Damn, I'm just churning out episodes for this story...it's been, what, a little over a month since I updated? That's pretty good...Again, don't get used to it. My motivation for a new story usually starts out high until it peckers out as time goes on. So enjoy it while you guys can. It was quite interesting to see your answers to the first question about Avery's specialization. I had a feeling that that was what most of you were going to say. However...I cannot tell you guys the answer! At least not yet! So you guys have to wait even longer to see his, and the other Elites', specialization! Hooray! That is to be expected!

But anyways, thank you for all your lovely reviews! I'm extremely glad to see how much all of you are invested in this story. It helps with the motivation a lot, so kudos to you guys! You the real MVP! I had some fun writing this chapter, especially since I introduce a little little more special somebodies. You guys could probably guess who, but I won't say anymore than curse words. And before I let you go ham, there's a little little something you guys can do for me. On my profile, there's a poll on what kind of badges you want Duewel's gyms to have. Yes, I know it's a little silly, but I really do want your opinion on it as I can't decide myself whether I like the roundish shape or the line-ish shape. What do you guys think? But anyways, I won't keep you any longer. Hope you enjoy the story!

Where we last left off: The students have just finished running a series of tests when one late student, Forrest Mcintosh, comes in late. Now he has to prove to the champion of Duewel that he really does belong in the group. Will he be able to survive Miwa's impromptu challenge? Or will he return home defeated?

Who's That Pokémon Answer: Weavile!

The following OCs besides Barrett Fye do not belong to me, but I have received permission to tor-I mean, write about in this story of mine. Yes...write about...

1. Barrett Fye - The Defective Captor (made by bladewielder05)

2. Blake Noxic - The Outlaw of Redemption (made by Fool Arcana Kaiju)

3. Camelot Groove - The Orator of Insurrections (made by 5050railtime)

4. Evelyn Clarke - The Forlorn Gamer (made by confections101)

5. Evelyn Nnoko - The Ice Angel (made by The Gaming Geek Gina)

6. Forrest Mcintosh - The Ersatz Idler (made by TheBigMoist31)

7. Genevieve Nightingale - Diana's Paradox (made by Lady Kiko-chan)

8. Jack Aisen Yuki - The Child Guardian (made by Luchux)

9. Malcolm Cunningham - The Strategist of Anodyne Perils (made by Cloak192)

10. Marius Seifer - The Boy who Crossed the Gap (made by Insanity's Jewel)

11. Morgan Drake - The Apathetic Tactician (made by Ethereal Hunters)

12. Neil Berenson - The Phantasmal Trickster (made by PainX65)

13. Neusa Amorette Morena Garciacano - The Ardent Marionette (made by Kuroi Bara-676)

14. Rhys Dignam - The Venomous Meister (made by kennysdead)

15. Robert Orre Yew - Lado's Mask (made by W.R. Winters)

16. Stylen Chrial - The Concierge of Hysterias (made by 71526483)

17. Violetta Hallows - Sunny Dolly (made by Scissor-Snipper)

18. Zion Voltage -The Technical Pacifist (made by ssjzohan)

Tangled Webs of Ariados

"Rrrrruuff!" The rock type Pokémon appeared from Forrest's pokeball, barking up a storm. At a first glance, it seemed that the battle was Forrest's for the taking. However Miwa didn't seem all that shaken by the obvious type advantage between the two opposing Pokémon nor did she pay attention to how generally weak her own rental Pokémon was. Probably because she knew that all the rental Pokémon's level went up to a certain number and seemed quite confident in her own skill. She stared at the student, silently signaling for his action. Forrest wasted no time as he called out the first move of the battle:

"Rockruff, use Leer!"

The puppy Pokémon responded immediately. It narrowed its eyes at the little worm Pokémon in front of it to lower the defense stat. Caterpie let out a small shriek at the fearsome look from Rockruff. It curled up defensively despite that being a futile move.

"Use Leer again!"

"String Shot at its eyes."

As the rockruff attempted to lower the caterpie's defense again, Caterpie instead shot strands of silk right in Rockruff's face. The puppy Pokémon, not expecting any type of retaliation, barked in surprise and leapt back a few paces. It pawed at its eyes to get the sticky silk off. A quick second later and Rockruff glared at Caterpie again.

Forrest frowned at the attack. He instinctively felt that if she had wanted to, Miwa would have already used that tactic in the beginning. So why didn't she? He surmised that she was feeling out her opponent, similarly to him, to see what they would do in certain situations. His instincts also told him that the initial Leer was going to be the only status move she would allow to take effect. He decided to test that theory out.

"Sand Attack!"

"String Shot at the leg."

He knew it. As his rockruff turned to kick up sand into the caterpie's eyes, the little worm Pokémon shot another thread towards Rockruff's right hind leg. Caterpie reared its head backwards, causing Rockruff's leg to stick out. The rock type snarled in annoyance as now it could only try to keep steady on its three grounded paws. For some reason it couldn't pull its right leg down even though only a caterpie was holding it up. Should it do so, the caterpie yanked back even more. Soon enough Rockruff struggled to move forward. Then-.

"Cut it."

"Pie!" the caterpie squealed cheerfully. It finally let go of the String Shot, and Rockruff tumbled forward from the lack of pull behind. Its momentum caused it to fall forward flat on its chin. Forrest cringed slightly at that scene while his fellow students watched with shock, horror, and interest. The professors had a similar reaction to the students as Avery simply smirked with his puffs of smoke.

Rockruff shook its head and leapt to its feet. It turned around to growl intimidatingly at the worm Pokémon. It wanted to rush right in and show the little bug a piece of its mind. However, Forrest's command stopped it from doing anything that might cost them the battle. "Pace yourself, Rockruff. You'll do fine." So far, the student noticed that Miwa didn't do much in the way of attacking. Perhaps she only counterattacked whenever her opponents make a move? It certainly looked like that at the current moment. Either way, Forrest knew that he had to attack eventually, whether he wanted to or not. He pointed towards the opposing Pokémon. "Keep on your toes and use Bite!"

"Counter with Bug Bite," Miwa commanded as Rockruff ran towards her Pokémon. Caterpie didn't react quickly enough to her order, squealing and closing its eyes in pain from the resulting attack. Yet it opened its eyes with a newfound determination. Twisting its long body, it managed to bite Rockruff's leg, prompting the rock type to toss the bug type away from it with a yelp. The caterpie landed, shaken but not stirred. It shook its head quickly to clear away the brief vertigo from the throw. It sat up, and Forrest swore it smirked slightly at his Pokémon.

