Chapter 144: Reaching Out
“Hey…it looks like we’ll be looking after you for a while…let’s try to get along…” Jason expressed, his voice soft and measured as he extended his left hand to the Zinogre pup, kneeling before it.
Similar to a cat but far larger and more dangerous, the Zinogre pup drew closer to Jason’s hand, exhibiting more doubt than caution as it sniffed his proffered fingers. Then…
boop
As the Zinogre pup’s nose made contact with his hand, Jason’s eyes were drawn to the notification that had appeared before him…
[You have been labeled [Unimpressive] by the 2-Star Entity [Unnamed]. Initial Bond Level: 2]
‘Two Stars…and a super low initial bond level…’ Jason noted. Fortunately, while the Zinogre pup’s impression of him wasn’t particularly favorable, it didn’t appear to distrust him. More pressing was its Status…
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[Status]
Name: [Unnamed]
Title: [Young Tyrant]
Age: 0(95 Days)
Height: 63.9cm Weight: 40.8kg B/W/H: ??/??/??
Rank: 2-Star
[Physique: 269]
Strength: 112[+]
Vitality: 123[+]
Dexterity: 34[+]
[Cognition: 213]
Intelligence: 69[+]
Perception: 45[+]
Guts: 99[+]
[Spirituality: 208]
Spirit: 72[+]
Mind: 80[+]
Faith: 56[+]
[Skills]
[Stygian Prince(D)], [Blood of Tyrants(D)], [Intimidate(D)], [Muscle Compression(D)], [Multispectral Vision(E)], [Thunder Organ(E)], [Electroreception(E)] [Charge Accumulation(E)], [Natural Armor(E)], [Enhanced Reflexes(E)]
[Special Abilities]
[Tackle(F)], [Defense Curl(F)], [Charge(F)], [Discharge(E)], [Dragon Claw(E)], [Wild Charge(D)], [Thunder Fang(E)], [Thunder Wave(F)], [Roar(F)], [Spark(E)]
————————————————————————–
‘It’s a physical powerhouse—that’s no surprise. But the fact that it has Pokémon Powers suggests a certain degree of overlap between this world and the world it originates…’ Jason noted, his eyes narrowing in suspicion.
‘We will leave you with these parting words…’ Tapu Koko stated, drawing Jason’s, Ren’s, and the Zinogre pup’s gazes, his own focused on the latter as he forewarned, ‘Meaningful strength is born from the bonds you forge with others. Even if you can stand at the top with your own power, you will find nothing there but loneliness and longing.’
Shifting his gaze to Jason and Ren, Tapu Koko gave a curt nod, adding, ‘We have entrusted the two of you with helping this one understand that lesson. Guide it well…’
“We’ll do what we can…” Jason affirmed.
“Ren will help it become super strong…!” Ren appended, punching her right paw into the open palm of her left.
‘Then, until next we meet. Be well, and be brave…’ Tapu Koko concluded, turning away and departing with such speed that it appeared to disappear in the blink of an eye.
“There he goes…” Jason mused aloud, a mix of relief and exasperation washing over him. Tapu Koko taking an interest in him and Ren was great for their growth, but at the same time, he couldn’t help but feel they were being burdened unfairly. He still only had a provisional license, but due to Tapu Koko’s largely unilateral decision, he was now responsible for taking care of a monster that could scale to Legendaries once fully grown…
Turning his attention to the Zinogre pup, Jason found it sitting like a dog, its electric-blue eyes stabbing into him as if it were waiting to see what he would say or do next.
“First and foremost, we should probably introduce ourselves. My name is Jason Springfield. And this…” Jason started, gesturing to Ren with his left hand.
“Ren is Ren…!” Ren appended, pumping her paws excitedly.
Though it alternated its gaze between Jason and Ren as they made their introductions, the Zinogre pup didn’t appear particularly moved. Then, as if to emphasize this, it abruptly yawned, providing Jason a view of its very sharp and white canines before getting up and walking between him and Ren as if it had better things to do.
“Hey, where are you going? Do you not intend to come with Ren and me…?” Jason asked, following after the Zinogre pup with Ren keeping pace.
Instead of acknowledging Jason’s questions, the Zinogre pup continued walking, its expression devoid of interest.
‘Did it not agree with Tapu Koko that it would follow us…?’ Jason asked himself, befuddled by the Zinogre pup’s behavior. He wasn’t expecting it to obey or trust him immediately, but he assumed it would at least follow them back to the villa.
“Stop…!” Ren barked, moving ahead of the Zinogre pup and blocking its path with her arms spread wide.
crackle
Exhibiting no hesitation whatsoever, the Zinogre pup leaped toward Ren, the exterior of its body sparking with tiny bands of bluish white electricity as it used Tackle to try and headbutt her chest.
Narrowing her eyes, Ren reacted to the Zinogre pup’s sudden aggression by slamming her right fist into its cheek, more to redirect its force than to cause it injury. At the same time, she side-stepped to her right, lessening the force of her blow even further and ensuring she was out of its way as the Zinogre pup landed, doubled back, and pounced after her.
‘This little shit…’ Jason cursed internally, his right brow twitching as he raised and balled his right hand into a fist. He liked to think of himself as a patient person, but the Zinogre pup transitioning from blowing them off to suddenly attacking Ren pricked a nerve.
With Ren easily dodging its second pounce, the Zinogre pup seemed to grasp that it was at a disadvantage against her. As a result, it directed its gaze to Jason…
crackle crackle
“So, this is how we’re doing things? You won’t follow us unless we prove we’re worth following…?” Jason asked, every nerve in his body tensing as he got into a stance like a college wrestler.
