Being a bookworm, there are some genres I like better than others. I sometimes think why I like or dislike the different book genres. This inspired me to write this fic about Lucien on a holiday in Unova. The location is probably not a surprise for those who knows what Lucien is interested in...
K represents Knowledge.
'Hm…this is quite an intriguing gym. First time I've seen one in a library that is at the back of a museum' observed the male as he entered the Nacrene gym. It was rather spacious with large windows that let in some natural light. Lucien could smell a weak hint of soap combined with paper. 'Seems like they-'. His thoughts were interrupted when he noticed a duo of Minccino sweeping the bookshelf on his right. A smile formed at his face – it made sense. This was a normal type gym with many young trainers of both genders. And most young trainers had Pokémon that had not evolved completely yet. His ears then saw a female trainer who was standing at the top of a small ladder. She was probably about 14 and was wearing a school uniform. He saw there was a book in her hands. "Flame burns inside its body, and it gives off smoke from its head while it runs by using steam power. Hey – what's this?" muttered the black haired girl when she flipped the cover of the book. There was a note of some sort taped on the back.
'So that's how Lenora is challenging her opponents. They need to use their knowledge' noticed the young man. It made him smile in satisfaction; this was a refreshing change from the usual gyms. Most of the gyms the Sinnoh elite four member had no mental stimulating challenges. Nearly all of them had some fancy transportation system that would send the challenger to the different trainers instead. This was something that the male found a bit puzzling. A majority of high-ranked gym leaders relied on strategy in order to defeat a challenger. Volkner and Maylene were two examples of this. Both of them had a Pokémon with a type that could defeat the obvious choice against their main Pokémon. He decided to take a look at the books that were in the book shelf closest to him. Most of them were concerning Pokémon anatomy or Pokémon related research. 'Hm. This looks interesting' thought the psychic type fan when he spotted a shelf with several art books. Many of them appeared to be related to art history, architecture, important artists that lived in this region as well as graffiti. He decided to read a book that seemed to be about architecture in different regions. 'This is not the type of books I usually read. But I will probably acquire more knowledge if I explore unknown territory' pondered the young man as he sat down in a comfortable chair. He chose one that was partially hidden behind a bookshelf. Lucien flipped through the pages until he reached the chapter that explored the architecture in Unova.
'Unova has more diversity than the other regions regarding architecture. Many of the cities have their own unique features that makes them stand out. This is a contrast to Kanto and Johto who have many cities that share the same traditional architecture' informed the first paragraph of the text. 'A number of the cities have very modern designs. Castelia, Driftveil as well as Nimbasa city are more famous for business or attractions rather than art' continued the text. A couple of photographs that showcased the ferris wheel in Nimbasa as well as the skyline of Castelia were on the next page. The male had never been to any of those cities before since this was his first trip to the Unova region. 'Maybe I should try to visit one of those cities if they are close to Nacrene. May as well see if they are as modern as they appear to be' decided the elite four member. He turned to the next page. 'A majority of the houses in Striaton are made out of brownstone with steep staircases that almost goes to the second floor. They feature asymmetrical façades, second story balconies as well as slate roofs. These characteristics are very typical on buildings that are influenced by Greek, Roman, Byzantine and Baroque style from Europe. This is not a surprise given the amount of European immigrants that used to live in Striaton' informed the text. This made sense for the man since Striaton was famous for tasteful European-inspired food plus a park that looked quite different to the ones in Goldenrod or Celadon.
"Hang in there! We're going straight to the Pokémon center!" shouted a voice that made him snap out of his reverie. He looked up and saw the ebony-haired trainer from earlier. She was holding onto a Luxio that appeared to have taken a number of direct hits. This made the psychic Pokémon fan a bit surprised. He knew that Luxio was not a puny Pokémon given its dual types. Furthermore, the specimen that the girl had did not appear to be very small or physically weak. 'Whoa. Lenora must be quite strong if she was able to reduce a Luxio to that state! Especially since she is a normal Pokémon user' thought the male as he looked at the female trainer. She exited the gym moments later, leaving him on his own. A pair of steps could then be heard from the end of the room. The owner turned out to be Lenora. "Are you here for a gym match?" inquired the woman. "No – I'm just a visitor from Sinnoh. My name is Lucien" told Lucien before he gave her a polite bow. "Oh! I know who you are! You are that elite four trainer who has psychic Pokémon. I saw you on TV for about two weeks ago. I'm Lenora by the way. I'm the gym leader here" replied the teal-haired female. He knew what program she was talking about. For about a month ago, the elite four trainers from Sinnoh had partaken in a panel regarding Pokémon training for different age groups. It had turned out quite well given that the young man had to replace Flint, who had been invited to his cousins wedding.
"You have a very nice gym Lenora. It's not very often you find gyms where the trainers have to use their book smarts" complimented the elite four member. "Thank you. I am quite a book lover myself and my husband works at the museum. So I thought it would make sense to make a gym that looked like a library" replied the older woman with a smile at her face. The male then remembered the book he had been reading and put it back in the shelf. "First time you're visiting Unova?" inquired the Nacrene gym leader. "Er – yes. I think I'm going to Striaton tomorrow. I'm thinking about visiting Castelia City later on. But I'm not sure which one I should go to first. Striaton apparently has a lot of European influences while Castelia is more modern with studios plus a more diverse approach. I know they have a bug-type gym leader there who is named Burgh as well. Do you have any recommendations?" asked the psychic Pokémon user as they walked towards the exit.
The older female closed her eyes for a couple of seconds, apparently deep in thought. "I think Striaton is a good place to begin since you're new to Unova. Striaton should give you an insight to the cultures that has influenced our region. Castelia is not a bad second place to go, but it is a very large city. But I think you will enjoy yourself there if you like Nacrene. Especially the gym" informed the Nacrene gym leader. "How is his gym related to Nacrene? Is he into art history?" inquired the the younger man as they went down the stairs. The woman started to laugh. "No, he's actually an artist. Furthermore – he is actually from Nacrene City. He moved to Castelia a couple years ago after he had spoken with the old gym leader. She wanted to retire and asked him to take over the gym since he was an artist as well" informed Lenora. His eyes widened when he heard about that. "Whoa. I didn't know that. I suppose it's true what they say…you learn something new every day" replied Lucien as they went to the Pokémon center.
I thought it would be fun to experiment a little with Lucien and Lenora in a fic like this. They both like books and appear to be very smart people. But I'll imagine that Lenora is a bit more alternative than Lucien is.
Please let me know what you think!