"Good job," Forrest reassured the puppy. "Use your speed to confuse it! Charge at it with a Tackle!"

Rockruff once again sprinted at Caterpie. At some points, the puppy Pokémon would leapt to a new area, causing Caterpie to look after it. The moment Rockruff saw Caterpie's eyes, it quickly ran to a new spot. This went on for quite some time until the little worm Pokémon started to teeter from the rapid movements. Rockruff took advantage of this and raced at top speed towards its opponent. However, before the rock type could do any damage despite the close distance between the two rental Pokémon, Miwa said a single word:

"Stench."

The word caused a bit of confusion initially. Then Forrest's eyes widened in surprise as his rockruff reeled away from Miwa's caterpie. The poor puppy Pokémon hurried a few paces back before collapsing on the ground to put its paws over its nose. The close proximity combined with the abrupt release of foul odor proved to be too much for Rockruff's powerful nose. It had smelled plenty of bad whiffs before but it never smelled this surprise stench until now. Forrest cursed quietly when he remembered how caterpie could release a horrible odor from its antennae. He should have known that Miwa would something how utilize it to her advantage in this battle.

"Electroweb," came a cold command. Forrest started in surprise, not from the order itself but the fact that Miwa actually initiated an order rather than wait to counterattack. Caterpie leapt into the air and fired a string of electricity at Rockruff. Once the electricity got close, the tip expanded into a web shape that landed right on top of Rockruff. The puppy Pokémon yelped in pain from the shock of the new attack, the sticky web latching onto it tightly. When Caterpie landed, it squeaked in exertion as it jerked its head backwards. The movement swung Rockruff into the air over the bug type and smashed the rock type into the ground. The impact caused dust to fly up, obscuring the audience and battlers' vision. However Miwa didn't need to see to know that the battle was over.

"Rockruff! You all right?!" Forrest called. His eyes attempted to drill holes into the dust but he still couldn't see his rental Pokémon. His worry only grew when he received no answer. Finally the dust dissipated, only to show Rockruff lying there with swirls in its eyes. "Rockruff!" Without waiting for the official end of the battle, the student raced across the field to hold up the rental Pokémon. Miwa watched with some interest as Forrest cradled the tired puppy in his arms. She noticed how his full attention was to the rockruff. She closed her eyes in thought and consideration, weighing her judgment about the late student. Finally she made her decision.

"…hmph. Take Rockruff to the healing machine there," Miwa said as she returned the caterpie. "Then join the other students." Curious murmurs rippled through the group as the champion's statement sunk in. Forrest's head shot up in surprise, an eyebrow raised in confusion. Even though he clearly lost by a landslide, the champion still decided to retract her earlier dismissal of him? While Forrest was grateful for it, he was dangerously inquisitive about her reason for doing so.

"But…" He knew he had to tread carefully here. "I lost."

The champion scoffed, "Don't change my assessment of you with such a stupid statement. I know you're intelligent enough to understand that I wasn't looking at the result. So don't waste my time." Forrest looked at her critically to see if she was joking. Definitely no obscure humor in that serious expression. After another second of uncertainty, the student nodded in gratitude and headed towards yellow machine. Miwa then turned to address the other students. "That will conclude our round robin tournament. Please return the rental Pokémon to Professor Kane and sit down in your seats. We'll debrief you on your assignment."

After a firsthand demonstration of the champion's battle skills, the students hurried to follow her directions. Avery chuckled a bit as he watched them scurry about so they wouldn't incur her wrath. Forrest also moved faster than he did earlier this morning. He was still the last one to take a seat though, nodding to Evelyn Nnoke as he did so. She shook her head slightly at him, signaling that she had a feeling such a thing would have happened. Her schoolmate simply shrugged in answer and she sighed in turn. Miwa waited for a moment to allow the students to settle down a bit. Her eyes roamed the room to inspect some students for a brief moment before moving on again. She tossed her head contemptuously. Then she said:

"While it is obvious that…all of you still have a long way to go, I do see some potential. It might seem that Kane's crazy plan might work after all."

"It was my idea too, Miwa," Mary piped up. The champion made a face towards her friend, who only laughed in response.

"My mistake. I shouldn't have put it past the both of you to come up with such an insane scheme." Miwa turned back to the students. She opened her mouth to speak, but suddenly a violent crash stopped her.

"What's up, bitches?!" Several students jumped in their seat as they didn't expect another interruption after Forrest's entrance. They looked towards the door to see the rather foolish person who decided to come in at this hour. Their eyes widened when they saw that the sliding doors now had a hole in their middle. Some of the pieces flew pretty far, reaching close to the group standing a good distance away. The adults in the room knew exactly who entered at that moment, and Miwa heaved a rueful sigh while rubbing her eyes. Her arcanine growled in annoyance as even Avery's chikorita chittered crossly.

The young man who kicked the door immediately made it known to everybody to watch themselves around him. The students straightaway noticed the injuries he boasted, mainly a long, clean scar tipping at his stomach and disappearing into the shadows of his opened leather vest. The bandages wrapped around his hands and arms spoke of other injuries not caused by the precarious Razor Claw necklace swinging around his neck. His crimson hair tied in a spiky ponytail did little to shield the world from his condescending, dead white eyes as he smirked arrogantly at the group. The most peculiar thing though was the blue-and-yellow striped…things hooked on his shoulders and around his waist. The students eventually realized that a shiny ariados clung onto the young man's back, its head peeking occasionally over his shoulder with its mandibles clattering slyly. A certain student who recognized the long leg Pokémon squeaked slightly and hid behind another student. Unfortunately Zion picked the wrong individual to cower under as Rhys also backed up a bit at the sight of the bug and poison type.

Trailing behind him was a much sunnier sight. A girl ranging from around twenty-two to twenty-four bounced cheerfully into the room. Some students had to do a double take before realizing that the stoic boy behind her was actually her twin and not a mirror. Both siblings supported the same short, hairstyle though the girl's strands were slightly longer. Their color, while initially the same, contrasted deeply with the boy's being a rich brown coloration as the girl's faded into a light chocolate. Their clothes also testified to how different they seemed to be. The girl's attire spoke volumes of outdoor adventures with her dirty sports jacket and pants. The boy's clothing suggested a more quiet life with his clean plaid shirt and jeans. At the very least their green eyes held the same thing, a strange mystery known only to them and a few others.

