Author's note: This is my first serious fic. I got tired of reading everything out there and not contributing my own ideas… so this is how I picture a realistic Pokemon world. The structure of how things work will be explained as each chapter goes by. This is still a trainer fic, first and foremost though. Please rate and review, anything is helpful! Thank you D
The sweat slowly accumulated on the brow of the tense boy, sitting hunched over a paper, scribbling in answers for his last written examination. He furiously punched numbers into his calculator, trying to determine the effectiveness of a Sleep Powder launched at a rate of 12 kilometers per hour, with a wind blowing at four kilometers per hour behind the attack. Said Pokemon's foe: a Persian who had used Psych Up as its second last move against a Ninjask it had defeated in three turns. The accumulated perspiration dripped into his large, brown eyes as he threw his head back in frustration. This was the last question, and his chance to compete in the practical examination hosted by the Pokemon Institute of Goldenrod (P.I. of Goldenrod) depended on answering this question correctly.
"Alright, so Sleep Powder normally has an accuracy of 75 and is usually launched at eight kilometers per hour. Raised wind speed for spore-based attacks means a raised accuracy so… 12 kilometers divided by 8 kilometers is 3/2, so that mans 75 times 3/2 is 112.5, but all attacks are capped at 100 anyway. But since when can Persian learn Psych Up? Is this a trick question? What if it's one of those I saw in the practice that were answered with 'cannot be possible – Pokemon does not learn mentioned move(s)'? I'll just work out the answer assuming Persian can learn it… Argh! Ninjask's ability is Speed Boost, so that means it gains one level of speed, up to a maximum of six, per turn. Persian defeated it in three turns, and used Psych Up on its second turn. Persian's base speed is 115, while Ninjask's is 160, so Ninjask easily attacked first on turn one and turn two. Wait, Speed Boost only activates at the end of a turn, so after both attacks have been launched… So Persian only got one Speed Boost after using Psych Up! That translates to a 16.67 increase in speed and evasion, so then that multiplied by Persian's base speed is 19.2… So subtracting that from the capped max. accuracy of an attack… is 100 – 19.2 80.8! The Sleep Powder will only be 81 effective, roughly…"
The boy quickly scanned the answers, and his panic grew as he could not see the solution he had worked out amongst those available in the multiple choice… until selection 'E: 81'. He figured he did not have the time to double check the validity of his answer, and bubbled in his answer sheet with that choice. He did one final scan of the multiple choice card to check if it was all bubbled in with the correct information, and with that the mechanical voice of the Pokemon Institute Professor Assistant, PIPA for short, announced that time was over. Another PIPA, dressed in the P.I. of Goldenrod colours (bright yellow and maroon) started collecting the tests, row by row.
"George Rohen?" asked the assistant as she picked up his paper. "May I see some ID?" she asked as George pulled out his wallet to give her his trainer's license, while training to contain his eagerness to leave the room. The assistant verified that the name on the exam matched the person writing it, gave the jumpy seventeen-year-old back his identification, and moved on. George hurriedly collected his scrap sheets and various other test material and walked to the front of the large, coliseum-like examination room. He looked back at the professional-level trainer hopefuls and realized he was not the only one terrified to death about getting into the most prestigious Pokemon Institute in Johto. He stuffed everything into his backpack and left the room, feeling uneasy.
As he walked to the entrance of the university, he saw his best friend waiting for him. She had just finished writing the test too and he could tell by the look on her face that she felt intimidated and excited just by being in the building they hoped to represent. Her curly brown hair, reflecting red in the sunlight streaming in through the atrium's skylight, bounced as she ran over to George. He could feel the warmth of her light brown skin as she tightly embraced him, and the softness from her navy blue shirt. She looked up at him with a worried look in her coffee coloured eyes and he just held her tighter. It had been a tough road getting to this stage and neither of them could imagine not getting into the Institute, let alone being separated for the next few years of their life.
"We did fine Leefy! Stop worrying so much, remember how Mrs. Ratik said you'd give yourself a hernia? Really starting to believe it right about now," George chuckled, sending the vibrations into the shorter girl's body.
