Jason had heard his dad complain about Eurithos before. There were always creatures that escaped the Hunting Grounds either through faulty surveillance or broken equipment. Normally, those monsters didn't pose a grave threat to people. However, there were always those creatures who thrived in ecosystems like a City Pillar.
And from his dad's complaints, an Eurithos was one such beast.
"Are you sure its a Eurithos?" Jason asked, crouching down to look at the ratboy who looked like Callisto.
"That's what I said, yeah."
"Who cares whatever the hell it is!" Cecilia said as she stomped over to Elliot, glaring at him. "What's wrong with Callisto?! Why are you messing with him?!"
Jason patted the redhead's shoulder. "Cecilia, calm down. If this is actually an Eurithos–"
"I would never lie about something so dangerous!"
"If it is, then we need to get rid of it. I haven't heard good things about them."
"But… what about Callisto?" Cecilia asked, gesturing to the still struggling ratboy. "That's obviously not a normal Abyss mutation."
"The Eurithos did it." Elliot said.
"Yer explanation's shit!"
"Is it reversible?" Jason asked.
Elliot's slight pause did not assuage Jason's worries. "You work for Cloudstrider Industries, right? They have a hold on the more expensive medical services; can you see if they have Eurithos quarantine procedures?"
So he was not sure either, Jason surmised. Cecilia didn't seem to notice that as she took out her Holo to call someone. The teen heard Luciano's voice on the other end before the girl started to belt out their situation.
Seeing that his probable handler was preoccupied, Jason turned back to Elliot.
He had heard about the heir of Tower corporation being his age, but he was not convinced Elliot was a teenager. Elliot was built like some kind of beast. Jason had heard of ape-like monsters who grew up to fifteen feet tall and were covered in thick, corded muscles, and he could only relate Elliot to such a beast. Even his hands and feet were similar inhuman sizes. The single foot Elliot used to pin down the changed Callisto was large enough to cover the back of the smaller ratboy.
As he got closer, Jason had to crane his neck to look up at the other teen. Elliot's dark eyes and shock of short cropped, blue hair were the only things that let Jason know the guy was still a human.
"I have some questions." Jason whispered, leaning closer to Elliot.
"As do I. For one, since when do corporate Delvers work alongside gangs?"
"That so? I didn't know she was in a gang." Jason lied, wondering if Elliot was just ignorant or joking. He paid close attention to the other teen's reaction.
"She's… she's a known Mafia Hunting Hound." Elliot said carefully. "Did you really not know?"
His reaction told Jason all he wanted to know. To him, Elliot was just a spoiled heir who was sheltered from the darker aspects of Delver corporations. Inwardly, Jason released an aggrieved sigh.
"Sorry you had to hear it from me." Elliot said, reaching over with a palm the size of Jason's head to pat him on the shoulder.
"Don't worry about that. I want to know what you are doing here? This is not even your City Pillar; there's no need to worry about the normal people here."
"No need to worry about…" Elliot echoed in a murmur, lips pulling into a deep frown. He narrowed his eyes on Jason. "Is this the same mentality corporate Delvers in this City Pillar hold? I now see why my father put me in charge of our corporation's merger into this… place."
"So, you're here for some cog merger, then what are you even doing–"
"I am here for them!" Elliot yelled, pointing down at the struggling Callisto at his feet. "I am here for those 'normal people' you seem to look down on. This City Pillar is rotten from all the gangs, and I see their presence has done its due to its Delvers as well. How can you even call yourself a Delver if you can't even use your abilities for those who look up to you?"
"Oh?" Jason frowned, growing annoyed at how Elliot started to lecture him. He knew he wasn't one to do good deeds, but he didn't enjoy how Elliot tried to force his ideals on him like he knew Jason's situation. "I don't know how they do it in your fancy palace, but people here don't look at Delvers as their saviors. Have you taken a look around in the Blues? Where you're either in a gang or a cog; doesn't matter to the normal humans, since either choice is the same to them."
Elliot shook his head. "Of course, it would be that way. There's too many gangs in this City Pillar, so it must be a strain on resources for the three corporations running it. They'll give ground, leading to a situation where the gangs control the lower Blues. With them–" the burly teen paused, crossed his arms, and glared at Jason. "Nevermind that. I had hoped I could see better from someone from Cloudstrider Industries, but you disappoint me."
