[center][h2]One Week Prior, Undisclosed Building, Kanto Region[/h2][/center]
[color=lightblue]"Alright, so that's 30,000 for the Arbok, and another 20,000 for a complete Kanto badge set..."[/color] Nicolas said, jotting down some notes onto a tablet. He stood in a dimly-lit warehouse with another man, a pokemon trainer Nicolas had assumed, based on the pokeball belt, and the large backpack with assorted items hanging out of it. 

Nicolas' parter, an Arcanine named Bandit, sat on his haunches nearby, making the customer visibly nervous. The man glanced at the canine pokemon, which returned his look with a menacing, fang-filled grin. The man turned back quickly to Nicolas and stammered, finally uttering out "W-We agreed o-on t-thirty th-housand for th-the whole t-thing...", wringing his hands in nervousness. Bandit snarled at the man, getting up from his sitting position, until Nicolas held up a hand saying [color=lightblue]"Heel, Bandit."[/color]

He turned back to face the customer and said [color=lightblue]"There were some...complications. Someone tipped off the Rangers about illicit badgemaking, and nearly shut down the whole operation...You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?"[/color] He gave the man a sinister look, lowering his sunglasses so that the man got a good, long look at his eyes, a hardened steel grey. The man stammered again, readjusting his clothes and saying "N-No si-!"

[h3][i]FWOOSH! CLAAAAAAANG![/i][/h3]

A small metal box came clattering to the ground from under the man's shirt. A thin black cord traced upwards into the man's garment, and Nicolas suddenly grew pale. [color=lightblue]"He's wearing a wire! Bandit, we gotta get out of here!"[/color] he called, quickly rushing over to Bandit and hopping onto his back. As he did so, various windows and doors in the warehouse shattered as Rangers came rushing in alongside their parters. Nicolas ordered Bandit to run, drawing a small pistol hidden in his large overcoat.

Bandit quickly began rushing towards the exit, using the move Double Team to create a scattered series of afterimages, which all darted off in different directions. A few were instantly dissipated by Thunderbolts, Water Guns, and various other moves the Rangers used to try and stop the duo. Nicolas fired off a few shots from his weapon, not bothering to look to see if they hit their mark, and soon the two were out of the warehouse, and in the night air.

[color=lightblue]"To the docks Bandit, quick! Blaze has the boat waiting at dock 5!"[/color] Nicolas said to Bandit, who quickly began running through Fuchsia City towards the harbor, weaving and bobbing through buildings to aide in their escape from the authorities. Eventually they would reach the dock, with no sign of any Rangers or police nearby.

Nicolas hopped off of Bandit and let out a sigh of relief, patting Bandit's side, who gave a content grumble. [color=lightblue]"Alright, Bandit, time for you to go in your pokeball. The boat ain't big enough for you, and the police will be looking for an Arcanine."[/color] Bandit gave a firm nod and sat back on his hind legs as Nicolas took the pokeball from his belt, calling him back.

"So are ya gonna get on the boat? Or just stand around?" Blaze called from a small motorboat sitting next to the pier, a rope tying it to the walkway. Nicolas nodded and hopped down onto the watercraft, untying the rope from the pier, and Blaze set it off into the ocean. "Did ya get the cash?" Blaze asked, and Nicolas shook his head, looking out towards the city. [color=lightblue]"No, guy was wearing a wire. Probably the one who tipped off the police in the first place. We won't be able to operate in Kanto for a while. We'll wanna head off to another region for a month or two, let things cool down here."[/color] Nicolas said, and Blaze sighed. 

"Well, I've heard that Hoenn is a great spot right now. Just about all their items go through the Fairfax family, so supply chains are kinda rigged. We find a way to import product, we could probably make some big money selling supply in the cities there. I got your stuff all packed here in the boat. We make a short trip to Cinnabar, get a bigger craft I've got stored there, and we can arrive in about a week or so." Blaze said, guiding the boat towards Cinnabar Island. Nicolas nodded, saying [color=lightblue]"That sounds good. Let's get to Cinnabar, and I'll start calling up my Hoenn contacts, let them know I'm coming in. Got a new I.D. I've been wanting to try out too."[/color]
[hr][center][h2]Current Day, Slateport City Docks, Hoenn Region[/h2][/center]
Nicolas stepped onto the docks from the small yacht and let out a relaxed sigh. A new city, a new name, and new deals to make. He walked from the pier onto the concrete of the city streets, and reached for his belt. Calling out Bandit from his pokeball, Nicolas grinned and said [color=lightblue]"Well, we're here, Bandit. Why don't we head into the city, get ourselves acquainted with the place, then we'll meet up with our friend."[/color]

After a day in the city, Bandit and Nicolas went to get to work. It was getting late, and a storm that had been brewing for much of the day had fully hit, though it seemed to be drifting northward, and Nicolas guessed it was worse there. Still, it was enough for Bandit to choose to return to his pokeball rather than walk around in it. Nicolas obliged him, and eventually found the meeting point for their contact himself.

Rapping his fist sharply on the alleyway door of a seemingly abandoned office. A small slot in the door slid open, revealing a pair of beady eyes, and a sharp voiced that rasped out "You Johnny?" Nicolas held up a small business card, which identified him as one Johnny Ghastly, professional PokeMarketer. The man peering out from behind the door said "Good, good. Come in, quickly!" and slid back the slot cover. A series of progressively more complex-sounding locks were undone, one by one, from behind the door, before it swung open, and Nicolas stepped inside.

The man grinned, darting into a back room, before rushing out with a large glove-like device in his hands. "You'll want this. It's a repurposed Trainer Gauntlet a client of mine...acquired. It's linked to our own private digital transfer system, so no matter where you are on Hoenn, you just have to place in an order, and my client send the items straight to you." Nicolas took the device from the man and slid it on, under his coat sleeve. [color=lightblue]"This will definitely come in handy. Do I owe you anything for it?"[/color] Nicolas asked, and the man nodded slightly. "We want 20% of all final profits." He wheezed, and Nicolas nodded. [color=lightblue]"That can be arranged."[/color] He said, offering his hand to the man, who shook it gratefully.

Stepping back out into the rainy evening, Nicolas looked at the modified Trainer Gauntlet on his left arm. He powered the device on, and set about registering it to his current identity, Johnny Ghastly. Once that was complete, he set off into the city of Slateport, finding and introducing himself to people in need of product, and making deals.