"How do you possibly know though? Tens of thousands of people apply to the university per year and only 200 kids get into the program we applied for… Last year, there was a 5 acceptance rate for the Bachelor of Combined Studies program at P.I. of G. How can we be so sure that we'll get in? That test was BRUTAL – and there's more to go if we scored within the top 500 of that," she complained. "And I swear, you need to come up with a better nickname for me. How do you get Leefy from Aliya? Honestly…"
That's when George stopped the hug. She had insulted one of his nicknames, a crime on the scale of treason. The slightly lanky boy stood there, arms crossed over his white shirt. Aliya told him to stop being silly, and ruffled his jet-black hair.
"Hey stop! You'll mess up my bangs!" George cried out. He swept the hair on his forehead back the left side of his face, all the while thinking that he'd need a trim soon as the hair reached past his eyebrows a bit.
"George, stop being fussy. You care more about your looks than most girls I know," Aliya sighed.
"When you look this beautiful, it's hard not to love," he winked at her, glad to change the subject. The examinations were stressful enough and there was no need for them to worry any more than necessary. There were only three people from his high school chosen to proceed with the examinations required to get into this Institute, out of dozens who applied. They knew they were far from over though – they still had to score very well on this examination for one more test, after which the acceptances would be sent out.
The two friends walked outside hand-in-hand, into downtown Goldenrod. Their home city never looked better; the sun was shining bright onto the jam-packed streets and all sorts of entertainment were within walking distance. They had missed classes for a day to go downtown to write the test, and had the rest of this time to themselves. They found a Starbucks Coffee shop one block from the university and headed out, hoping that results were released soon. The nervousness was already killing both of them.
"Aliya. Check. Email. NOW!" George yelled into the portable phone.
"Alright, alright hold on… OH MY GOD! OH MY FRIGGIN GOD! YOU TOO?!" she screeched.
"YEAH! Battles are this FRIDAY. That gives us two days to prepare. TWO DAYS. Isn't that insane? These people have to be crazy, how can 500 kids compete for 200 spots and prepare within a span of TWO days? They must have told the out-of-city kids sooner so they could arrange transportation here… Geeze. I'm gonna go study."
"Me too. Let's not tell anyone at school until we know… if we make it through this or not. I don't want to feel pressure from a bunch of people expecting me to succeed, or hate mail from those who didn't get this far."
"Agreed. Take the Magnet Train with me downtown Friday?"
"Do you even have to ask? I should pick out my outfit now actually… this is gonna be awesome!" Aliya ecstatically stated as she hung up.
"Yeah, take care and goodbye to you too… some people, heh," George chuckled. He was going to call his parents at work and let them know before he started analyzing the attacks, abilities, types, and more of over 300 Pokemon. It was going to be a strenuous two days.
"Welcome to the Pokemon Institute of Goldenrod's seventh annual admission exam for the Bachelor of Combined Studies program! While still new, this program has gained a remarkable fame within the last few years for its innovation and the amount of successful graduating trainers! Now, give it up to Gym Leader Clair, a Johto native and one of the first graduates from this program!" announced the smartly-dressed Master of Ceremonies, passing the microphone to the sapphire haired beauty from Blackthorn City.
"Thank you and again, welcome fans! As you know, this will be a randomized matchup using Pokemon the trainers receive approximately only 30 minutes before their match. The judges will evaluate each battle and 200 of these skilled teenagers will gain admission to the Pokemon Institute of Goldenrod. Remember: a loss does not necessarily mean the trainer is rejected. Marks are given based on knowledge, style, battling under pressure and collaboration with their rental Pokemon. Let the battles begin!" announced Clair, waving to the crowd gathered in the Pokemon stadium and taking a seat in the judge's box, located in the first few stands of the stadium.
George was waiting inside the stadium, watching the different fields on ten screens. Battles were capped at no longer than 20 minutes, to stop any struggle battles or things of the like. Matches went on all day, and once again, he was allowed to miss school to participate. He was glad he had an earlier match; waiting too long after watching some of the already heated battles would have torn him up inside.
He'd been given two random Pokemon, standardized at a medium level. They knew some advanced attacks for their stage though, and he knew he'd do well in his upcoming match. Aliya was somewhere in the throng that surrounded George, but amidst so many trainers it was hard to keep track of who was where. He decided watching the battles was too nerve-wracking and started pacing around the room, going over his Pokemon's attacks and weaknesses.