"At least I'm not some delusional–"
"Jason! Lucio says we need to handle the Eurithos situation immediately!" Cecilia cut in, holding his Holo up to his face. A holographic image of Luciano hovered over her wrist.
"Brat, ignore the big idiot for a moment."
Elliot scoffed but kept quiet when he saw Luciano.
Jason pursed his lips. He knew the blue-haired teen didn't know his circumstances, but that didn't mean he was fine with getting berated by someone deluded by an idea of justice. Swallowing back the insult he wanted to levy at Elliot, the teen turned to the hologram of Luciano.
"I hope you've been paying attention to your lectures, since you're going to need them. And try to be careful with Eurithos' abilities. Their element is Earth, so Cici's element only supports their rudimentary mana domain."
"So, its a rescue mission now?" Jason asked.
"More like find and kill it with fire." Luciano said, shrugging. "Eurithos are creatures that infest City Pillars, and the fact that one went unnoticed till it started to meld with people is already something we can't ignore."
"Meld?" Jason asked, looking at the humanoid rat below Elliot.
"Probably what you're thinking." Luciano nodded. "Eurithos are weak physically, so they developed ways to lure and control other creatures. Has to do with some kind of chemical they produce and spread through smoke, so if you see any of that, don't breathe. Normally, this means you'll be able to find it easily."
"But since it wasn't found out till now…" Jason finished, growing pensive. He shook off his apprehension and addressed Luciano again, "So, their control is the meld?"
"I'm getting to that, brat. Don't rush me. The meld has to do with the Khran Runes engraved on the Eurithos' body. Its one of the reasons why the Eurithos is one of the more dangerous creatures that can infest a floor of a City Pillar, because the last time some idiot left one go unchecked it led to the species being nicknamed Chimera Creators as well as a quarantine of an entire City Pillar."
Jason frowned. "This seems… bigger than I thought."
"Not really. It just has the potential to be that big. Meaning, I need you to handle it before it gets to that point while I go on a smoke break."
"Hey, wait!"
"Ta ta, brat, Cici."
"Bye, bye!" Cecilia said, ending the call. Jason could only glare at her Holo to try and mentally attack Luciano from a distance.
"It seems we must now put aside our differences and team up to save the good people of this City Pillar." Elliot said in the silence. He stuck out a large palm in front of Jason's face. "I will… momentarily overlook your tryst with the gangs as I also require assistance. According to the Hound Trainer, Eurithos are aligned to earth, and since I am water, they restrain me."
"A tryst…" Cecilia cupped her cheeks with her hands, whispering to herself.
Jason immediately smacked the crazy woman. "No, you know its not like that."
He then turned to Elliot, crossing his arms over his chest. Jason was suspicious of people after his forced conscription, but he knew that, unless he was an insane actor, Elliot was not related to the Eurithos at all. The burly teen wanted exactly what he said he did.
Even if he wanted to resist Elliot's inclusion, Jason couldn't turn down someone who wanted to help for free. With a sigh, Jason finally shook Elliot's hand.
"Alright, fine. I'll momentarily overlook how dumb you are." Jason said, moving on as Elliot processed what had been said. "Do you have any idea on how to find this thing?"
"Ya don't?" Cecilia asked, walking over to the duo and crouching down to look at the changed Callisto. She hesitated to touch the boy, and just stared into his completely-purple eyes. "... he looks drugged."
"Hm?" Jason frowned. "Chemicals… drugged…" An image of the leader of the Zoo taming a Drakken flashed through his mind. "The Eurithos builds up a dependance on its chemical, using that to influence them."
Elliot grunted. "Then can we use this one to track down the Eurithos?"
"Its worth a shot." Jason agreed.
With a rudimentary plan, Elliot stopped suppressing the changed Callisto. The ratboy then sprang to its feet, crouching down and using its claws to clamber up the sides of the nearby buildings. Jason and the rest took off after Callisto, and the brown-haired teen made sure to not be too close to the boy. They ran far enough behind that only Jason's nose could pick up on the trail.
However, it didn't take long before Jason paused, frowning as he came to a stop.
"Somethin' wrong?" Cecilia asked. "Ya need to hurry up! Callisto is getting away!"
"No, no I have an idea where he's going anyways."
Elliot's chest rumbled with a grunt in agreement. They had passed by plenty of alleys and intersections, but Jason found that, as they seemed to close in on their destination, there were less and less people. Streets and alleys devoid of anyone.
