Bolt Ape nodded at Necho, inhaling deeply as it puffed out its chest. With each powerful beat, the sound echoed like thunder, and static electricity crackled around its body.
"Ooh ooh, aahh!" it shouted, looking at Necho to confirm that it was ready.
"Alright, let's go!" Necho said, hugging tightly onto Bolt Ape's back.
With electric webbing around its feet, Bolt Ape focused the electricity it had charged up earlier. Together, they jumped higher than they had anticipated.
"AAAHHH!" Necho shouted, exhilarated, as they landed safely on the other side alongside Kris and Thursday.
"Great job, you two!" Kris praised, looking at Necho and Bolt Ape with admiration. "That was impressive! But you'll need to charge up again; the next jump is trickier."
Kris turned to Pyro, signaling it to jump. Pyro Cub mirrored Kris's movements, executing a perfect wall run along the side of the obstacle while carrying Terra Mantis on its back.
They landed safely, and just then, Belle, who had just arrived at the previous jump, called out nervously, "Hey, Kris! Can you help us!?"
She was anxious, worried that Kris might not like her anymore after the way she had acted earlier.
Selina, trailing behind Belle, glanced apprehensively at the gap they needed to jump.
She swallowed hard.
As she observed the three idiots on the other side, she felt a surge of annoyance.
'Why would Belle ask for help from someone who had been harassing her for years?'
But as she looked down at the daunting gap again, she decided to swallow her pride and follow Belle's lead.
"Kris, you better help us! If you don't, I swear I'll never let you get close to Belle again!"
Thursday, overhearing her, smirked. "What's in it for us if we help you?"
Selina shot him an irritated glare.
"Shut up, you ginger! If we get out of here, you're the first person I'm going to smack!"
"Calm down, Selina. Let me do the talking," Belle said, stepping forward. "Kris, if you help us now, I'll go on a date with you!"
"But Belle—?" Selina began, but Belle cut her off.
"Shut up, Selina! Do you want to pass or not?"
Selina fell silent, caught off guard.
'Selina, my dear, this is my only chance to get close to my Kris! Don't mess this up for me!' Belle thought excitedly, already envisioning their date.
Belle's Data Beast, the Tide Hound, looked at Kris, wagging its tail and barking at him as if to say, I can't wait to play with you!
Kris pondered for a moment.
The idea of dating a 16-year-old felt horrifying to him.
He thought of the old Kris's dream of marrying Belle.
In his mind, he envisioned a conversation with the former Kris.
'Bro, I can't do it! We have to wait at least 2–3 years before I can scratch that off your list!' He shook his head, redirecting his focus back to Selina and Belle.
"It's okay, I'll help you. You don't need to date me, Belle," Kris said with a smile, recalling the Tide Hound's abilities.
He instructed Belle, "I need you to use three commands. First, use Tail Splash to wet the ground and make it slippery. Then, perform Tidal Surge to ride on it. Finally, aim your Water Cannon behind you to propel you further."
Belle, still hung on about Kris's response feeling disappointed, thought, 'Why won't you date me, Kris? Did I do something wrong?'
Just then, she heard Kris ask, "Do you understand what to do now, Belle?"
"Ah, huh? Wait... Wait, can you repeat the instructions again? I'm sorry, Kris," she replied, feeling apologetic.
"It's alright," Kris said, patiently repeating the instructions.
Belle listen attentively this time, as she also relayed the command to tide hound.
"Bark", the Tide Hound barked as if telling her master that it will be ready if she is.
"Hey, did you forget about me?" Selina interjected, feeling annoyed at being overlooked.
"Of course not! My bad, Selina," Kris said, glancing at Selina's Data Beast. 'It's a butterfly, so it's a bit small to carry Selina, huh?'
"Genesis, display Selina's Data Beast," he instructed in his mind.
[Luminara] Adult
Rank: 1
Element: Light-type
Potential: Silver
Abilities:
Light Manipulation: Manipulate light to create dazzling displays that can blind enemies or form illusions, making it appear in multiple places at once.
Healing Aura: Emits a soothing energy that heals minor wounds and alleviates pain in nearby allies, making it a valuable companion in battles.
Wind Dance: Creates powerful gusts of wind with the flap of its wings, allowing it to dodge attacks and send enemies flying.
Light Speed: Bends light around itself to teleport short distances, making it difficult to pin down in combat.
Additional Notes:
Weaknesses: Dark-type and Ice-type attacks.
Strengths: Plant-type and Psychic.
Evolution: Can evolve into Eclipseraph at Rank 4 with special conditions.
Special Evolution: [LOCKED]
"You already have a powerful ability, Selina. Why aren't you using it?" Kris asked.
Selina blushed at the compliment. "What do you mean I'm powerful? Are you trying to flirt with me?"
Kris quickly denied it. "No, I'm talking about your Data Beast!"
Embarrassed by the misunderstanding, Selina's cheeks flushed even more as she looked down and adjusted her glasses. "Yeah, you're talking about my useless Data Beast. It can only heal and flash enemies."
Kris was bewildered by her perspective. "You don't know about its abilities?"
Selina looked up, somewhat confused. "Of course I know! It's Light Manipulation, Healing Aura, and Wind Dance."
Kris raised an eyebrow. "You don't know about Light Speed?"
Selina furrowed her brow. "What's Light Speed? Is it that term where you go to space?"
"Uh, no…" Kris replied. "I mean, you can use Light Manipulation to envelop both our bodies and use Light Speed to teleport both of you here."
Selina was dumbfounded. "WHAT!? This guy can teleport? Why don't I have that in my Datavice?" as she checked her Datavice for the information.
The others joined in with questions.
"Hey, Kris, why do you know my Data Beast's abilities too?" Thursday asked.
Necho chimed in. "Mine too!"
Belle nodded seemingly agreed, looking at him curiously.
Everyone fell silent, watching Kris with his arms crossed and hands on his chins, waiting for his answer.
Kris was in a panic internally. Genesis, what's going on? Why is their information incomplete?'
Genesis replied, "Host, as I told you before, I'm not just a regular Datavice that scans Data Beast's information. I can discover hidden abilities and disclose weaknesses and strengths that are not shown in the Datavice."
Kris maintained a poker face while panicking inside. He had an idea and extended his wrist, revealing his Datavice. It was orange with rubies along the side, looking luxurious, adorned with a Hayao Tech Corporation logo.
"I have the latest, top-of-the-grade Datavice on the market. It's one of one," he announced confidently.
'I hope they buy into this' Kris prayed
Selina, adjusting her glasses once more, caught a whiff of something in the air. The scent was familiar to her, and a thought flickered in her mind. Conspiracy!?
"Is that so, Kris?" she raised an eyebrow, suspicion evident in her tone. "How were you able to purchase something like that?"
Before Kris could formulate a response, a loud neigh broke through the air.
A massive flaming red horse galloped past them, effortlessly leaping over a nearby jumping course. It skidded to a stop right in front of Kris.
"Hey, Kris! Do you wanna ride?" It was Chansey, grinning widely from atop her horse-like Data Beast.