The last person to enter made nearly all the guys gasp and girls squeal. He kept well behind the others although his tall height didn't help much nor did his dazzling facial features aid in his hiding endeavor. He muttered quietly to himself as he glanced around the room nervously. The moment his deep, blue eyes noticed the group before him, the young man froze and stared towards the ground. The twins had to take his hands and pull him forward. Every person in the room who had an inkling of that man's identity guessed that he probably came from filming a scene as he wore a white robe and black hakama along with a samurai's helmet and sheathed katana.

"Oh shit! It's the rest of the Elite Four! That's amazing!" yelled a familiar voice. Miwa sighed again and Avery coughed. Kane had to turn away to hide a grin at Camelot's enthusiasm again. Leave it to the hyperactive one to not feel intimidated by his friend's presence. It was clear that another individual shared his opinion as an evil chuckle rang out. However not everybody shared their gusto.

Professor Mary scowled as she placed her hands on her hips like a disapproving mother. The expression looked so unnatural on the normally cheerful professor's face. She waited until the newcomers got close to rip one of them a new one. "Roan! How many times have we told you to just wait for the doors to open for you?!"

The intimidating man, Roan, laughed sinisterly with his ariados joining in. "Keh, I don't fucking care! If I want to break down doors, I'll break down doors!"

"Roan, you're scaring some of the students. Why don't you try quieting down?" said the new male twin. He glanced over the students, noting their nervous and uncomfortable gazes. He looked back only to see the older man glaring at him.

"Does it look like I care if I'm scaring them? Serves them right for being pussies." Some of the students bristled in slight anger at the obvious distain Roan had for those around him while others quickly lowered their gaze to not be petrified by the Elite Four member's own hateful glare. The adults shared similar feelings of anger and uneasiness. One of them immediately made it known.

"You better learn to curtail that tongue of yours. Otherwise, I will do it for you," Avery hissed. Roan simply smirked as he crossed his arms defiantly.

"I'll like to see you try, Old Man."

Eye twitching, the Elite Four member nearly broke his precious pipe in half at that nickname. Fortunately he didn't. Otherwise a huge fight would have erupted right then and there. Avery furiously stomped a step forward, Mary's hand on his arm stopping him from going any farther and starting a fight. "My name is Avery! A. VER. RY!" Obviously being called an "old man" was a sore spot for Avery despite his still relatively youthful appearance.

"Whatever, Old Man! I can call you what I want!" Roan laughed as he enjoyed the various reactions he got. He glanced over at Miwa, only to feel a small flame of irritation when the champion simply crossed her arms and tapped her fingers. She didn't even look at him. Roan's good mood evaporated when that one key figure didn't seem perturbed by his behavior. He scowled. "You got something you want to say, bitch?"

Fenrus growled at the disrespect Miwa's friend showed her, to which Ariados replied with his own hiss. The fire type began striding towards the Elite Four member yet stopped when Miwa placed a hand on his head. She still remained silent as she rubbed the arcanine's head affectionately, her eyes on her own Pokémon rather than her co-worker.

"Well?!" Roan asked again, anger mounting with every second that Miwa ignored him.

"…I have plenty to say, but nothing to an obnoxious brat desperate for attention."

Roan gritted his teeth as he stepped forward to confront the champion. "You little-."

"L-Let's just calm down," the samurai finally stuttered, stepping in between the two trainers. He couldn't take the tension anymore and had to say something. He held out his hands as if he could really stop his fellow Elite Four member and the champion from destroying the lab. His eyes darted back and forth anxiously. "There's no need to f-fight."

"Felix's right!" the sunny girl agreed. She giggled a bit in a small effort to lighten the tension. "Once you guys are done here, you can fight all you want at Pertinax. That's what you usually do anyways, right?"

"Unfortunately, yes. Roan doesn't seem to understand the skill gap between us," Miwa said. She finally looked at Roan, her eyes narrowed seriously. "And as much as I want to humiliate you in front of the students, we don't have time for that now. We have more important matters to deal with, so we'll have to finish this fight afterwards." The man growled lowly, obviously not pleased with the result of his taunting. He was sorely tempted to disregard everything his colleagues said and just go into his berserk mode. The students held their breath in anticipation. They fully expected pokeballs to just fly into the air to start a battle. However, Roan surprisingly stepped down.

"…feh, I'm holding your word on that."

A collective sigh of relief ran out, some people not even realizing that they held in their breath. Roan relaxed his stance, and Felix stepped away from him now that the taller man was certain he wouldn't suddenly attack like a rabid Pokémon. Now that that was settled, Miwa turned her attention back to the students. She suppressed a smirk at how some students still felt discomfort from the exchange between the skilled trainers. She waved a hand towards her friends.

"Allow me to introduce my acquaintances. This is Gordon Roan, Cantore Kailani, Cantore Caius, and Solberg Felix."

"Hello!" Kailani smiled brightly, waving to the students with both hands. Her youthful energy encouraged some of her juniors to wave back. She emitted as much energy as the professors, making it a bit interesting to see considering how she had a twin as well. Her brother, Caius, inclined his head in greeting, a similar smile on his face.

"It's very nice to meet you all." While he acted more poise compared to his sister, he still made it clear that he was an approachable spirit with energy to spare.

Roan, on the other hand, simply scowled as he spat on the side. He could care less about the students' opinions on him. Felix nervously lowered his eyes, his face reddening with every passing second as he felt eyes burning into his skull. He muttered something, possibly a greeting, but nobody could truly discern it. Felix suddenly gave a slight yelp when he felt something slap his back. He turned to pout at Kane, who only grinned idiotically.

"Please don't do that," he murmured.

"Just relax, Felix. As a movie star and Elite Four member, you should be used to the attention by now."

"I'll never get used to it…"

"Let's not waste any more time," Miwa said as she stared pointedly at Felix and Kane. The professor shrugged with rueful smile while the Elite Four member apologized for the both of them. After staring at them for a moment longer to let the message sink in, Miwa harrumphed and looked at the students. "I'm sure you have all heard about Team Annex stealing more and more Pokémon with each passing day." She paused for confirmation, and some people nodded. She continued, "As they have not done anything besides larcenies, only the police are involved. However, they still need to be dealt with immediately if we hope to stop their growing momentum. While the police are trying their best, we still have little to no knowledge of who Team Annex really is and what their true goals might be. They always somehow manage to give the police the slip.

