After his verbal skirmish with Kanna drew to a close, Z decided his baseline sanity required an immediate change of scenery. He detached himself from the group to scout the primary exhibition layout.
As he navigated the dense perimeter of the museum, a familiar physical profile caught his eye. Striding through the central corridor with a heavily composed gait was a young man with silver hair, a sleek Azumarill marching faithfully at his heels. They were cutting directly through the civilian foot traffic toward the main galleries.
*Wait a minute... is that Raizer?* Z thought, his internal cognitive matrix instantly clicking.
Without a second's hesitation, Z broke into a rapid jog, deftly twisting through the bottleneck of incoming tourists until he crossed the primary threshold into the inner museum complex. He halted by a marble pillar, scanning the crowded multi-level architecture.
"Where did his trajectory shift? He should have anchored right around this coordinate," Z muttered, rubbing his temples as a wave of chronic exhaustion threatened to pull his eyelids down.
*Alright, let's run a practical shortcut. He operates on a Priest lineage, which means his spiritual resonance is incredibly loud.*
Z closed his eyes, filtering out the ambient noise and civilian chatter to lock onto Raizer's unique spiritual footprint. A sharp, pristine aura pinged his sensory grid.
*He's already bypassed the first tier. He's on the second floor, ascending toward the third.*
Shaking off his persistent drowsiness, Z forced his focus back to maximum output and followed the tracking vector. He darted through the tightly packed crowds, executing precise spatial corrections to ensure he didn't collide with the elite art patrons. Finally, looking up the grand central stairwell, he spotted the familiar silver hair moving up the vectors to the third floor.
As if sensing the tracking line, Raizer paused on the landing, looking down over his shoulder. "So, your data files were correct—you actually deployed to this coordinate. I fully expected you to choose your standard hibernation cycle, Z."
Z dragged himself up the remaining steps, his posture dropping into a characteristically slumped stance. "If the operational parameters allowed for it, believe me, I'd be horizontal in a bed right now."
Raizer waited for Z to bridge the gap, extending his hand. The two young men exchanged a firm, structured handshake.
"It must be structurally draining, anchoring yourself to an academy division where the gender ratio is entirely skewed against you," Raizer remarked, a faint, knowing smirk playing on his lips as they broke contact.
"Don't call it a full division; the active roster is literally three people," Z groaned, crossing his arms defensively. "Our spatial allocation is so underfunded we're forced to share a physical clubroom with the Telepathy Division."
Raizer raised an eyebrow, his expression shifting into genuine surprise. "Fascinating. The public academy ledgers led me to believe that specific division faced total decommissioning due to acute membership deficits."
"The system doesn't execute a wipe that easily. Vera and Roxanne are still actively registered on the roster, so the infrastructure remains locked," Z explained.
"Ah, I see. Compelling tactical placement," Raizer murmured, resting his chin in his hand as his internal thoughts ran a separate script: *Two highly volatile, specialized clubs cohabitating a single room—the Supernatural Observation Division and the Telepathy Division. It seems his daily routine is structurally incapable of being relaxed.*
"What exactly does your standard labor allocation look like over there?" Raizer inquired.
Z let out a deeply weary sigh. "The usual. I am systematically utilized as Kanna's primary psychic guinea pig, forced to assist Eri with her structural art compositions or high-risk ritual invocations, and on the off-days, I'm drafted into handling logistics for Vera and Roxanne because of the shared spatial parameters."
Raizer offered a thoroughly amused smile, well aware that Z's predicament was entirely a byproduct of his own historical choices. "I explicitly advised you prior to enrollment: if the operational parameters were unappealing, you should have declined the draft. Yet you prioritized your childhood connection, and look at your current condition—you look like an entity that has completely bypassed the concept of human sleep."
"That isn't the root anomaly here," Z countered, his voice dropping into a more serious register.
Raizer's smile faltered slightly, replaced by confusion. Beside him, his Azumarill tilted its large ears forward, its sensory arrays picking up the shift in tone. "Then what is the core issue? Your physical energy depletion vectors have been exceptionally high over the last few cycles."
"I can't pinpoint the exact telemetry," Z admitted, his expression clouded. "Initially, everything adhered to baseline normalcy. But a few cycles ago, my processing system flagged a massive system error."
"Isolate the variable," Raizer commanded. "What do you mean?"
