"The croc dude is here?" a laid-back voice replied from down the. A slim yet fit young man left the corridor and entered the lobby. He walked past Itzel and Arva without looking at them and headed straight for Gurk. He wore the same attire that he had in all of his Broadcasts; loose orange pants with black stripes. Socks that exposed his ankle and toes. A pair of cloth cuffs around his wrists. The rest of his body was bare. His light bronze skin almost glistened from the sunlight that poured through the window. 

"Meet Gurk!" Maluk said with a booming voice. He stepped to the side, lowering one hand to introduce the crocodile. Gurk's entire body shook from excitement. His yellow eyes grew in size as he watched Siergi approach. He formed a long smile as he stretched out one open palm. 

"'Sup man?" Siergi asked. Clasping Gurk's palm with both hands, Siergi gave him a cordial shake.

"Not much,” Gurk replied.

"Hey, that's a whole lot better than nothing!" he chuckled. "I appreciate ya showing up to my Broadcast. Been kinda dry since all those Exterminators went missing."

"Yeah."

Arva slid next to both men. "Hey Siergi! I got an idea!" She smiled and gave him a wink of her eye.

"Lay it on me," he said, still shaking Gurk's hand. 

"When was the last time we had a good, old fashioned Team Battle?"

"A Team Battle?" Siergi looked up and tapped his chin. "Might have been months. Maybe even a year."

"Exactly!" Arva said, grinning from ear to ear. "This crazy idea just dawned on me. Did you know that Gurk's friends are fighters too?"

Siergi's eyes looked at Janus first. Janus' attention shifted from Gurk then to Itzel, hoping that he'd receive some kind of response. There was only silence.

"That's cool that you've got friends into Rumble Circuit, big guy!” Siergi said. “That reminds—"

"Ahem!" Itzel joined in on the conversation, keeping her chilling leer on Siergi. "What's with all of this talk about a Team Battle?"

"Uh… I don't know," Siergi replied, shrugging his shoulders. "Arva brought the idea up."

"Wouldn't it be a nice change of pace?" Arva asked both Itzel and Siergi. "It's always a one-on-one challenge on your Broadcast, Siergi. How about something a bit different? Try to shake it up for all the fans."

"I dunno..." Siergi placed a hand on the back of his neck. "Team Battles don't really carry the same weight as normal challenges."

"That's because there's fewer teams out there competing!" Arva replied nervously. "So the competition isn't as fierce at mid-levels. But this isn't about gaining ranking, right? It's about putting a good show for the fans!"

"Yeah, that's true." Siergi stretched an arm high above his head while twisting his waist to loosen up his muscles. After letting out a yawn, he looked at his partner. "I'm down for whatever."

"Hey Gurk!" Arva said as she faced the crocodile. "What do you think about a Team Battle for the upcoming Broadcast?"

"Sounds fun."

Arva pointed towards Gurk, then Janus and finally at Itzel. As she did, she mouthed out "One, two, three," as her pointer finger went across each person. "Well, what do you know?" she said with fabricated surprise. "Looks like you have the perfect number of people to form a team!" She clapped her hands and began to move towards the corridor that went into the main section of the building. "I'll go ahead and start setting things up so we can get this Broadcast started."

"Hold up, Arva!" Itzel said. 

"Oh great!" Maluk moaned, his eyes ready to go inside his head. "What is it this time?"

Itzel stood by Janus' side, pointing at him with her thumb. "This guy doesn't even have a full set of Techniques! One Special and a Signature! You think that's fair?"

Siergi and his crew all stared at Janus. Janus tugged on his collar when all of the attention shifted towards him. "You're registered for Rumble Circuit but you only got two moves?" Siergi said, keeping on hand resting on his hip. One of his eyebrows was raised higher than the other as he pointed towards Janus. 

"Someone recommended it to me. It's more of a pastime, hobby kind of thing for me. Honestly."

"Man isn't even ranked!" Maluk said. "I mean you no offense, but you really think this guy can hold his own against someone that's experienced like us?" He then took hold of Janus' right arm. Maluk's entire palm completely engulfed the circumference of Janus' forearm. He then lifted the limb, showing it off to everyone in the room. "Just look at him! I'm sure even his standard attacks are sloppy. This man isn't built to fight!"

"Thanks, Maluk," Janus replied in a low tone.

"Hey!" Itzel pried the big man's hand off of Janus' arm. "You don't know what he's been through! Janus can fend for himself!"

"Ranked Challenges are an entirely different matter from killing Essencima!" Maluk snapped back. 

"You don't have to tell me that! I've been doing both for years. I think this guy has what it takes to put up a fight. Even with the likes of you and Arva."

"Such a sudden change in tone! Seconds ago you were saying that having him on your team wasn’t fair!"

“It’s not!” Itzel said with some hesitation. “But no way Janus is just going to let you talk about him like that without you backing up claims!” She then shifted her gaze towards him. “Isn’t that right, Janus?”

"I'm just here to support my good friend Gurk..." he replied.

"See? He doesn't even want to fight!" Maluk scoffed. "You don't even have enough members for a Team Battle!"

Itzel clenched a fist and let it dangle by her side. "Don't worry! Even if Janus doesn't want to, I know someone that might be able to help us out!"

Janus placed his hand on Itzel's shoulder as he pulled her in for a whisper. With their backs to Siergi and the others, Janus put his hand in front of his mouth as he began to whisper. "Are you talking about who I think you're talking about?"

Itzel nodded. "Oh yeah."

"You're willing to be on a team with Enidri?" Janus asked with surprise. 

"I'm willing to put up with her if it means I get a chance to put these three in their place!"

"Tell you what. If Enidri doesn't want to do it, I'll be your Plan B."

"But you've never even fought in Ranked Challenge," Itzel said quietly. "Those three aren't top fighters, but they're definitely a cut above your typical wannabe."

"I've got to start somewhere."

Itzel sighed. "Okay Janus. Let's just hope Enidri is able to come over and help out." Itzel paused, blinking twice as she stared ahead at nothing in particular. "Wow. I can't believe I just said that." After coming back to reality, Itzel turned back around to look at Gurk and Siergi and his crew. "I've got a call to make," she said to everyone. "Just give me a couple minutes. That is, if it's alright with you, of course," Itzel continued, her eyes looking towards Siergi. "I know you're a busy man and just how valuable your time is."

"I'm fine with whatever," Siergi replied.

"Good. I'll be right back." Itzel moved towards a secluded corner of the room with Janus following right behind her.