"This is where you come in. On your journey, we want you to gather any information you can on Team Annex without notice. Anything at all. Their numbers, their Pokémon, their goals, anything you would deem useful in bringing them down." Miwa smirked. "And if you somehow manage to defeat Team Annex in the process, that's all more for the better. Any questions?"

It took a moment for the students to take in what the champion just briskly told them. When they finally realized the severity of their actual assignment, they sat in stunned silence, looking at some of their companions in disbelief. One of them raised both hands and motioned them in a backup movement.

"Wait, wait, wait, wait…you want us to stop a large criminal organization?" Neil asked incredulously. "Some of us don't even have Pokémon yet and you want us to fight them? Why don't you guys do it? You're the champion and Elite Four after all." Murmurs among the students reinforced that that particular question occurred to all of them. Miwa nodded, fully expecting that inquiry to arise. She was not at all surprised that Neil would be the one to voice that. She might have been slightly disappointed in him if he didn't since he was the one who challenged her to finish the obstacle course.

"Unfortunately, we have other duties to attend to. Team Annex so far hasn't posed a large enough threat to merit our involvement. Unless you can find some evidence of them planning something bigger, we will prioritize other tasks before Team Annex. However we can't allow them to continue their actions, so we are relying on you. Again, we are not asking you to charge straight into Team Annex. We want you to gather intel on the criminals."

"Pfft, that's just a nicer way of saying that you guys are really doing our dirty work in dealing with Team Annex," Roan simplified. He chuckled to himself as he scratched Ariados's chin. "You should be honored that we are even considering you for this." Despite their best efforts to ignore him, the students still bristled in anger at his comments. Somehow he just had that ability to get under everybody's skin even if they attempted to pay him no attention.

Kailani quickly jumped in before any student do something stupid like rebuke Roan. "Of course, we're not going to send you out there without any ammo! Not only are Professor Kane and Mary going to give you a Pokémon, we'll be mentoring you throughout your whole journey as well!" Her smile faded slightly as she tapped her chin in thought. "Although, you might not be able to contact us sometimes because we'd be busy with other things."

"Wait…you don't mean…" Zion started to ask but had to stop himself in some fear that what he hoped to be true proved to be false. His eyes still shined optimistically for his wish.

Avery smirked. "That is right. The Elite Four and the professors would be your mentors. That is, if you choose to accept this mission. Miwa has kindly declined to be a mentor due to…her potential group likely having an advantage over the other groups." While both Kailani and Caius giggled at the superiority in that statement, Roan snorted in derision. Felix chose not to comment, still hiding in his fragile shell.

Excitement rippled through the students at what the adults just told them. Not only would they get a Pokémon, they would also be mentored by a group of the strongest trainers in the region? Sure, some of the older students realized how dangerous the task the Elite Four and professors requested would be. However, they also understood that if they were to embark on their own separate journeys, the danger would be the same, if not worse. Here, they would have somebody to turn to should something bad happen to them. As a result, with how all of them having a specific goal in mind whether it's to get stronger or befriend a lot of Pokémon, the students were eager to seize this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. However one student noticed something strange. He made it known now.

"Wouldn't the group with the professors be at a disadvantage in terms of battling? No offense," Malcolm said quickly when he realized how disrespectful he might have sounded. Avery raised an eyebrow while Roan scoffed. Felix continued to avoid looking at any of the students eye-to-eye as the Kailani and Caius glanced at each other with a knowing look. Miwa tapped her fingers, and Kane finally burst out laughing to quell the awkward silence that had followed Malcolm's statement.

"Haha! You got that right! We're so rusty, we make a childhood bike ride smoothly!"

Mary covered her mouth, but the upturned corners of her mouth made it clear she also found the student's question amusing. "Hehe, no offense taken! We might be worse than the current Elite Four, but we can still offer some knowledge that they wouldn't know."

"We're not that stupid…" Felix muttered. Mary made an apologetic gesture.

"I didn't mean it like that, Felix."

"Hmph, don't let their idiocy fool you," Miwa said as she uncrossed her arms. "Mary and Kane refused the positions of Elite Four in order to continue their research in peace. Kailani and Caius kindly took up the torch in their place." That truth made some students' eyes widen in shock as they looked at the happy-go-lucky pair of siblings. Kane pouted at the reveal.

"Miwa! You promised not to say anything to anybody!" He sighed in resignation. "Eh, I suppose it's all right that they know, as long as they keep it a secret." He looked to where a short student raised her hand. The professor recognized her as one of the older students despite her small stature. Kane gestured for her to ask her question. "Yes, Amorette?"

"Is there a reason why you want to keep this a secret?" she asked.

"We're already renowned as Pokémon professors. Sometimes, our 'fans' would disrupt our work. Spreading the fact that we had the potentiality to be members of the Elite Four would only bring even more unwanted attention and questions, not to mention certain conflicts," Mary explained. Amorette nodded at the answer, understanding completely.

"The reason for their secrecy doesn't matter," Miwa said, catching everybody's attention again. "What matters now is your decision. We won't hold it against you if you choose to refuse our request. It is, after all, a great burden that we don't want anybody to carry. However, we know that you have the potential to complete such a task thus why we are asking you in the first place. If you have no qualms with this, then stay. Otherwise, leave now and we will provide you the means to return home."

Her words were met with silence as the students mused over what to do. Some already knew that they were going to accept while others still weighed the pros against the cons. One student, Violetta, still had a question she asked shyly:

"If…if we ever need help, we can just contact our mentors, right? And they will pick up, right?"

Caius replied, "We'll try to be in touch with our respective groups as much as possible. If you can't contact your own mentor, you can always contact one of the other Elite Four, the professors, or even the champion herself."

"I won't pick up," Miwa immediately said, which was followed by Kane's laughter.

"Don't worry. She'll pick up," he reassured the students.

"As long as you prove not to be a nuisance," Avery cautioned. "Either way, our purpose is to help you, so do not be afraid to contact us. We are still very much human…for the most part." He chuckled lightly to himself as he inhaled some more smoke. He exchanged a knowing glance with his fellow Elite Four members and the champion. The students noticed the rather mischievous exchange but made no comment.

"And if Team Annex is right there to steal our Pokémon?" Forrest asked.