"It's structurally difficult to map into standard vocabulary," Z muttered, struggling to articulate the sensation. "Imagine an operational state where your system executes a sleep command, yet your conscious processors refuse to go offline."
"A paradoxical state," Raizer analyzed. "Your core consciousness remains fully active and consuming bandwidth during the rejuvenation cycle."
"Exactly. But the telemetry is skewed. An Esper's cognitive threshold shouldn't experience acute physical exhaustion from a standard sleep-wake discrepancy of that scale," Z noted.
"Have you deployed any counter-measures or diagnostic patches?" Raizer asked.
Z shrugged his shoulders helplessly. "Zero results. Eri and Kanna ran a preliminary sweep and classified the anomaly as a high-grade curse or an unidentified external corruption vector."
Raizer's gaze sharpened. Without warning, he reached out and pressed his index finger directly against the center of Z's forehead.
"Data invalid. There is no active curse signature in this matrix," Raizer stated flatly.
With a swift, fluid motion, he flicked Z's forehead with his finger. The localized spiritual impact rippled through Z's nervous system. Instantly, the heavy fog of exhaustion evaporated from Z's eyes, his vision snapping into absolute, crystal-clear focus as his dormant energy reserves flooded back online. Even his unruly ahoge snapped upright, standing at attention like a recalibrated antenna.
"Ow! That possessed an unnecessary amount of physical force!" Z complained, rubbing the reddened spot on his forehead, though his posture was noticeably re-energized.
Raizer kept his hand raised, his internal thoughts analyzing the diagnostic feedback: *Zero trace of a curse matrix within his spiritual channels. No active hexes, no lingering foreign talismans, and zero cursed attributes. So what is draining his system parameters?*
"Z, I require immediate clarification on a specific data point," Raizer said aloud.
"What is it?" Z grumbled, still massaging his forehead.
"Have you recently participated in any unsanctioned ritual formats?" Raizer questioned sharply.
Z paused, his eyes darting upward as he accessed his memory logs. "A ritual... right. Now that you bring it up, a specific script was executed recently."
"Define the ritual parameters," Raizer demanded.
"It was a specialized formula designed to construct an optimized, pleasant dream matrix," Z stated.
Raizer's mental processors immediately hit a wall of pure disbelief: *How does a formula optimized for pleasant dreams translate into an active sleep-deprivation anomaly? Did this idiot misread the runic syntax or write the magic upside down?*
Having easily intercepted Raizer's loud mental broadcast using his passive Esper abilities, Z shot him a dry look. "The magic syntax was flawlessly executed. In fact, Eri's data log confirmed that within her simulated dream state, she successfully achieved the rank of a master mage."
"Since when can human dream parameters be explicitly programmed with that level of accuracy?" Raizer asked skeptically.
Z offered a small, knowing smirk. "You should know by now, Raizer—the core mechanics of Esper still contain entirely too many classified variables."
Raizer shook his head. "Wait a moment. Since when does your division study complex ritual formats? I was under the impression your club focus was strictly observational."
"Since when is usage of a universal system restricted to a single division?" Z countered smoothly.
"Hey! You two over there!" a sharp, authoritative voice boomed from the stairs behind them, cutting through their debate. "Do not block the primary transit stairs. This is a high-volume public thoroughfare."
Z stiffened, his eyes darting to the identification badge pinned to the man's structured suit.
*Director Alfred.*
"Our apologies, Director! We are clearing the vector immediately!" Z stammered, his sudden surge of energy turning into pure panic as he grabbed Raizer by the sleeve and dragged him up the remaining steps onto the third-floor landing
Alfred watched them vanish into the upper gallery, his internal monologue sighing: *The youth of this current era... entirely deficient in their comprehension of public facility protocols.*
Safely uncoupled from the director's glare on the third floor, Z finally let go of Raizer's arm, scanning the immediate gallery space.
"Oh, right, Raizer—did you deploy to this location solo, or are you running a coordinated party?" Z asked.
"I'm currently operating within a multi-person group," Raizer confirmed.
"Where are their coordinates?" Z inquired, looking around the expansive room.
"Right over there," Raizer said, gesturing with a tilt of his chin toward a dense crowd gathered in front of a heavily secured display labeled Bad Night.
Before Z could take a step, a sharp telepathic handshake forced its way into his mind.
