"I think I'll call my mom—"
Ash's words hit Rael like a jolt of lightning.
Rael tensed instantly. "Ash, I have to go to the bathroom!" he blurted, already darting away from the lobby.
"Huh? Is it that urgent?" Ash blinked in confusion as Rael disappeared down the hallway at metaphorical lightspeed.
The moment Rael turned the corner and was out of Ash's sight, he summoned the Lust Dimension with a focused thought. In a shimmer of energy, the real world faded, and the familiar pink-hued sky of his private world enveloped him.
The soft glow of the otherworldly sun bathed the peaceful setting. At the foot of the spiral stairs leading to the cozy house he'd created, Delia and Daisy sat together on the steps, looking restless.
As soon as they saw him, Daisy stood up, her eyes wide. "Rael! What is this place?!"
She rushed over, bewildered. "It's… like some kind of dream!"
"Sorry, Daisy… I'll explain later, I swear, but right now we don't have time." Rael's words were fast, his tone urgent. He turned to Delia. "Ash wants to call you!"
Delia's breath caught. "Oh, dear…" She brought a hand to her chest, her face paling slightly. "What should we do?"
Then her eyes lit up. "Wait—can't you just recreate my phone like you did with this house?"
Rael's eyes widened. "That's… actually a brilliant idea." He closed his eyes and focused. "Delia… what's your phone number?"
"1733345," she said quickly.
With a hum of creation, energy coalesced by the entrance. A modern phone stand appeared, with Delia's familiar mobile device resting atop it.
Just as Rael opened his eyes and took a relieved breath, the phone started ringing.
Riiing! Riiing!
"He's calling already!" Delia gasped and ran over, picking it up. She hesitated just a moment to compose herself and then answered, forcing a cheerful voice. "Hey, sweetie!"
"Hey, mom!" came Ash's voice from the other end. "Why can't I see you? Did the computer screen break again?"
"Yeah, dear… the screen's acting up again, but that's not important. How's your journey going? Is Pikachu still being cute?" Delia asked, trying to keep her voice light, even as her cheeks burned from embarrassment.
Seeing her so flustered, Rael turned to give her some privacy.
But Daisy wasn't done.
"Rael…" she said, pulling him aside by the arm and giving him a look. "Did you just make a telephone? Out of nowhere?"
"Well, yeah, sort of," Rael said, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly.
She narrowed her eyes. "Are you Arceus in disguise or something?"
Rael burst into laughter. "That's funny, Daisy—"
But then…
"Mom… is someone there with you? I just heard someone laughing," Ash said from the phone, his tone suddenly suspicious.
Delia's heart jumped into her throat.
Rael's hand slapped over his own mouth, and he stepped behind a potted plant that was somehow there in the Lust Dimension. Delia scrambled to keep her voice steady.
"No, no one's here, dear… I think you must've heard wrong…" she said, her voice high and strained, her face going redder by the second.
In the background, Rael mouthed a silent "sorry" with a sheepish grin as Daisy glared at him with a mix of awe and exasperation.
Delia ended the call as quickly and naturally as she could, offering Ash a few more motherly words and blowing him a kiss through the phone. Once the call ended and the line went silent, she exhaled deeply and set the device down.
Daisy immediately sprang into action.
"So... now can you tell me what's going on?!" Daisy exclaimed. She was a very scientific girl, and things like this—things that shouldn't be possible—piqued her interest more than anything else.
"I would like to know that as well..." Delia chimed in, looking at Rael with concern and curiosity.
"Well... it's a long story..." Rael began, scratching the back of his head awkwardly. "They're not really my powers. Some weird alien gave me this stone, and… well, all of this just kinda happened. Honestly, I don't understand it that much myself..."
He paused, choosing his words carefully.
He left out the part about the Sin Stone of Lust being one of the most precious treasures in the universe. It wasn't that he didn't trust Daisy or Delia—it was the opposite. But secrets like that had a way of slipping out eventually, no matter how careful someone was. And if the wrong person caught wind of it, they could come after him. Or worse... go after Daisy or Delia. It was better not to risk anything.
"Wait... a stone?" Daisy asked, her eyes wide. "Like... a magical artifact kind of stone?"
"Pretty much..." Rael nodded.
"And you said... an alien gave it to you?" Delia added slowly, blinking.
"Yeah," Rael sighed. "It sounds ridiculous, I know. But everything started from that day. This place, these powers… even that phone just now."
Daisy looked around again at the strange pink sky, the dreamlike quality of the Lust Dimension surrounding them. She muttered to herself, "This is… this is insane…"
Then she looked back at him, more focused. "Okay… so you're telling me this place is real. That you created it. That this is… not a dream. Not some illusion."
Rael nodded. "It's real. All of it."
Daisy's eyes gleamed like twin stars. "Then... can I run some experiments on you? Like how much farther your powers can go? Can you give me some samples of your DNA—"
"Daisy..." Rael cut in with a slightly exasperated smile. "I'm not a science experiment."
With a flick of his fingers, a shimmer of pink energy swirled in the air—and a large lab appeared, connected to the main house. It looked nearly as advanced as Professor Oak's, complete with machines, computers, specimen chambers, and a whole section labeled "Do Not Touch."
"A lab?" Daisy gasped, eyes practically sparkling.
"Yes, all for you," Rael said proudly. He reached for his belt and popped open a Poké Ball. "Come out, Pidgeotto."
"Pidge-otto!" the majestic bird cried as it flapped its wings, landing beside him with a proud pose.
'So I can bring my Pokémon here too?' Rael thought, a smile spreading across his face. 'That's going to be useful.'
"Daisy... didn't you say you wanted to study Pidgeotto?" he asked, already anticipating her reaction.
"Really?! I seriously can?!" Daisy exclaimed, immediately scooping Pidgeotto into her arms with zero hesitation.
"Hehehe... we're gonna have so much fun, me and you, Pidgeotto…" she said with a grin that could give mad scientists nightmares.
Pidgeotto turned its head slowly, looking at Rael with wide, alarmed eyes.
The look said everything: Help me. Please.
Rael gave it a sympathetic pat on the wing. "You'll be fine, buddy. Probably."
To be continued...
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