Prologue
Dai Hale's alarm blared at 6:30 a.m., a digital chime that sounded like a retro video game. He groaned, fumbling for his phone, and silenced it with a practiced swipe.
Another day, another round of pretending to be a functioning adult, he thought, rolling over to find Ben already sitting by the bed, tail thumping expectantly.
"Alright, alright, breakfast first," Dai mumbled, rubbing sleep from his eyes. Ben barked once, as if to say, "Finally!"
The apartment was small but comfortable, decorated with shelves of manga, collectible figures, and a few too many monitors. Dai shuffled into the kitchen, stepping over a stray plushie, and poured kibble into Ben's bowl. He started his own morning ritual: coffee brewing, toast popping, and a quick scan of overnight security alerts on his phone.
Let's see… attempted breach from Brazil, phishing email flagged, and—oh, someone tried to brute-force the HR portal again. Classic.
Ben finished eating and nudged Dai's leg with his nose. "Walk time, huh?" Dai smiled, grabbing Ben's leash and his favorite faded hoodie—the one with the pixelated dragon on the back.
Outside, the city was just waking up. Dai liked these quiet moments: the world felt manageable, and Ben's enthusiasm was contagious. They passed the same neighbors every morning—Mrs. Yamamoto with her poodle, the jogger with neon shoes, the barista setting up the corner café. Dai nodded politely, but rarely spoke.
Small talk: the ultimate boss battle.
Back home, Dai showered, dressed, and settled into his home office. Three monitors glowed with lines of code and security dashboards. He sipped his coffee, feeling a little more like himself.
This is my domain. Here, I'm the hero. Or at least the final firewall between the company and chaos.
Ben curled up at his feet, snoring softly. Dai glanced down, smiling. "You know, Ben, if life were an anime, you'd probably be my talking animal sidekick. Maybe with a monocle."
Ben snorted in his sleep, and Dai chuckled.
Yeah, right. Like anything that interesting would ever happen to me.
He dove into work, but his mind wandered. He thought about the stories he loved—worlds where ordinary people became heroes, where adventure was just a portal away.
Maybe tonight I'll start that new series. Or maybe… just maybe… something unexpected will happen.
As Dai scanned the latest firewall logs, his focus was interrupted by the familiar chime of a Slack notification. "Morning, Dai! Mind looking at the server logs from last night? Noticed a weird traffic spike." It was Linh from DevOps, her profile picture a grinning Shiba Inu in a hard hat. Dai grinned, fingers already poised above the keyboard. "On it! Give me five. Probably just another botnet, but I'll dig a little."
Hardly a moment passed before his calendar pinged—a gentle reminder that the weekly security sync was about to begin. The familiar grid of faces appeared on his second monitor, half of them still silhouetted in morning gloom. "Alright folks, let's keep this one quick," said Maya, their team lead, hair bundled into a hasty knot. "Dai, anything we should worry about?"
"Couple of brute-force attempts on HR, same as usual. I'm digging into a traffic spike for Linh, but nothing critical so far." Dai's voice was calm, practiced. Ben, sensing the meeting's lull, raised his head and huffed expectantly. The team's chat burst to life with a few GIFs—Raj's signature dancing banana, Linh's celebratory confetti.
After the call, a video chat request blinked on screen. Raj's background was as chaotic as ever—sticky notes, tangled wires, a mug that read "Root Access Only." "Hey, Dai! Got a sec? The HR portal's acting up again. This time, users actually got an error code instead of just forgetting their logins." Dai snorted. "Progress! Send me the details."
Raj sent over screenshots, and Dai settled into his groove: logs on one monitor, incident tracker on the other, a troubleshooting doc open for good measure. "You're a lifesaver," Raj typed. "If you fix this, coffee's on me next week." Dai replied with a thumbs-up emoji and a joking, "I'll hold you to that."
Ben, having decided work was sufficiently interesting, climbed into Dai's lap for a better view. "Sorry, Raj, my QA assistant demands attention," Dai said, panning his camera down to Ben's soulful eyes. Raj laughed. "If only management understood how much productivity we owe to our pets."
As the morning wore on, Slack threads multiplied—Linh sharing a graph of traffic anomalies, Maya updating everyone on a new phishing simulation, Ana from legal chiming in about compliance. Dai toggled between channels, offering advice, sharing memes, and even fielding a lunchtime poll: Which anime would the team survive longest in?