Sensing that Jason didn’t want her to intervene, Ren, who was planning to lunge forward and grab the Zinogre pup by its tail, frowned in concern but ultimately pulled back.
snort
Seeing Jason standing his ground, the Zinogre pup snorted and began clawing at the ground before it as if were warning him that it would attack. As it did, Jason noticed a faint red pulse spread across his body, causing his limbs to feel twice as heavy.
‘Of course I can be affected by Intimidate…’ Jason acknowledged grimly. He knew from his initial encounter with Laani that Pokémon Powers could affect him, but this was the first time he was experiencing their effects in a battle.
With Jason refusing to back down, the Zinogre pup stopped posturing and began charging toward, its body veiled in the white haze of a Normal-type Move. Fortunately, it wasn’t particularly fast. And because of how heavy it was for its size, its momentum carried it forward several additional meters after Jason’s last-second dodge.
“Grrrrrrrr…”
Seemingly not expecting Jason to dodge out of the way, the Zinogre pup began glaring and growling at him as if it had been deceived or wronged.
“If you hadn’t noticed, you have claws, teeth, and scales…expecting me to meet you head-on is no different from asking me to handicap myself. Is that what you want…?” Jason asked, his body and ears throbbing with the rapid beating of his heart.
Narrowing its eyes, the Zinogre pup began to walk in a slow circle around Jason, a pattern the latter recognized. Fully grown Zinogre exhibited the same behavior in the games—typically following their stare-down with a surprise sweep of their hard, spine-covered tails.
‘If only I had a hammer…’ Jason sighed internally, referencing one of the eighteen weapon types available in the Monster Hunter games. He might be able to land hits against the Zinogre using his larger size and range to his advantage, but with Ren’s strike having done no noticeable damage to it, he doubted his attacks would have any effect.
Forcing Jason from his attentive introspection, the Zinogre pup charged and leaped at him with its mouth open, its sharp white teeth arcing with electricity.
‘Go…!’ Jason shouted to himself internally, forcing himself forward and driving his open palms into the underside of the Zinogre pup’s body. Maeve had beaten into him the importance of disrupting an opponent’s movements mid-motion, so he got under and pushed the Zinogre pup as high as he could into the air. The ivory-white claws of its three-toed paws dragged across his arms as he pushed it, but the gashes weren’t so deep that they required immediate medical treatment.
slam
With Jason aiming its body at a tree, the Zinogre pup’s back briefly bent around it with a heavy thud before it fell to the ground, landing nimbly on all fours like a cat. It hadn’t sustained any noticeable damage, but Jason noticed the look in its pale blue eyes had changed. It no longer exhibited anger or frustration. Instead, it appeared curious, observant, and probing.
“Let’s hurry this along…if we don’t return before nightfall, a lot of people are going to worry…” Jason remarked, raising his hands, prepared for the Zinogre’s next charge. Instead, the puppy-like dragon abruptly turned to continue along the path it had been walking previously.
‘I seriously can’t get a read on this thing…’ Jason sighed, lowering his hands and exhaling in weary exasperation. One moment, the Zinogre was treating them like air. The very next, it was attacking them as if they were its enemies. Now, once again, it was walking off on its own, behaving as if it hadn’t just attempted to sink its teeth into his shoulder or throat…
“Jason is okay…?” Ren asked, hurrying over to Jason’s side and grabbing his right arm to inspect the bloody scratches along its surface. None were particularly deep, but they burned and bled something fierce.
“I could definitely benefit from a Life Dew or two…” Jason remarked, prompting Ren to release his arm and hold her paws up to it, veiling his injuries in cooling, luminous blue energy.
shftssh
Drawing Jason’s gaze, the Zinogre pup abruptly leaped through a bush and disappeared from view. It evidently had no intention of adhering to Tapu Koko’s arrangement. And while Ren could almost assuredly defeat and force it to follow them, it was against Jason’s beliefs to force others, be they human, animal, Pokémon, or monster, to obey.
‘It’s a shame, though. I don’t know if it’s due to its homeworld having overlapping themes and mechanics with the Pokémon world, but it was surprisingly cute…’ Jason noted to himself. When he pictured a Zinogre in his mind, the image that surfaced was that of a muscular behemoth with serrated ridges along its back, needle-like fur, and claws that could tear through the battlements of a fortress as if they were made of paper. It was an image that perfectly fit a tyrannical beast capable of standing near the pinnacle of a food chain that included living mountains…
Contrasting the image in Jason’s mind, the Zinogre pup had had more in common with a medium-sized dog than a dragon that could grow to tower over Hunters and crush them underfoot. It really did look a lot like a shiny Midday Lycanroc, so much so that he could likely pass it off as a regional, recently discovered variant.
‘Presuming it ever trusts me enough to let me capture it…’ Jason sighed, focusing his attention on Ren’s ministrations. It wasn’t immediate, but he could see the scratches on his arms closing in reverse. At the same time, his physical exhaustion slowly abated, filling him with energy but failing to alleviate the tension and heaviness in his mind. The sensation was similar to a migraine, but deeper. It wasn’t unbearable, but Jason couldn’t wait to reach his bed and fall into it face-first…
‘Before that, I should clean myself up…’ Jason thought, taking note of the blood that stained his arms and clothes. He didn’t want to worry Lillie and the others by showing up beaten and bloodied, so before meeting up with Dex and asking him to inform everyone that he and Ren were okay, he had them take a detour into his Sanctum to wash up and change…
…
..
.