"Especially if Team Annex is right there to steal your Pokémon," Caius replied fiercely. "Contact us right away with an emergency call."

"Any other questions?" Kailani asked, tilting her head to the side. The silence stayed for a moment. Then a young man went forth with his question.

"…what about our parents? Do they know what we're doing?" Barrett asked. At that inquiry, some students flinched slightly. If the adults of the room noticed, they didn't make it known. They rightly guessed that the relationship between those students and their parents was rather delicate. Miwa tapped her fingers as she exhaled.

"…for the most part, your guardians only know that we have selected you for special training due to us seeing potential in you. They have no idea that-."

"We're using you as bait." Roan smirked. He chuckled when Miwa glared at him. "It's true though. We're basically throwing them out there to deal with Team Annex themselves."

"We're not asking them to look for and fight Team Annex by themselves," Miwa scolded. "We're asking them to gather any information they can get about Team Annex so we have legitimate reasons to deal with the criminals ourselves. Other than that, they are free to forge their own paths."

"In short and in a way, yes," Mary answered before a fight between Roan and Miwa could break out. "While it is true your parents know that you will be going on a journey under our guidance, they do not know your covert mission. And we ask that you don't tell anybody about it either, even if you choose to refuse."

"Yet…judging by your presence, it seems as if you all are accepting this," Avery said. "We will give you one last chance to reconsider." That statement had some students glance at each other uncertainly. Namely, Violetta, as the youngest student, turned to Neil for some guidance. He whispered something to her, which she nodded back determinedly. The young man grinned at that and patted her back encouragingly. The adults waited patiently for her to come to her decision. When nobody stood up to leave, Miwa smirked.

"Looks like we have some good kids after all." She was about to say more when eight loud, beeping sounds interrupted her. The number of interruptions that day was surprising, almost as if the Pokémon gods wanted to stop this from happening. The students expected irritation to cross her face, so they were surprised when they saw her mouth deepen into a serious frown. She, along with the Elite Four and the professors, all simultaneously looked at their Pokeapps.

"Hmm, it's been a while since we had a sighting. It's quite unfortunate that it has to be now," the students heard the champion mutter. Miwa looked at her friends. "I'll take care of it, so continue with the debriefing. Mary, keep on track." Although it was clear that Miwa's friends wanted to argue for one reason or another, they knew that now wasn't the time. The sighting had to be dealt with as soon as possible, and they trusted her to do so. Besides, the rest had to be here in order to get their groups organized while Miwa was free to do as she pleased for the time being.

The female professor nodded solemnly. "All right. Be careful, Miwa."

"Hmph, who do you take me for?" The woman smirked. She climbed on Fenrus's back. Once his trainer was secured, the arcanine let out a loud howl before racing through the doors. Some students had to cover their eyes with their arms and grind their feet into the ground to protect themselves from the windy aftermath of Fenrus's speed. Soon enough the champion was gone. Although the students knew that they would run into her again eventually due to their assignment, for some reason it felt a bit empty without her. Her presence, though daunting, also brought some security that despite all odds things would work out in the end. The silence lasted for a moment before a slight chuckle ran out.

"Finally, the bitch is gone." Of course it was Roan. He rubbed his hands together. "Now…if another person can make like a clefairy and disappear, that would be great."

Avery glared at him. While he understood that Roan actually didn't mean what he said, the older man still couldn't stop feeling irritated by his junior's statement. "Do not think I do not know who you are talking about."

"All right, you two. Settle down. Miwa won't forgive me if we're all still here by the time she gets back," Mary said. She looked at the students. "Anyways, to pick up from where we left off. Since everybody accepts our proposal, we will continue explaining some things.

"Thanks to a variety of breeders, we were able to amass certain Pokémon to give to you for this journey. For some of you, they will be your first Pokémon. For the choosing you will be given a random number, and we will call you in ascending order to pick a Pokémon." As she explained, her brother walked among the students with a top hat. One by one, a student drew a piece of paper with a number. Judging by the various expressions, some were obviously happier than others about their position. After Kane finished passing out the numbers, he retrieved another tray full of pokeballs. While this tray also had slips of paper, these contained the names and pictures of the Pokémon resting inside the pokeballs rather than the students' names. Professor Mary continued her explanation:

"Once you have chosen your Pokémon, we will assign you to groups of three along with your mentor. This process might take a while, so I suggest you familiarize yourself with your new Pokémon during that time. We will also provide you with a special Pokeapp that includes our contact information. Make sure you don't lose it. Miwa wouldn't forgive you if some random stranger outside of this circle contacted her for an autograph. After that, you will begin your journey across Duewel. We fully expect you to stick with your group at all times. Failure to do so will result in your expulsion of this assignment. While we won't ask for the starter Pokémon back, do note that the Elite Four and champion will be aware of your action and may refuse to even see you in the future. This is mainly for safety reasons. While we have reason to believe that Team Annex usually goes after intermediate trainers, there is still safety in numbers. Any questions?"

Without Miwa, the students didn't have to worry about not being able to ask a question in time. However, nobody seemed to have thought up a question for the moment. They were more eager to get a Pokémon than ask questions. Some students were practically glowing at the thought of finally receiving their first Pokémon. Mary smiled at their eagerness, even if some of the students attempted to hide it.

"Then let's get right to it. Would the student with the number 1 on their paper step forward?"

Amorette Garciacano stood up from her chair and carefully made her way to the group of adults. Her smile spoke equal volumes of excitement and nervousness as Kane held out the tray towards her. The student looked through all the Pokémon. She recognized them as the various starters throughout the different regions and knew that she was extremely fortunate indeed to be chosen for this assignment. After some deliberation, she picked up the pokeball labeled with a bluish-and-milky-colored mouse. Clasping the capsule joyfully with both hands, Amorette returned to her seat.

The students noticed how Mary was writing their choices down a notebook. Most likely it was for them to make the groups afterwards. She finished and called out, "Number 2?"

Robert Yew hesitantly stepped forward. He didn't want to take too long so that the other students could choose their own starters in a reasonable amount of time. As he looked at the pokeballs, the young man flinched when he felt somebody staring intensely at him. That made him rush a bit, and he chose a blue axolotls. As he turned to hurry back to his seat, Robert yelped slightly when he bumped into somebody. He fixed his glasses and jumped a bit when he saw that he had walked into Roan. The Elite Four member had a scowl on his face, prompting the student to rush back to his seat before he could be beaten into a pulp. Surprisingly, Roan didn't say anything, only continuing to stare intently at Robert. His strange behavior caught the other adults' attention but they made no comment about it.