「Z, report your current spatial coordinates immediately,」 the voice projected. Z recognized the unique mental frequency instantly.
「What's the situation, Eri?」
Z transmitted back.
「I'm simply conducting a roster check,」Eri's voice echoed within his mind.
「Why are you currently detached from our primary cluster?」
「I've established contact with an associate on the third floor. I'll be running a separate tracking loop for the foreseeable future, so don't wait up,」
Z replied, mapping his intent cleanly.
The telepathic link immediately severed with a clean snap.
Down on the first floor, Eri turned toward Kanna, relaying the updated telemetry.
"Relax, Kanna, he hasn't broken perimeter parameters. He just confirmed he's running a coordinated loop with a friend up on the third floor."
"Excellent. At the very least, he isn't attempting an unauthorized extraction from the event," Kanna replied, her vocal tone entirely flat. Internally, however, her cognitive processor dialed into a darker wavelength: *Coordinated looping with a friend, is it? I will ensure a highly rigorous disciplinary protocol is waiting for him once this event concludes.*
With that checked off, Eri enthusiastically grabbed Kanna's hand, pulling her deeper into the specialized Dr. Miles retrospective collection.
Up on the third floor, Zayn, Xavier, and the rest of their localized cluster were standing before the ominous Bad Night canvas, their expressions locked in various states of intense scrutiny.
"I am entirely certain this specific asset is the primary target for the impending heist," Xavier stated, his eyes tracking the structural framing of the painting.
"Hold on a second," Zayn countered, crossing his arms as he pointed a finger at the canvas. "Your initial predictive thesis stated that the threat actors were targeting the Nexus Sapphire. Why has your diagnostic suddenly shifted to a piece of fine art?"
"Trust my data tracking on this, Zayn. Every metric I'm parsing suggests this painting is the critical focal point," Xavier insisted.
"What is the empirical basis for your certainty?" Kyle intervened, looking between the two.
"Standard security logistics," Xavier explained, gesturing toward the perimeter of the frame. "If this asset lacked high-tier value, the defensive runic array integrated into the display wouldn't possess this level of microscopic complexity." He paused, his internal processing unit hitting a massive anomaly as he traced the energetic lines
Wait a minute... why does the runic feedback loop trace back into the structural grid of the entire museum infrastructure?
Meanwhile, Rayne moved closer to the canvas, her dark eyes analyzing the background composition. The line work was intensely chaotic, comprised of aggressive, seemingly randomized vectors slashing through a suffocatingly dark color palette.
The brushstrokes felt violent, forming irregular, jagged contours across the canvas. In stark, jarring contrast to this chaotic backdrop stood a Pokémon Trainer and a Murkrow. The two figures were rendered with an intentional lack of cohesion, their forms visibly unrefined and overlapping with disruptive, high-contrast pigments. The most unsettling variable was their eyes—a brilliant, piercing crimson that seemed to radiate an unnatural, offensive glare, making the entire composition deeply distressing to process.
"This painting... its residual energy matrix is exceptionally negative," Rayne murmured, her posture visibly dropping as a wave of ambient gloom washed over her. On her shoulder, her Litwick's flame flickered low, its vitality visibly draining in response to its trainer's dampened emotional state.
Nora noticed Rayne's sudden behavioral shift. "Rayne? Your vitals are dropping. Is there an active environmental hazard?"
"No... it's just the localized atmospheric output of this canvas. The psychic resonance is entirely too hostile," Rayne explained, rubbing her arms.
"Does visual data possess that much disruptive leverage over an Esper?" Nora asked, her curiosity piqued.
"Absolutely," Rayne nodded, her voice tight.
"An Esper's sensory array is hyper-sensitive to embedded emotional imprints and raw energy signatures. Artifacts like this can directly overwrite our emotional baseline. Honestly, this piece is making my cognitive processors entirely uncomfortable. It completely validates the negative rumors circulating in the data networks regarding its history."
Nora silently logged the psychological data point into her memory banks for future analysis.
Breaking the heavy silence, Rayne turned her head toward Nora, her expression deadly serious. "Nora, I need to execute a high-priority inquiry regarding your reality coordinates."
"Proceed," Nora replied, matching her serious tone.
"Is it a verified fact that your home reality possesses zero recorded Esper signatures?" Rayne asked.