A tall blond girl, with shoulder length hair, noticed the brooding boy from the couch she was reclining on. Her keen blue-green eyes recognized him as the one she'd been talking to on an online forum regarding admissions to the P.I. of Goldenrod. She smirked when she saw what he was wearing. It was exactly as she had pictured him: a pair of tight dark blue jeans, plaid running shoes, and a grey checked dress shirt that reminded her of a cowboy. The purple, fingerless gloves only added to his somewhat eclectic attire. They had been talking for a while and after they found out they'd both passed the first examination, were even more excited to try and get in. The boy stopped pacing and looked around at the room and the two caught each other's eyes.
"SAM!?" George yelled from a fair distance away. The blonde girl smiled; so he recognized her too. She stood up and adjusted her blue and white plaid shorts and pulled her long sleeved, green v-neck shirt down a bit. George noted that even though she was wearing brown flats, she was still very tall, perhaps only three or so inches shorter than his six feet.
"Hi, Goldenrod sucks. New Bark Town is soooo much better," Sam joked. It was an ongoing joke that she would defend her hometown, the capital of Johto, while George persisted on convincing her that Goldenrod was the absolute best place to live in.
"Don't get me started on this. I am not afraid to fight a female… though I don't think I can classify you in that category. OW DAMN!" the freshly wounded teenage boy shouted.
"Please don't question my femininity, or I just might have to question yours."
"What's that supposed to mean?" he asked as he narrowed his eyes at her.
"Oh nothing… Hey, they just called you, maybe you should head on out?" George couldn't tell if Sam could get any more sarcastic, but that thought was wiped out of his head when he heard his battle being announced again.
"Yeah. Probably. Um. I'll see you soon? Nice actually meeting you, heh. Oh, and good luck on your match!" George added as he tried to extend his departure.
"If you don't show up within five minutes, they disqualify you," she said bluntly. George ran for Stadium Three, embarrassed that he was always nearly late for everything. He ran past various trainers, in states of worry, defeat and pure happiness and looked for the staircase that would lead to where he would battle. He spotted it and started climbing the stairs, three at a time and ran through a corridor to the grassy field. He stopped as he arrived and ran to the judge's table. They verified that he was indeed, George Rohen, and asked him to go to the side opposite the other trainer. George looked at his surroundings as he approached the slightly raised platform he was going to battle from, and saw a meager audience of about 60 or so people in the small section of bleachers available, including his parents. Most of this stadium was used for the field, which was extensive. The fact that all the stadiums had no roof for this set of battles accommodated for flying types, which was perfect given George's random selection. He glanced at his opponent for the first time and noticed a confident looking boy, about his height or slightly taller with messy brown hair and a pale complexion. George ogled for a second, but knew this was neither the time nor place to stare. He also noted the electronic board to his right, mounted above the entrance he had come from. It showed his picture on the right side against a green background, his name and two empty slots below his picture, probably to signify the two Pokemon he would use. Suddenly, an electronic circle in the middle of the board comprised of three red triangles and three green triangles started to light up and stopped on a red piece.
"When the Red Trainer, Darren, is ready, he may release the first Pokemon," the referee, located underneath the board, directed.
"Alright let's make this count. Go, Sandslash!" the cocky trainer announced as he lobbed a red and white ball into the dirt and in a beam of blinding white light, released the pangolin Pokemon.
"First up, don't let me down Fearow!" George yelled, throwing the sphere high into the air, releasing a ferocious light brown bird, with a curved, wicked beak.
"Start off with Rock Slide!" The Sandslash curled herself into a ball and started rolling on the ground, releasing a cloud of dirt into the air. She then uncurled itself and her eyes glowed a deep shade of brown as she transformed the matter of the dirt into solid rock and hurled them at the stationary Fearow.
"Fearow, Steel Wing the rocks, then Aerial Ace!" The giant bird's wings glowed pale silver as he struck the oncoming rocks and reduced them back into dust. While he was surrounded in the dust, Sandslash prepared for an attack to come at her, but due to the Aerial Ace, Fearow disappeared from the cloud and struck Sandslash's left side.
"Sandslash, quick uppercut Slash before the bird gets away!" Darren's Pokemon obeyed as she swung her left claws, now glowing white, up swiftly and hooked Fearow right in the beak, sending him flying to the other side of the stadium.
"Fearow, turn it into an Assurance!" It seemed that this particular attack's power doubled when hit and so Fearow recovered from the blow while flapping his giant wings once to stop from hitting the stadium wall. He seemed to look very positive of the damage he would deal in the next attack. There was an ominous glint in his eyes that seemed to paralyze the Sandslash, even while Darren shouted command after command at her. Fearow then full-body slammed into Sandlash, knocking it back into the stadium wall.
