| Rio POV |
I am sulking.
Sulking like a dramatic anime protagonist who just got caught doing unspeakable things with a sacred artifact.
Because technically... I did.
I'm curled up in the middle of Sada's lab, surrounded by scanners that are screaming in binary and floating holo-charts that look like they're trying to self-destruct out of sheer stress. Every monitor is flashing red. The lights are flickering. One of the diagrams is just showing a middle finger.
And I'm the reason.
"Okay," May says, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Okay. What the hell was that?!"
"Performance art?" I offer weakly.
She glares.
Kirlia floats beside her, arms crossed. Her horn is glowing faintly — probably ready to zap me again.
"You stood in the middle of the room, yelled some cryptic chant, slammed your paws together, and everything exploded!" May shouts. "Why?!"
I shrug from my sulk-pile. "Felt right in the moment?"
ZAP.
"OW! I didn't even do anything this time!"
"That's why I zapped you," Kirlia replies sweetly.
Professor Sada is in the background silently taking notes like she just watched an ancient prophecy come true.
Which, to be fair, she might have.
May gestures wildly. "You glowed. You pinked. The aura sensors overloaded. The glass cracked. The temperature dropped five degrees. You broke a scanner. One of them's still melting!"
I glance sideways.
Yup. That one's dripping.
My bad.
Sada finally speaks, her voice calm. "That move… whatever it was… it wasn't Aura. Or some sort of Evolution. Or anything we've catalogued. Do you have any idea what you were tapping into?"
I open my mouth.
Pause.
Close it again.
Because nope, not explaining the system. Or Sukuna. Or the ghost hand signs. Or the eldritch general I almost summoned from the shadow realm.
"Just a… spontaneous technique?" I try.
Kirlia narrows her eyes.
May points a finger. "No more chanting unless supervised."
Sada's stylus stops. "Actually, I'd like to see what happens if he finishes the chant."
"Absolutely not!" May and Kirlia shout at the same time.
I slump lower into the floor.
Honestly? I don't even know what would've happened if I finished the chant.
I doubt I could actually beat Mahoraga.
Sure, I've fought monsters, demigods, and a blender-happy May, but that? That's a whole different level of "you die now."
Fortunately, the system interrupted before I could summon anything. Probably out of self-preservation.
Guess I'll start smaller.
The two doggos, maybe?
Yeah. Baby steps.
Before I try pulling out Divine General Bring-Your-Own-Funeral.
[New Sub-Quest Unlocked: Master of Shadows (Stage 1)]
Objective:
Manifest and tame the first two Shikigami.
Optional Objective:
Do it without exploding the lab again.
Rewards:
+2 IV Points+1 Summoning Slot+???
I peek up at the group.
Kirlia is still watching me like I'm a glitch in her favorite dating sim.
May is threatening the nearest scanner with a rock.
And Sada's smiling like she just discovered a new species of chaos.
"Can I have a corner to practice in?"
"No," says May.
"I'll behave."
"You never behave."
Sada hums. "Just don't summon any legendary or above Pokémon, and I'll allow it. Purely in the name of science."
"YES!"
"Star, zap him if he starts glowing again," May mutters.
ZAP.
"Preemptively?!"
ZAP.
"I DIDN?T EVEN DO ANYTHING THAT TIME!"
"Alright now, you can use the testing field behind my lab, wait for me to get some tools to gather more data."
Sada, perhaps I treated you too harshly. You are an angel. A mad, time-fracturing angel of science, but still.
She turns on her heel and walks off, no doubt to grab some glorified torture tools labeled "calibration equipment."
I don't care. I've been given a sanctioned playground. I'm already halfway out the door, snacks in mouth and a skip in my step.
Behind me:
"You're not allowed to chant unsupervised!""Wait, what do you mean 'legendary or above'?!""Where's he going? STOP HIM—"
Too late. I'm already outside.
The testing field is… huge. Reinforced pillars, floating cameras, that weird smell of ozone and regrets — just like home.
Perfect for my purposes.
I crack my knuckles. Focus my cursed energy.
No special summoning ritual this time, it seems the only one I needed the hand signs for was Big Raga, probably as a safety feature so that some idiot doesn't accidentally kill themselves *COUGHT COUGH*
I let my cursed energy flow down my body as it connects to my shade, eyes widening as I feel the sudden endless emptiness connected to me, had I not been informed, I would have thought I got Gojo's Infinity.
But unfortunately not, this is potential man's innate technique through and through, I focus back on my first actual successful summoning, hopefully... And let the shadows guide me.
Just instinct.
Just shadow.
[Initiating Summon: Divine Dog – White]
The air distorts. Smoke seeps out from a point in space, spiraling into shape — and then, there it is.
Divine Dog — White.
Massive, spectral, and already staring at me with faintly glowing eyes and a wagging tail that probably counts as a blunt-force weapon.
[Initiating Summon: Divine Dog – Black]
Another ripple. Another form takes shape beside the first — darker, sleeker, just as dangerous.
Divine Dog — Black.
The two of them glance at each other, then at me, then flop down like guard dogs who know they own the yard.
"Hah… I am a summoner now," I grin, hands on my hips. "Star eat your heart out—"
ZAP.
"GAH! HOW DID YOU GET OUT HERE SO FAST?!"
Kirlia floats in silently from the side like a pink grim reaper. "You started glowing again. And I can teleport."
"I always glow!"
"You know what I mean."
The two Divine Dogs sit quietly, watching our argument unfold like it's dinner theatre.
| Back inside the lab |
Somewhere behind the reinforced glass…
Sada adjusts her black tinted glasses.
"…Those are not standard Pokémon."
Birch peers into the screen. "Did that one just phase through a wall to chase its tail?"
Rowan mutters something about "exponential summoning theory" and starts scribbling equations in the air with his stylus.
Oak sips his coffee. "It's official. He's a menace. But a scientifically invaluable menace."
Back in the field, Rio strikes a pose.
"Alright! Next step—naming them!"
"Please don't," May says.
"I'm gonna call the black one 'Bitey.'"
ZAP.
"OW! What was that for?!"
Kirlia crosses her arms. "We have naming conventions."
(To be continued)
Null got some new friends! Yay!
Any name suggestions? I thought of something basic like Hati and Skoll, but I would appreciate more ideas!
MC: Bitey and Lickey!
Do you want me to get you a shock collar? No? Then behave.