Jason turned his head up and sniffed the air a couple times. There were a multitude of different scents, which meant there should've been more people ambling about. However, a look upwards to the tops of the housing blocks around them told Jason a different story.
Claw marks. So many that there were more marks than paint on the metal.
"So many innocents…" Elliot whispered.
"All these families…" Cecilia also shared in the horror.
Jason's hands balled into fists as he watched on. He tried to rationalize that this was a mission. That the teen had no connection with these families, and on top of this mission, Jason had his own family to worry about. However, Jason couldn't help but put his own family into the same situation.
After all, he could never ignore the problems in front of his face.
After a moment to regain himself, Jason calmed down, but deep in his stomach a hot emotion started to burn. He focused on the scene again, analyzing the details to distract himself.
As he looked over the surrounding housing blocks, Jason found that many of the marks had a clear direction of movement. Back and forth, like ants going to and from a nest. He followed the signs, growing pensive as he realized how many people were wrapped up in this.
"We'll stop here." Jason said as they rounded another corner. No one challenged his words as they took in what lay in front of them.
A pillar of purple smoke spilled from somewhere above, forming a silent waterfall. The smoke crashed down onto the floor and spread out along the ground like water. Broken lights flickered through the smoke, and Jason could see shadows moving within the clouds that hung around the ground.
Jason frowned as he studied the purple smoke. The resemblance was clear as day, and he knew that Mikey had subverted the other three gang's perception of him. This action certainly wasn't something minor. However, the teen couldn't dwell on that more as he needed to solve the situation in front of him.
"I can scout out a way through." Elliot spoke up in a whisper.
Jason's gaze roved over the giant of a teenager. He didn't say anything, but his unimpressed face said enough.
"It is my Innate talent." Elliot said. "I am able to take on the traits of up to ten monsters I have slain in combat. One of those includes a Wraithrer."
"Shouldn't ya keep yer info to yerself? Isn't that Delver 101?" Cecilia asked.
Elliot scoffed. "Only weak Delvers who need subversion do things like that. The truly strong do not care."
"Oh!" Cecilia clapped, leaning over to Jason and saying, "I think he's an idiot."
Jason chuckled, but he jerked his head over to the pillar of purple smoke. "I think our target is up there." he narrowed his eyes. "Those are –if I'm not mistaken– openings for the atmospheric stabilizers. I might be able to handle the smoke, but it will take a moment to… build up a resistance."
"My Delver suit can filter air for me." Elliot said.
Cecilia raised her hand. "I can blow things up!"
"Any ideas coming to mind?" Jason asked, ignoring the redhead.
"I think scouting should be a priority. My father said that many expeditions are ninety percent information gathering, nine percent moving, and only one percent combat. I will be able to move the easiest without everyone else, and," Elliot turned to Cecilia. "I am guessing your bombs can't be held on your person. You use the burst Rune?"
"Yup!"
Elliot nodded and then sat down. He interlocked his fingers and cupped his hands– the release hand sign for the water element. "Okay, let me recharge my suit, and I will try to be back within a couple minutes. Make as many bombs as you can. However, should I return as a drone or not come back within the time limit, I wish for you two to attack and blow up its home."
"How chivalrous…" Jason said, rolling his eyes. "We can't kill an heir of a corporation here. You'd be doing more harm if you die."
"Then… I will endeavor to return."
"Woo!" Cecilia cheered, eliciting a flinch from Jason and Elliot at how loud she was. The girl cowed as the two stared at her. "Woo… Team Kill Shit."
"We're not a team." Jason denied.
Elliot blushed. "I had always wanted to form a team of peacekeepers…"
"Don't encourage her."
"Team Killer Peacekeepers?" Cecilia asked, putting her hand out.
Elliot –for some reason Jason wouldn't understand– had put away his distaste for Cecilia's loyalties and placed his hand on top of hers. "Can we remove the 'killer'?"
"Sure!"
Jason looked between the two of them. Cecilia's shoulder bounced against his side multiple times. Elliot seemed torn between a glare and a pleading stare. The brown-haired teen sighed, placing his hand with theirs.
"...woo."
Like that, the three had formed a team –not like they weren't already working together– to combat the Eurithos. Jason wondered if he should've taken up Balakrishna's offer to spare him of his future troubles.