Pokémon BW: Rise of Clarity (book 3 of the HBoD series)

Chapter 28: Relieving That Anger

I slowed, letting Alex and Robert pull ahead as I stared down at my beeping Xtransceiver. The ID read unknown caller. Tempted to ignore it, I almost pressed the cancel button. But an odd feeling struck me and I found myself pressing the answer button. The secondary screen slid out, showing my face. But the main screen was blank except for the words "No Video".

"Hello?" I voiced cautiously.

"Zeno," spoke a feminine voice.

I felt my blood run cold. I instantly turned a full circle, glancing around the desert road. 

"Relax, I'm not there. Neither are the other two."

"You mean your assassin buddies," I said into the mic. "Spicy and Sage."

"You and your friends have been causing a lot of trouble for our employer," she went on. "I've already went out of my way to warn your friend Robert what would happen if you messed with the wrong people. It seems that did nothing to stop your so called heroic actions."

"Shut up," I spat. "As if we could just stand aside as we watch a crime being committed in front of us. As if we could just watch if people were in danger!"

"You still don't grasp the situation you're in do you?" She said. "We have no need to kill you. But if you keep getting in the way, our orders might just change."

"Why in the hell are you even warning us!?" I said through barely controlled anger. "You're assassins for hire. When did you care about other peoples' lives!?"

"Hey, Zeno?" Alex called from ahead, confusion in her voice.

The call disconnected as both of my friends approached.

"Zeno?" Alex asked again. "What are you doing?"

I slid the screen back into the Xtransceiver and turned it off. 

"What was it?" Alex sounded concerned. 

Tightening my expression, I moved past her and Robert. "Nothing. C'mon, we need to get to Nimbasa." I tried to ignore their looks on my back, trying not to think about the lingering threats left behind by one of the three Executioners.

...

The vibe coming off of Nimbasa City was a sharp contrast to how I was feeling. The streets were filled with people cheerfully walking about with their Pokemon and aimlessly chatting. Most of them seemed to be heading East down the street towards what looked like a carnival was going on. 

"With a population surprisingly bigger than Castelia City, Nimbasa serves as the heart of leisure and entertainment for Unova," Robert said as they began walking down the busy street. "The amusement park is open every day all year long. And that's not to mention all the sporting events."

"Sports?" Alex asked. "You don't mean Pokemon battles?"

"Nope," Robert shook his head. "Good ol' human v human sports. We got basketball and tennis that take place in the small court while baseball, soccer, and football occur in the big stadium. On the same avenue you can find the Musical Theater, but I was never one for theater."

Alex snorted. "I think you're selling yourself short, but whatever. Right Zeno?" She paused, glancing back at me. "Zeno?"

I shrugged. "Sure."

Alex sigh in irritation and went on ahead towards the Pokemon Center where we were planning to stay. Robert rubbed the back of his head. "You know, you're hiding something from us again."

I glared at him.

He rolled his eyes. "C'mon, you'll have to do better than that. Look, Alex clearly hates it when you do this. Just, uh, when you feel better, tell us. We can pretty much guess what it might be about."