"Number 3."

Morgan Drake strode forth. Unlike the first two students, he barely made a sound once he reached the professors. His eyes focused on each and every one pokeball, his expression unreadable. He wondered which starter Pokémon would be a good companion to his zorua as well as be a good fighter. After all, nothing was better than a good battle. Finally the student grabbed a green-and-brown spiny Pokémon before making his way back to his seat.

Immediately afterwards, Stylen Chrial leapt from his seat to bounce towards the professors. Mary couldn't stop from grinning and Kane let out a short laugh. The young man scanned through his choices. His eyes stopped at one particular picture of a black cat. Stylen smiled as he instinctively knew that that Pokémon was the one for him. The student excitedly grabbed it and bounced back to his chair. He was extremely tempted to release his partner right now. However, the other students didn't do it, so he decided to follow their example for the time being.

In contrast to the last show of speed, Evelyn Nnoko walked gracefully to the front. She nodded a small greeting to the Elite Four, an action that earned her nods in the case of Avery and the twins while Felix returned his eyes to the floor. For some reason, Roan still scowled at Robert, but Evelyn didn't mind the cold shoulder. She turned her attention to her options before her. She noted the already chosen Pokémon as she also considered the other Pokémon. After some thought, the young woman made up her mind. She took the pokeball of a green snake and returned to her seat.

The next student up was Malcolm Cunningham. He also walked up calmly to the stand. However, the professors could still tell that he was extremely excited to prove himself to them. As he glanced over the starter Pokémon, he tapped his foot in careful deliberation. He wanted a good Pokémon that not only would help him get far and show his brother they could do it through willpower but also a Pokémon that he could help bring the best out of. Malcolm was about to reach for a pokeball when he noticed the blue crocodile's pokeball moving, as if the Pokémon was trying to break free. He immediately changed his mind and grabbed that pokeball, muttering a small promise to it to let it out once he had permission to do so.

Violetta Hallows shyly took small steps forward. Kane smiled at her encouragingly and held out the tray for her to choose. The young student glanced through the pictures, noting their names afterwards. She didn't notice that Hermes was floating behind her, also examining the pokeballs. Although Miwa had left, the gastly knew that if he started trouble, one of the other adults would report him no doubt. He was curious as to which starter his friend would pick. He raised an eyebrow when Violetta took the pokeball containing a blue frog. The girl looked at Hermes briefly before saying, "I like him. He's cute." and returning to her seat. The gastly did a smoky shrug as he followed close behind.

Perhaps it was a coincidence, or maybe it was just luck, but Neil Berenson patted the little girl's back as he took his turn. He leisurely strolled to the front, already having a certain type of Pokémon in mind. He took a quick look over and saw exactly the type of Pokémon he wanted. The young man grabbed the pokeball of a yellow fox and drifted back to his seat, as quickly and quietly as he came.

Another quiet and cold individual went up to choose their Pokémon. Marius Seifer stepped up for his decision. Only one column had been emptied why another column still retained all its pokeballs. Marius looked over that one column, noting the Pokémon and the region they originated from. One starter in particular stood out to him. Perhaps that Pokémon reminded him of another in a way. Or he could see it helping him achieve one of his dreams. Either vision, Marius took the orange lizard from the column and went back to his seat.

While Zion Voltage was extremely excited to choose his starter, he felt extremely nervous walking towards the group of adults. Not because somebody took a Pokémon he wanted, but because the ariados still clung onto Roan's back, the Elite Four member still glaring at Robert for some reason. It took nearly all his willpower not to grab a pokeball and make a run for it. He felt that at any moment Ariados would pounce him and suck out all his blood. At one point the student jumped when he noticed the bug and poison type shift into a more comfortable spot. Zion felt sweat dripping down his back. Fortunately he managed to look through his choices relatively calmly and choose a blue sea lion before rushing for safety. The professors didn't quite see what the problem was, no doubt mentally scratching their heads at Zion's abrupt actions.

Forrest Mcintosh already knew that he wasn't exactly a favorite in Avery and the professors' book with his tardiness, so he didn't want to do anything to worsen his reputation. His ukulele thumps synchronized with his footsteps as he approached the group at a reasonable enough speed. The young man felt three pairs of eyes looking at him more intently than the rest, guessing rightly whom they belonged to. While one pair seemed slightly hostile, the other two were more curious and encouraging. Forrest initially wanted to avoid certain starters for logic reasons. However, the stares only spurred him to prove that the champion didn't make a mistake in retracting her initial expulsion. He decided the best way to do so was to face his fears and choose a blue-and-white otter. That act made him a bit more confident as he went for his seat.

It was Genevieve Nightingale's turn. She rose from her chair with little Aurora in tow. This caused some raised eyebrows, but Genevieve didn't notice. She confidently went up to the group of adults. While she looked at the remaining pokeballs, a confused look passed over Kailani. The Elite Four member had been wondering about the toddler in the student's arms for a while. She whispered inquiringly to her brother as she couldn't hold in her curiosity. In a lowered tone Caius replied with his answer.

"Really?!" Kailani couldn't help shrieking. She gave an apologetic look when Caius motioned her to keep it down. Avery looked over at the twins, guessing what they had been conversing about.

"I have already spoken to her about her child," he said as he refilled his pipe with some herbs. He inhaled it deeply. "There is nothing more to discuss." His statement was met with some surprised sounds from the students. They couldn't stop their curiosity, and judgement, from showing on their faces as they took another look at Genevieve. Yet they quickly wiped away any potential ill-will when Avery swept the room with a glare. Caius rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"Huh…it was just a guess, but I didn't think I would be right." Kailani looked a bit more shaken than her brother at the truth. However, there was no contempt in her eyes, only bewildered wonderment. Genevieve flushed slightly from the attention. Her hold on her daughter tightened slightly, and Aurora responded by returning the hug. However, both of them relaxed when Mary gave them an encouraging smile.

"There's nothing to be ashamed about. Go ahead and pick your starter."