By noon, the to-do list had grown longer but somehow felt lighter. Dai leaned back, stretching, and glanced at Ben, who was now sprawled in a patch of sunlight. The sense of connection—even through screens—reminded Dai that maybe, just maybe, the daily grind had its own small adventures.
The day wound down much like any other. Dai logged off from work, stretching his arms above his head until his back popped. Ben, sensing freedom, leapt up and did a little circle by the door—his not-so-subtle way of demanding a walk.
"Alright, partner. Let's see what the city's got for us tonight," Dai said, grabbing Ben's leash and his battered sneakers.
The evening air was cool, tinged with the scent of rain on concrete. Dai let Ben lead the way, their route familiar: past the neon-lit ramen shop, the corner store with the grumpy cat in the window, and the park where kids played until the streetlights flickered on. Dai nodded at a few neighbors, but mostly kept to himself, lost in thought.
I wonder if anyone else feels like they're just… waiting for something. Like life's a loading screen and the real game hasn't started yet.
Back home, Dai microwaved leftovers and queued up the latest episode of his favorite anime. Ben curled up beside him on the couch, head resting on Dai's thigh. The apartment glowed with the soft light of monitors and the flicker of animated heroes on the screen.
Dai scrolled through his phone, half-watching, half daydreaming.
Another day, another adventure for someone else. Maybe tomorrow I'll finally start that manga I bought. Or maybe I'll actually talk to someone new at work. Yeah, right.
He glanced at Ben, who looked up with soulful eyes. "You know, buddy, if I ever got sucked into a fantasy world, you'd come with me, right? I'd need someone to keep me from getting eaten by slimes."
Ben huffed, as if in agreement, and Dai smiled.
Later, Dai washed up, brushed his teeth, and set his alarm. He lay in bed, staring at the ceiling, the city's hum fading into the background.
What would it be like to be the hero? To have a purpose?
He closed his eyes, not knowing that tonight, his dreams would finally answer.
Later that night, Dai lay in bed, the city's hum fading into the background. Ben was curled up at his feet, already snoring. Dai stared at the ceiling, mind drifting between the day's small victories and the endless scroll of social media.
If I could wish for anything… Dai thought, half-joking, half-hoping someone out there was listening. Telekinesis would be cool. Move stuff without getting up. Technokinesis—now that's a cheat code. Control tech with my mind, maybe even create it. And teleportation… skip the morning commute, blink to the ramen shop, or just disappear when things get awkward.
He chuckled softly, feeling a little silly. "Three powers, Ben. That's all I'd need. Maybe then I'd finally be special."
Ben huffed in his sleep, as if in agreement.
Dai's eyelids grew heavy. The world blurred, and he slipped into sleep.
Dai opened his eyes to a world of pure white—no walls, no floor, just endless brightness. He felt weightless, as if floating in a sea of light. Ben was nowhere to be seen, but Dai sensed he wasn't alone.
A voice echoed around him, warm and clear, with a hint of laughter beneath its command.
"Dai Hale. You wish to be special, don't you?"
Dai spun around, searching for the source. "Who's there?"
Great, now I'm hearing voices. At least it's not a clown.
The voice continued, friendly yet unmistakably in control. "You asked for three powers: telekinesis, technokinesis, and teleportation. Ambitious choices. Are you sure you're ready for the responsibility?"
Dai hesitated, nerves prickling. Is this really happening? Did I just manifest a cosmic genie?
"I mean… I was kind of joking. But also, yeah, I guess I am. Or I want to be."
A gentle, playful chuckle echoed. "Jokes have power, Dai. Wishes even more so. I am here to help you grow—but you must earn what you desire. Each power comes with a challenge. Each challenge will help you discover who you truly are."
Dai swallowed, excitement and anxiety swirling inside him. "So… what do I call you?"
The voice softened, teasing. "Names have power too. For now, just listen. Your first quest awaits."
The brightness pulsed, and Dai felt himself being pulled forward, deeper into the light.
Okay, Dai. Don't mess this up. Or do. That's what protagonists do, right?
The adventure had begun—not in another world, but in the dreams that would change everything.