Online Game: Starting With SSS-Ranked Summons

That simple statement carried more power than anyone else's assurance. Arthur's confidence gave them the courage to approach the legendary creature.

Aetherion lowered himself further, creating easier access to his back. "Don't worry! I'm very good at flying! Master can vouch for me. Right master? "

Arthur chuckled. "Of course! Aether is the best at flying, with him around, you don't have to worry about your safety."

"Hehe," Aether chuckled happily at Arthur's praise. His long tail wiggled in happiness.

Careful there, you might destroy a couple of buildings with that. Gates thought, watching the tail wiggle.

Gates climbed aboard first, his business suit looking absurdly formal against void-black scales. Dave followed, getting some help from Gates to hop on the dragon's back.

This is insane. This is wonderful. This is terrifying.

Arthur leaped onto Aetherion's back with fluid grace, Charlotte's floating form following smoothly beside him. He maintained her levitation in a comfortable lying position.

Respectful. Protective. He won't even hold her without permission.

"Guide Aetherion toward headquarters," Arthur instructed Gates.

"That direction," Gates pointed northeast toward the city centre. "About fifteen kilometres."

Commercial district.

Aetherion's wings spread wide, each membrane stretching dozens of meters across. The sight was simultaneously beautiful and apocalyptic.

"Hold on!" the dragon called cheerfully before launching skyward with earth-shaking force.

WHOOSH!

The ascent was smoother than any aircraft Gates had experienced. Aetherion's flight felt natural, controlled, as if gravity were merely a suggestion he chose to ignore.

The city spread below them in ruins and smoke. Buildings stood damaged but not destroyed, survivors moving through streets like ants in a disturbed nest.

Humanity is adapting and fighting back.

Several drones emerged from concealed positions, their cameras tracking the dragon's flight path with their lenses.

Arthur's perception detected the surveillance immediately. His spatial manipulation lashed out with force, not giving the drones a chance to escape.

CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!

The drones exploded in showers of sparks and plastic fragments.

But then understanding hit him like cold water. He had made a huge mistake; he might have been caught on the military's surveillance cameras.

Think, Arthur. Solutions, not problems.

Arthur's spatial awareness expanded, detecting more drones approaching from multiple vectors.

Damage control. Immediately.

Arthur activated a more sophisticated application of his spatial manipulation. Instead of destroying every surveillance camera, he bent light around their position using controlled gravitational fields.

Optical refraction. Invisibility through physics.

The effect was immediate. Aetherion's massive form vanished from all spectrums, becoming invisible to cameras, eyes, and electronic sensors.

Complete stealth. Problem solved.

"Whoa!" Aetherion's voice carried amazement. "These things can fly without wings!"

Gates felt his stomach lurch as they became incorporeal shadows flying through the blue sky. "Arthur, what did you do?"

"I made us invisible, this will prevent complications we don't need right now," Arthur replied tersely. "The last thing we need is footage of you being beside me, and in the city. I wouldn't be surprised if the military decided to nuke the whole area, just to kill me."

"How long can you maintain this?"

"As long as necessary."

Below them, confused drone operators searched the empty sky for targets that had simply vanished. Military radar painted nothing but atmospheric disturbances.

Perfect concealment.

Arthur guided Charlotte's floating form closer to his position.

The headquarters building appeared ahead—a gleaming tower of glass and steel that had somehow survived the chaos intact.

Money buys the best defenses.

"There," Gates pointed toward the landing pad atop the fifty-story structure. "Executive helipad. Private access to the top floors."

Aetherion began his descent with the grace of falling silk, his massive form settling onto the reinforced platform without disturbing so much as a potted plant.

Arthur maintained their invisibility until all external surveillance had been neutralised.

"Excellent work, Aetherion," Arthur praised his summon as they dismounted.

The dragon practically glowed with pride. "Thank you, Master!"

Meanwhile...

Specialist Rodriguez stared at his monitor screen with trembling fingers, his face pale as death. The drone footage played on repeat, each frame more impossible than the last.

A fucking dragon. An actual dragon.

The creature's void-black scales absorbed light like living shadow, its massive wings stretching across the Detroit skyline with majesty.

Why is there a fucking dragon flying through the skys of Detroit!

Rodriguez reached for his secure phone with hands that shook like leaves. The call connected on the first ring.

"Sir, we have a Code Black situation. Priority Alpha. I need immediate escalation to Command."

The higher-ups need to see this. Now.

Colonel Hawthorne stood before the wall-mounted displays, his facial expression extremely grim as the drone footage played across multiple screens.

Dragons...

Behind him, the Pentagon's finest minds clustered around conference tables laden with classified reports and tactical assessments. General Morrison occupied the head chair, his four stars visible.

"Analysis?" Hawthorne's voice cut through the stunned silence.

"Wingspan approximately fifteen meters," Captain Stevens reported, her voice steady despite the obvious shock. "Its flight speed is incredibly fast, faster than most planes."

Major Blake leaned forward "The creature seemed to be carrying multiple passengers. Human forms, though facial identification proved impossible due to distance and image quality."

Who rides dragons in downtown Detroit?

Hawthorne's jaw tightened as implications crashed through his tactical mind. "Location analysis?"

"Detroit metropolitan area. Its take-off area is currently unknown."

The room fell silent except for the ventilation systems humming with artificial life. Each officer processed information that challenged fundamental understanding of reality.

Hawthorne detected the obvious emotional stress radiating from his staff. Fear. Uncertainty.

We're not the dominant force anymore.

"Sir," Major Blake spoke carefully, "there's only one individual with documented capabilities matching this display."

Here it comes.

"Arthur Fate."

The name hung in the air like a sword waiting to fall. Every person in the room had studied the classified files, witnessed footage of impossible demonstrations.

Fateless. The anomaly.

General Morrison's expression darkened.

"Elaborate. Why would Arthur Fate be the one who is commanding this dragon?"

Blake activated holographic displays showing Arthur's known abilities. "Upon detection by our drones, the dragon and those it disappeared after destroying the drone. They vanished instantly; they must have used spatial manipulation. That's something Arthur Fate could do, based on our data."

"Furthermore, Fateless was also recorded to have a summoning ability. It's one of his most well-known abilities that he has used since the beginning of his journey to power. His known summons were a hawk and a boar."