Back at the laboratory, Ao checked his watch, the glow from the dial casting a sharp light on his face. "It's nearly 7:00 PM. It's time we headed to the museum."
"Perhaps," Diego replied, his voice heavy with the weight of his foresight. He turned to Alied, Raizer, and Miranda as he unlocked the lab's heavy entrance. "So, who is staying behind to guard the facility?"
Professor Miranda gestured sharply to herself, her expression confident. "Me, of course. Who else knows the internal architecture of this lab better than I do?"
"Fair enough," Alied said, stepping through the doorway.
Ao and Raizer followed suit, exiting the lab. As soon as they cleared the threshold, the doors sealed shut automatically behind them. Inside the silent, empty room, a chime echoed as Professor Miranda's computer received a new, encrypted data transmission.
Outside, Diego waited for the group to assemble. With a flick of his wrist, he warped them across the city, depositing them directly onto the museum's expansive front grounds.
"We're here," Diego announced as the group adjusted to the sudden shift in space.
Raizer immediately began scanning the sea of people surrounding the exhibition gates.
"I'm going to go find Zayn and the others first," he said, waving a casual goodbye as he began to weave through the crowd.
"Remember!" Diego called out after him, his voice urgent. "Do not let yourself be spotted by those three girls—the ones whose descriptions I gave to Zayn earlier."
Ao stepped closer to Diego, his brow furrowed. "Honestly, why are you so incredibly cautious about those three?"
Diego turned, his eyes narrowing. "It's clear you didn't read the briefing. They are Espers, and more importantly, they have direct access to the Alcrypna."
Alied interjected, his tone dismissive. "The Alcrypna? Isn't that perfect? We could just tell Raizer to apprehend them right now."
Diego gave Alied a look of pure
exasperation. "I don't know what kind of fantasy world you're living in, but they aren't amateurs. Raizer might be a genius, but there's no guarantee he could handle even one of them. Besides, Espers are incredibly sensitive; they can read hostile intent before you even act on it. It is far safer to avoid them."
"Just as I suspected," Ao muttered, shaking his head. "Espers are nothing but a headache."
On the other side of the courtyard, Zayn was weaving through the throng of people, tracking his mental map toward the event point. After a few minutes of steady running, he finally spotted the group: Xavier, Rayne, Kyle, and Nora were standing near a fountain, chatting as if they weren't on the verge of a historical crisis.
Xavier caught sight of him and waved him over. Zayn trudged to their side, wiping the dust from his hat.
"Where have you been?" Xavier asked.
"Just scouting the perimeter," Zayn replied.
"I thought you'd get lost since your Pokédex doesn't have a live tracking feature," Xavier teased.
Zayn adjusted his hat, unfazed. "Lack of a tracker doesn't mean I don't have a map. Plus, I still have my own abilities to fall back on, so it's not exactly a problem." He paused, his expression turning serious. "Though, I did see that blonde girl Diego warned us about."
Rayne leaned in immediately. "Wait, that *is* important. Did you get a read on her? Is she an Esper?"
"Going by her uniform," Zayn said, "she's definitely from the specialized Esper Academy."
"Just as I thought," Rayne muttered.
Kyle and Nora stood nearby, their expressions a mix of confusion and curiosity. "Wait a minute," Kyle interrupted. "You keep saying 'Esper.' What exactly *is* that?"
Rayne stared at them as if they had just asked why the sky was blue. "Are you serious? You don't know what an Esper is?!"
Kyle and Nora simply shook their heads. "We have no idea."
*Do they really not have Espers in their reality?* Xavier thought, a flicker of concern crossing his mind.
"Alright, since you're completely in the dark," Rayne sighed, "in short, Espers are humans who have unlocked and manifested psychic abilities."
"Oh," Nora replied, tilting her head. "Is that all? Sounds pretty straightforward."
I summarized it for them, and that's the reaction I get? Rayne thought, suppressing a groan of annoyance.
Kyle, however, was thinking more deeply, his hand cupping his chin. *Access to psychic abilities... if they're anything like Psychic-type Pokémon, they're going to be a nightmare to deal with.* His eyes widened as he started tallying the potential threats. *Telepathy, telekinesis, mind control, precognition...*
Xavier watched them, realizing the gravity of the situation. "It's going to take some time for them to adapt to the reality of this world," he whispered.
Just then, Raizer appeared in their circle as if he had materialized from thin air. Zayn jumped, startled. "How did you get here so fast?!"
Raizer shrugged, completely relaxed. "Teleportation."
"No, I mean—how did you find us in the middle of this massive crowd?"
"Oh, that? Easy." Raizer pointed to his own Rotom Dex, where Xavier's ID was glowing clearly on the screen. "I just tracked Xavier's ID."
Zayn let out a defeated laugh. "That is so not fair."