"Before it can recover Fearow, finish her with a Fury Attack!"
"Use Sand Tomb to trap him then aim Brick Break right at his beak!" Sandslash conjured up a tornado of sand that swirled around the terror bird and one could only see a shadow beneath the veil of sand covering him. Sandslash then aimed a closed right fist at the other Pokemon, but was then struck by a volley of pecks that seemed to come out of nowhere. She dropped to the floor, exhausted and defeated.
"Fearow's shadow was right in there, how did it disappear and attack?" Darren angrily screamed, recalling his fallen Pokemon in a stream of red light. On the board, one of the red slots dimmed, signifying the defeat of one of the now furious boy. Both green slots remained bright underneath George's name though.
"I had him use substitute, then carry on with the Fury Attack planned for before, tricking you into thinking there was a real Fearow in the Sand Tomb."
"Well, don't enjoy your victory yet. I choose Magneton!" A metallic Pokemon, comprised of three metal balls, two magnets on each, attached to each other in a triangular formation appeared. "Thunderbolt that Fearow!" Electricity seemed to gather in the humid weather and sparks surrounded the Magneton as it released a stream of electricity towards Fearow.
"Endure and Assurance one last time!" Fearow looked very concentrated as the yellow jolt hit him, but seemed to withstand the attack, and once again looked very confident as it threw itself onto the other Pokemon. The attack didn't seem to do nearly as much damage as last time though and while Fearow was in close-range, Magneton unleased three beams of energy at it. They hit and Fearow finally fell.
"Return, you did an awesome job. I'm really proud of you," George complimented as he recalled his fallen warrior. It was his turn now to have one of the slots underneath his picture dim. "But now, I choose Loudred!" With a toss of his sphere, a purple howling beast materialized. He had Mickey Mouse like ears and a large yellow mouth and made a loud, annoying roar as he acclimatized to his surroundings.
"Use supersonic!" both trainers yelled simultaneously. Large waves of sound were emitted from both Pokemon, making their way over to the other. Magneton got hit by Loudred's dead on and seemed to have a hard time maintaining its position in the air. Loudred was completely unaffected however.
"I can't believe I forgot Loudred was immune to sound based moves… Magneton, snap out of confusion! Use Lock-On!" Magneton tried focusing on the howling Pokemon by instead sparked itself a bit.
"Loudred, use Water Pulse, make sure it stays confused and can't hit you. One hit might be strong enough to knock you out," George warned. Loudred nodded to his trainer, then expelled two large rings of water interspersed with sound waves at the magnetic Pokemon.
"Protect!" Magneton seemed to understand this bit and raised a shielding green barrier that stopped the Water Pulse from hitting. "Now, try Lock-On again." Magneton seemed to be able to concentrate this time and marked Loudred with a red dot.
"While Magneton is busy trying to concentrate on you, use some more sound to damage it – Uproar!" Loudred started making a large commotion as it launched more clear waves that struck the Magneton, one after another, but they seemed to not affect it greatly.
"Your attack won't miss now. Finish this with Zap Cannon!" Darren grinned; he was confident he had this in the bag now as Magneton formed a large sphere of bright yellow electricity. It was preparing to launch when George shouted out an order to his Pokemon.
"Loudred, counter with your strongest move… Overheat!" A bright white flame, interspersed with red and orange, formed in Loudred's mouth and was released as one gigantic jet of fire, that hit the ball of electricity aimed straight at him. The two attacks exploded on impact, and the stadium shook slightly, nearly toppling George off of his platform. Smoke was billowing and both trainers were shouting to their Pokemon, trying to check and see how there were. Finally, the smoke cleared and there were both Pokemon, clearly knocked out. George jumped off the platform and rushed onto the field to check if Loudred was undergoing any major burns or shock. He picked him up and dusted him off. Loudred weakly cried out and smiled a bit. It was clear that he was happy to have battled for such a compassionate trainer. George thanked Loudred and recalled the Pokemon back into his Pokeball. The last two remaining lit slots on the electronic board dimmed simultaneously, as the word DRAW appeared,
"It looks like we have a tie folks! What an intense match, with such a suspenseful conclusion! Thank you for the battle Darren and George, you may return your rental Pokemon to the judges. Decisions will be sent out sometime shortly, enjoy the rest of your stay here at Goldenrod City!" the MC announced.
