In the underground laboratory, Aaron had already dealt with every guard and Pokémon around him.
The entire experimental area reeked of blood. Bright red stains covered the floor and splattered across the walls.
Aaron was drenched in it, but none of it was his.
It belonged to his enemies.
He reached out and seized the suited man by the throat. His eyes were bloodshot, and he looked at the man with nothing but cold contempt.
"Cough... cough..."
The suited man clawed desperately at Aaron's hand, his face turning red as terror filled his eyes.
He forced his mouth open and pleaded,
"Don't... don't kill me..."
"I didn't do anything."
"It... it was all Aotum's orders."
"Please... let me go."
"Cough... cough..."
He begged in agony, completely different from the arrogant man he had been moments ago.
"Let you go?"
Aaron's voice was low and cold.
"Then why didn't anyone let the little one go?"
"When it was screaming in pain inside that cage... why didn't you let it go?"
"And all those Pokémon you killed... why didn't you spare them?"
Aaron's eyes were red with rage, but his voice stayed frighteningly calm.
"You all deserve to die."
"You don't deserve to live in this world."
"But you..."
"You don't get to die that easily."
Before the suited man could beg again, Aaron tore his limbs off one by one. The sound of breaking bone echoed through the lab as he threw them aside.
"AAAAAAH!"
The man's scream ripped through the laboratory. Blood poured from what was left of him as he lay there helplessly, waiting for his body to give out.
Death was not the worst part.
Waiting for it was.
...
Aaron walked step by step toward Corviknight.
He reached its body and crouched down.
At that moment, the system's voice sounded.
"Ding~ Would the host like to use the Battle Core Crystal to absorb Corviknight's soul and form a special Pokémon Battle Core?"
Corviknight's soul will be preserved permanently and granted a special form of immortality.
To Aaron, the system's words sounded like salvation.
He froze in place.
That's right...
How could I forget?
He suddenly remembered the Battle Core Crystal he had obtained not long ago.
It could store a Pokémon's soul.
Excitement appeared in Aaron's eyes as he quickly asked,
"Does that mean the Battle Core Crystal can bring the little one back?"
"Ding~ In a sense, yes. Corviknight will exist in a soul state. Others will not be able to see it. Only you will be able to see it, and it will remain by your side forever."
This time, the system did not joke around.
It answered seriously, which surprised Aaron a little.
Could the system have liked the little one too?
Did it want him to save it?
The thought flashed through Aaron's mind, but now was not the time to dwell on it.
He quickly took the Battle Core Crystal out of the system backpack.
Following the system's instructions, Aaron placed the crystal against Corviknight's body.
The Battle Core Crystal suddenly flared with light.
Under Aaron's stunned gaze, a translucent soul drifted free from Corviknight's corpse. Its eyes were half-closed, its form faint and fragile, and before it could fade away completely, the crystal drew it inside.
The black crystal hummed and rose into the air. Light swirled within it until the shape of a black bird gradually emerged.
"Kraaa..."
Corviknight opened its eyes.
It beat its wings once, letting out a clear cry as it circled within the crystal before the light collapsed inward. A moment later, the crystal drifted toward Aaron and dissolved into his chest.
Then the memories came.
A newly hatched Rookidee.
A loving mother.
Long days spent learning to hunt, fly, and explore the world together.
They had been happy.
Until the day Corviknight hid her child inside a hollow tree and told it not to make a sound, no matter what happened.
Terrified, Rookidee watched through tear-filled eyes as a human defeated its mother and captured her.
It tried to help.
It failed.
In the end, both of them were taken away.
When Rookidee woke again, it belonged to someone else.
Aaron immediately recognized the man.
Aotum.
His expression darkened.
To Aotum, Rookidee had never been a partner. It was a possession, a bird kept in a cage. From that day on, it lost its freedom and watched countless Pokémon die in experiments it could neither understand nor stop.
Eventually, a chance appeared.
Rookidee escaped.
It flew until it reached a forest, hungry, exhausted, and alone.
There, it found a human whose grilled fish smelled incredible.
The human shared his food without hesitation.
For the first time in a long while, Rookidee felt safe.
It stayed.
It played with Aaron and his Pokémon, ate with them, laughed with them.
Little by little, the loneliness faded.
Being with them felt strangely familiar, almost like being with its mother again.
It had been one of the happiest times in its life.
And somewhere along the way, it had come to like Aaron too.
If only those days could have lasted a little longer.