those monster-catching-and-training games, though he wasn't sure how this was possible. Ah well, it didn't really matter, did it? "You've got quite a few of those badges. But I don't get it; why do we need these little guys to protect ourselves? I can take on anyone with my fists. I don't need monsters to do the fighting for me."

"That's just how things are done around here, it seems - and besides, there are some of these monsters that would be too much of a match for any of us!" Or, well... "...except perhaps for Oogami-kun, but she's a different case altogether!"

However, he was quick to pull out two of the Pokéballs he carried on his person, holding them out in front of him, one in each hand; he clicked the button on one of them, releasing the creature inside in a burst of light - a rather large, imposing-looking red ape, with massive fists and flames appearing to flicker out of the fringe near its eyes. "This is Ando - he's the one I started out with, though he was much smaller at the start! Once they've been trained enough, most of these animals will change form into something more powerful."

And with that, he opened the second, releasing a...well. 'Massive and incredibly pissed-off-looking blue sea-serpent' was probably the best way to describe it, though Ishimaru didn't seem fazed by her. "...in Sachiko's case that's probably something of an understatement, she's changed quite a bit...but hard work and determination resulted in her current form!"

"Huh, well, I guess if that's how this world works..." Still, he wasn't keen on the idea of having others do his fighting for him. Mondo dismissed that in favor of studying Ishimaru's creatures. The first one was rather impressive, but it was the second that earned a small noise of surprise.

"Whoa, no way, is that like, the Loch Ness Monster or something? What the fuck is that thing?" Despite the words, Mondo looked rather excited. "There are creatures like that here? And you can just train them and capture them and all? That's awesome!"

Ishimaru rolled his eyes a bit at the Loch Ness Monster assertion. "It's more likely based on the myth of the Dragon Gate - it evolved from what this world would equate with a carp."

At least he managed to refrain from flat-out calling Mondo stupid this time around; there was no point in directly insulting his aniki, after all. "But yes, there are creatures like this all over this world; it's our responsibility to capture them and train them!"

Mondo almost asked what the myth of the Dragon Gate was, then he decided that he really didn't want to know. Ishimaru would probably go on about it for a godawful amount of time, and quite frankly, Mondo didn't care.

"How are you supposed to capture and train all of them? I mean, are they like fish, and they're everywhere? Or are they like... I dunno, an endangered animal? Is that why we're supposed to catch them? To keep them safe? And just how many of these things are there?"

More eyerolling; as much as Ishimaru loved and tolerated his brother, he couldn't exactly deny that he was a bit...dense at times.

"I don't think we're supposed to catch and train literally all of them, because I believe there are hundreds! As for why we do it...!"

...well...

"...it's clearly because..."

...because...

"...well...!"

...huh.

"Outside of our job, I can't say that I'm entirely sure what the point is."

"Oh." Well then he shouldn't have said that they were supposed to catch and train all of them!

But Ishimaru's uncertainty earned a laugh, and Mondo once again moved to slap his aniki on the back. "Hey, I'm sure you'll figure out what the point is eventually! So, tell me more about our 'job' here."

Oh, come on, everyone keeps insisting that we need to catch all of them for some reason...!

However, he seemed to recover quickly enough from that stumble, the usual confidence finding its way back into his tone quickly enough. "It's like I told you - training those creatures is how we prove ourselves. The more of them you have, and the more powerful they are, the more power you have among the others. Our job here is to ensure that those we work for are the most powerful in the region. Do you understand?"

"Yeah, I got that. But what about our superiors? What do they want with the region? I mean, since you're working for them, they can't be evil or anything, but I dunno, I don't really work well when I'm given orders."

"They believe they've found a way to leave this place. A machine of some sort, that controls who's brought here and who is permitted to return to their own worlds. That's what they want, and it's what I want as well. However, we haven't been able to locate it just yet. That's as much as I know about it right now."

Edited 2013-03-20 19:41 (UTC)

"Ah, so that's how you plan on bringing everyone here!" Mondo said, slamming a fist into the palm of his hand. "I get it! So you're working with them to get at the machine!"

Clearly, the excitement was contagious. "Exactly my plan, yes! I've been promised a chance to save the others; I intend to remain in their good graces well enough to accomplish this!"

"Sounds great! I'll do what I can to help, but like I said, I'm not all that great at taking orders, but if it's for everyone else...!"

LOCKED TO ardent

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