"Logically, the probability exists that the trait is simply dormant or undocumented," Nora analyzed carefully. "But in terms of verifiable data, I have never personally encountered a confirmed Esper asset prior to this reality merger. I cannot provide an absolute confirmation."
A few paces away, Zayn and Xavier suddenly struck upon a glaring logical discrepancy.
"Wait a minute," Zayn muttered, his eyes widening. "If a structural event as massive as a reality integration or a timeline merger actually executed, the global information networks should be completely flooded with emergency broadcasts."
The two boys instantly reached the exact same tactical conclusion. Zayn snapped his fingers. "Xavier, run a deep web sweep on the global news feeds right now."
"Initiating the query, give me a second to clear the bandwidth," Xavier replied, his fingers flying across his Rotom Dex as he bypassed local firewalls to access the live international news streams.
"Save your processing power. You won't find a single entry on the public networks yet," Raizer's voice broke in smoothly from behind them.
"I can guarantee that the core information bureaus and media divisions are executing a total blackout on the data," Z added, stepping up beside Raizer with his hands casually tucked into his pockets. "They want to prevent a localized panic spike among the civilian population, so the telemetry won't hit the public feeds anytime soon."
"Understood..." Xavier murmured, looking up from his device. "So what is the current status of the containment protocol? Is the situation stabilized?"
"If you're asking about macro-level management, it's highly recommended we leave that handling to the local law enforcement grids," Z replied lazily. "That falls squarely under their operational mandate."
Zayn's eyes locked onto Z, his gaze analytical. He stepped closer to Raizer, lowering his voice. "Isolate this variable. Who is he?"
"This is Z, an associate of mine," Raizer introduced smoothly. "He also runs an active Esper matrix. Statistically speaking, I project the two of you will achieve a rapid social handshake—your baseline hobbies share an exceptionally high overlap."
Z stepped forward, extending his hand toward Zayn with a casual, welcoming gesture. "You can designate me as Z. Raizer's data logs already briefed me on your baseline profile."
Zayn accepted the handshake, his grip firm. "I'm Zayn. Let's ensure our future interactions maintain a stable parameter."
Rayne and Nora offered the newcomers a brief, passing glance before swiftly refocusing their cognitive bandwidth on the surrounding historical artifacts in the gallery.
Raizer tracked their movement, checking the room's spatial density. "Excellent. Now that the initial introductions are complete, let's optimize our movement. Given that we've integrated Z into our cluster, it would be logistically superior to bifurcate this group into two distinct operational cells."
"That plan aligns perfectly with my efficiency models," Xavier agreed immediately. He took a step toward the silver-haired youth. "Alright, I'm locking my coordinates to Sector Leader Raizer."
"I'll align my pathing with Xavier's vector," Zayn added, stepping up to join Raizer's cell.
"Perfect. Z, I am transferring command of the remaining assets to your ledger," Raizer stated coolly, offering a brief nod before turning on his heel to guide Zayn and Xavier toward the deeper exhibit rooms.
Z stared after them, his face blanking into pure disbelief. "Are you serious right now? Dumping three high-maintenance assets on my ledger? Do my files suggest I possess any certified experience in youth group management?"
He sighed heavily as Raizer's group vanished into the crowd. Turning slowly, his gaze fell upon Kyle. "Alright, you appear to possess the highest stability index in this cluster. What is your designation?"
"Kyle," the boy answered simply.
"And what are the system names for those two small female units?" Z asked, gesturing vaguely toward the nearby displays.
"The one utilizing the green pigment profile is my associate, Nora," Kyle mapped out. "And the one with the dark hair parameters is designated as Rayne, if my memory logs serve me correctly."
"Acknowledged," Z sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "It seems I'll need to run a comprehensive data download for you and Nora regarding local physics later. You two aren't native to this spatial reality, right?"
"That action protocol is redundant," Kyle replied smoothly, shaking his head. "Zayn, Xavier, and Rayne already executed a massive information transfer regarding local reality laws before we breached the museum perimeter."
Z blinked, crossing his arms behind his head as his posture relaxed. "Seriously? They already handled the orientation script? Well, if the data is already synchronized, that means we don't have to waste time acting like serious art critics."
With a lazy, unbothered stride, Z and Kyle fell into step behind Nora and Rayne, trailing the two girls as they drifted methodically from one masterpiece to the next under the brilliant gallery lights.