Kane emphasized his sister's words with his own smile and stretched the tray out to Genevieve. The young mother adjusted her hold on her daughter to let the little one pick. With a slight gurgle and without any hesitation Aurora reached for the pokeball above the green turtle picture. It seemed as though she understood how important the red-and-white capsule was to her mother as she held onto it tightly. Genevieve carefully made her way back, noticing some lingering stares from the students but essentially ignoring them.

Evelyn Clarke was still processing what she had just learned until Mary's call for the next student broke her train of thought. Evelyn then realize that it was actually her turn now to choose. She shot up with an apology for making the professors wait and headed towards them. The cheerful professors only smiled in understanding. The student scanned the pokeballs, noting that less than half the original amount remained. That actually didn't bother her since she saw a rather interesting starter she liked. Not to mention, judging from its appearance, it might be able to help her with her horrible sense of direction. Or at least help her find a way back to town once she became lost. Evelyn took the tan owl's pokeball, excited to let her plusle and snubbull meet their new teammate later.

The moment it was his turn, Camelot Groove jumped up with a loud "finally!" It was amazing to see the young man sit silently for as long as he did. Everybody could tell how much it killed him to do so as that shout reached beyond the thick walls of the lab. With every student prior, Camelot fidgeted and fidgeted until his turn came. He practically sprinted to the front to see which Pokémon were left. He didn't seem disappointed at all and eagerly grabbed a green dinosaur. "This one!" In his haste to return to his seat to fidget until the time to release their starter, he didn't see Avery bury his face in a hand and shake his head. The man's chikorita patted his back comfortingly with a vine.

Jack Yuki was similarly excited to the point of wanting to race to the front like Camelot and grab his Pokémon. However he attempted to play it cool like some of the students prior. That unfortunately didn't work out that well for him as his feet stubbornly tangled themselves around his chair. He gave a slight yelp when he fell forward, startling the students around him. Thankfully Jack managed to regain his balance in time. He chuckled a bit in embarrassment in response to some students' giggles. The young man regained his composure and steadily walked to professors. Kane winked at Jack, causing another nervous chuckle to slip out from the student. However he turned his attention to his choices. There was still a reasonable amount left. After a quick deliberation, he decided on the orange chicken.

Before Rhys Dignam could even leave his seat, somebody's Pokeapp went off. Felix's blush deepened when all eyes in the room snapped to him, the loud tone easily giving him away if his frightened jump hadn't. He murmured an apology as he took a few steps from the group for some privacy. He picked up the call and apologized fervently to whoever was on the other side. They seemed to be scolding him as it took a while for him to stop apologizing and listen to the caller. The Elite Four member finally said goodbye with another apology before walking back to his original position.

"Sorry…that was my manager. She told me to finish things up here quickly so I can get back to the shoot."

Mary waved the apology away. "It's fine, Felix. We're almost done here anyways. Just a few more students, and we'll get the groups formed in no time." The actor nodded gratefully, and the professor gestured for Rhys to proceed. The interruption didn't deter the young man, although he wished the ringtone hadn't been that loud. Despite being among the last ones to choose his Pokémon, from his quiet observations the main starter he wanted had yet to be chosen. As a result, Rhys was able to quickly take the green gecko's pokeball and retreat back into the gathering of students without being in the spotlight for too long.

Using her ability, Blake Noxic had a feeling she would choose one particular starter over the rest. She just had to get closer to confirm her suspicions. The young woman strode forth with a purpose. Once she was close enough, she looked at the pokeball containing her initial choice. As she had suspected, the orange chimp seemed to be a good match with her own personality. Blake could already imagine the great sparring matches between her, the starter, and her riolu. She attempted to keep her excitement on the down low as the student took that pokeball with her back to her seat.

Barrett didn't mind that he was last. If anything, that might make his choices a bit easier. He quietly went up to see which Pokémon were left. The remaining choices weren't bad at all as he didn't exactly have a particular Pokémon in mind to choose. The young man didn't notice that he had grabbed the chain of his necklace until he tasted metal in thought. His mind wandered to his current team so far and decided that perhaps one Pokémon would help him achieve his goals better than the rest. Barrett chose the pokeball with the blue turtle inside, choosing to also ignore some weird looks he received when he picked up the capsule with his left hand. He inclined his head in thanks before walking back.

Kane gave a sigh of relief as he finally set the tray down after holding it for so long. He shook the soreness out of his arms with a painful groan, earning a giggle from Kailani. The professor gave her a suffering look.

"Next time, one of you hold it."

"You just had to pass it."

"Now that you have all chosen your Pokémon, we will group you up based on our observations and your chosen starters," Mary said, ignoring the exchange between her brother and friend. "This will take a while, so go ahead and take this time to get to know your new Pokémon. We'll let you know when we finish."

"Be sure not to cause too much trouble!" Kailani chirped cheerfully as she followed her friends to stand some distance away so the students couldn't hear their deliberations. Not like there was a chance of that happening. The new trainers were too eager to meet their new partners. Barrett did restrain himself a little bit though. He wanted to see how the other students fared first before releasing his squirtle.

Surprisingly, many of the starters warmed up to their new trainers rather quickly. Marius's charmander was in his arms, enjoying the head scratches he got. Neil and Stylen already let their fennekin and litten on their shoulders and found their favorite scratching spots. Genevieve's turtwig tolerated Aurora's curious hands rather well as he stood calmly for her to discover what was in front of her.

Violetta introduced her froakie to Hermes, only for the little goofball attempt to eat the ghost type. Robert's mudkip, Amorette's cyndaquil, and Evelyn's rowlett quickly found play pals in each other and took turns chasing one another with their trainers keeping a close eye on them while they conversed. When it was the cyndaquil's turn, he quickly ran to tag Zion's popplio, who only gave a slightly confused look from the other starter to his trainer.

After getting used to their trainers, two energetic Pokémon, Malcolm's totodile and Forrest's oshawott, locked eyes and tried to jump each other. Things quickly got out of hand as Blake's chimchar and Jack's torchic also joined in. Fortunately before any real damage could be done, a golduck and Alolan raichu quickly split them up with their psychic powers. The starters were rather confused why they were suddenly floating in the air when none of them were flying types. Their trainers plucked them and held onto them tightly, glancing curiously at the golduck and Alolan raichu as they did so. The electric and psychic type squeaked adorably while the water type jerked a claw towards the group of adults, signaling that they belonged to one or two of them. The involved students thanked the two Pokémon for stopping the fight and were extra careful not to let their starters wander off for another fight.