Both trainers returned their Pokemon to the judges and turned to exit the field. The next match would commence shortly and George wanted to watch Aliya or Sam's battles with his parents.
"Hey, dude, that was an intense fight you put up there. I never would have thought I could have lost with a type advantage," Darren complimented the other trainer.
"Thanks, you had good control over your Pokemon too. You knew exactly how to push them to their full potential, it was evident how they kept on fighting for you even when I thought I'd had you cornered," George smiled at him.
"Had to stay on my toes that whole battle, that's for sure. Good luck and hope I see you around next year." They had reached the waiting room George was in before and Darren exited. George looked at one of the various televisions broadcasting the ongoing matches and saw Aliya finishing her battle, victorious with an Ivysaur. He did see Sam just entering Stadium Eight though, and decided to call his parents and tell them to meet him there.
After a short walk and one phone call later, George was sitting in the middle of his mother and father at the bleachers of Stadium Eight. The short middle-aged adults were telling their son that they were proud of how he handled himself out there, but that he should have won for sure. He smiled and looked out as Sam was defending her Makuhita from a Scyther's Slash attacks. She finally let her Pokemon take an attack, then grab Scyther, locking the two scythes together, and launching up then throwing the Pokemon roughly done to the ground. A Vital Throw attack, carefully executed, left the Scyther unconscious. George was astonished – the belly drum and all the little attacks Sam was using throughout the match must have whittled away at Scyther's health enough so that one final attack could bring it down. The other trainer released a Quilava, but nearly as soon as it materialized, Sam was quick to the chase and had Makuhita slam his fist into the ground, causing it to ripple and shake. The Earthquake immediately knocked the fire Pokemon around and closer to the pudgy Pokemon as Makuhita raised a glowing, bright white and red fist and slammed it into Quilava. The other Pokemon looked confused as she stood up, but immediately fell down again. Sam had maneuvered the Pokemon over, without moving itself, knowing that Quilava could outspeed her Pokemon, and smashed it with a Dynamicpunch. At maxed out attack, that was more than enough to knock it out.
"And we have our next winner, Sam Windsworth! Congratulations and excellent strategy, if I do say so myself," declared a different enthusiastic MC. Sam breathed a very large sigh of relief and grinned, winning with just one Pokemon. She recalled her Pokemon and both trainers returned the rentals to the judges and left the field. George's parents asked him why he was so excited when he saw her win, and so he explained how they'd been talking lately. A look crossed their faces, and they asked him, quite straightforward, if they were dating.
"Mother, not every girl I am friends with is automatically my girlfriend. In fact, not ANY of the girls I'm friends with is my girlfriend. Nor ever will be. Ok?" George clarified. They laughed and asked if he wanted to leave for lunch; they'd taken the day off work to watch his test and now wanted to spend some time with their son. George agreed. He'd see Aliya soon enough and they could talk about their battles later. For now, it'd be best to take his mind off of everything. It would still be some weeks before the acceptances came out and he was trying desperately not to freak out. He knew that each day would feel like forever to live through, in anticipation and worry. Patience was not a virtue of George's and even during lunch at a local bistro, he would sigh, trying to determine his chances of getting in.
The week dragged by, and one hopeful student had posted on the Pokemon forums a proposed acceptance date. They all got their hopes up… and still didn't find out on that day. Two days from then, just when George was least expecting it after such a recent fright, there was a mad rush of posts on the forum.
I GOT IN, I GOT IN, OH MY GOD! read the vast majority of them.
How!?! George asked. How do you know?
CHECK YOUR EMAIL! CHECK IT CHECK IT CHECK IT!! everyone urged.
For the first time in his life, George was afraid to face the truth. He typed in the URL for the website, entered his email and password… and clicked enter. What would await him would either destroy him or make him the happiest person in the world.
He clicked on his inbox, getting excited and tense as he saw a new message… from Sam. There was nothing in there from the Pokemon Institute of Goldenrod. Knowing that Sam's email was probably about her acceptance chilled him even more. He could feel his soul being ripped apart as he closed the browser and broke down in a fit of tears.
George knew some things had a happy ending, and he was finally expecting to get one of his own. It was never the case before, and never would be he realized. He got off the computer and sat down on the floor, curled up and sobbing. It couldn't get worse than this.