However not everybody was having the easiest of times with their starters. When Evelyn's snivy took one look at her, the grass type turned her back to her and pointed her nose in the air. Evelyn attempted to coax her, but the snivy wasn't having it. Camelot's chikorita seemed to have a princess attitude as she argued with her trainer loudly about something. Morgan's chespin, on the other hand, tried to pick a fight with the golduck despite his trainer's command.

Similarly to Barrett, Rhys simply sat off to one side apart from everybody else with his treeko in his lap, both observing the others. The young man noticed how Barrett was the only one who didn't release his starter, giving him a slightly curious look. The older student shrugged an answer.

He then looked at the pokeball in his hand. Perhaps it was time now for him to see his starter. However, he made sure to release Vanitas first before introducing the newest member of their team. A flash of white, the zorua shook his head quickly, glaring at Barrett after he did so. The young man shrugged. "Sorry, but I couldn't release you right away."

"Zo," Vanitas snorted but begrudgingly accepted the apology anyways. Then he noticed the pokeball in Barrett's hand and sniffed at it. "Zo zorua?"

Barrett nodded in reply. "Yeah, this is our new teammate. Let's say hello." He tapped the release mechanism. In a flash of white, a brown and pale yellow shell appeared. However the actual squirtle was nowhere to been seen. "Uh oh," Barrett said as his suspicions grew when the squirtle didn't pop out for a couple more minutes. He didn't expect his new Pokémon to be shy or scared to the point that it would hide from both him and Vanitas for such a long time.

Vanitas walked forward to sniff at the shell. His ears perked when he heard the slightest of whimpers from inside. He turned to his trainer with a rather sad expression. "Zo zo, zorua."

"Yeah, I thought so. It might take a while for him to not be so scared of us," Barrett muttered. The young man pondered whether to return the squirtle to spare him any more trauma or keep him out in order to draw him out. Barrett chose the latter and gently grabbed the squirtle's shell. He felt the shell vibrate a bit. "It's okay, Bruno. Van and I aren't going to hurt you. We just want to be your friends."

"Zorua."

"…" Still no movement. However when Barrett lifted the newly named Bruno off the ground, he at least didn't hear any scared squeaks. He gently placed the squirtle on his lap with Bruno facing him, careful not to make any sudden movements. Even if the student couldn't see him in the darkness, he knew the squirtle could see him.

"There we go. A bit better," he soothed. "Won't you come out to say hello?" After a moment's hesitation, Barrett felt the shell rumble again. However, rather than a frightened sound, a blue head popped out. Barrett could still see some fear in Bruno's eyes, but at least the squirtle was out now. "There, that wasn't so bad, was it?"

"Zo zo, rua," Vanitas added his own bit in as he careful made his way into Bruno's line of vision. While the squirtle flinched slightly, after seeing the zorua posing no threat, he crept his head back out. Vanitas gave him a reassuring smile, which Bruno shyly returned.

"…Squir-."

"Okay! It's time for you to meet your groups!" Professor Kane's loud voice made all three of them jump. Bruno immediately retracted his head back into his shell. Barrett cursed slightly as his coaxing seemed to be for naught. However he couldn't really blame Kane for startling the squirtle. The student decided to keep his starter close in order to get him used to being outside and perhaps poke out of his shell once again.

All the students looked to the adults who had walked back to their original positions. Their expressions gave nothing away about their decisions, and Professor Mary stepped up to address the students:

"In making your groups, we did look at which starter you chose. However we also attempted to pair you up with other students whom we felt would help you grow and you could also help grow. Your mentors were chosen much like the same way, even if two of them specifically requested certain people." That last statement had some students raising their eyebrows, wondering exactly who said mentors could be. They quickly refocused their attention on Mary's continuation:

"After we call the members of your group, your mentor will step forward and give you those special Pokeapps. They will then guide you to your first destination. While you do have a say in where you will like to go first, ultimately, your mentor will decide. I can guarantee though that Felix's group must go to Cotidianus City for him to finish the shoot, so fair warning. They won't stay with you forever, but they will stay for at least the rest of today.

"Remember, you are required to stay with your team at all times. Keep your eyes and ears peeled for any word about Team Annex and report anything immediately. But most importantly of all, be careful and try your best." Her voice became gentle and reassuring. "Things would only get tough from here on. You may have something horrible happen to you. You may fight with your peers. You may lose something major like a battle or a friend. You may feel like nobody is there for you, and the world has turned on you. But you can't let that stop you. You have to keep moving forward. That is the most we are asking of you. Do you understand?"

Her words could only be answered by silence and nods. Mary smiled at the students, prompting some to smile back. She could see the eagerness and youthfulness in their eyes along with a determination to not fail them. She was extremely glad to be a part of this. They were very good students and people, and she had a feeling that most, if not all, would go very far. The professor cleared her throat and looked down at her list. "Now, without further ado, I will start placing you in your groups. The first group will be…"

And cliffhanger! Suckas! One of these is bound to happen sooner or later, and there is definitely going to be more to come in the future, haha! However, this is where the real struggle is going to begin as this is the end of the beginning. After this, we're going to be focusing on each group individually, taking turns between episodes to visit each group. There will be times when one group meets up with another, but I still have to write out the individual plots for each individual group and make sure their route makes sense. Woo! That's going to be a lot of work...but anyways!

Yes, I understand that I have five Elite Four members. Why is that? Well...you guys just might find out in the future! Hehehe. I like twins a bit too much...Not a twin myself but I do have a sibling I'm extremely close to. Maybe that's why. The battle at the beginning probably shouldn't have panned out that way but I wanted to again show how OP my absolute pride and joy, Miwa, is. Oh, truly one of the few and fortunate characters I have made as I don't like to torture her as much as the rest of my characters, hehehe...not to mention that Caterpie can also be OP as fuck. Have you seen the thing suplex a Pinsir? Absolutely amazing. Hopefully I portrayed Forrest correctly in that situation without actually making him appear weaker than he really is...but anyways! Questions here!

1. Which two characters do you think your character will be paired with? Who do you think will be their mentor?

2. Who is your favorite Elite Four member so far? Why so?

3. What do you think the "sighting" meant?

4. If you were given the choice to put your life on the line and save the world, would you do it?

Trivia: This Pokémon had never been seen until it appeared from far in the desert 50 years ago. Who's that Pokémon?!

And with that, I hope you guys enjoyed this episode, and I'll see you guys next time.