Jaune was flipping through the channels while on his flight to Atlas, trying to find something to keep his mind off the fact that once he landed, he was going to begin his career as an Ace Op. He didn't know what to expect outside of it somehow going to be a disaster, whether because he'd make such a bad impression that he'd be let go immediately or the job was going to be nothing like he hoped.

"Maybe it will turn out all right!" thought Jaune. "I mean that Clover guy was pretty nice, and I was smart enough to get a trainer's license! I'm sure I won't have to perform such ridiculously hard tasks that I end up showing how awful I really am and embarrassing the Ace Ops and...DARN IT JAUNE, GET IT TOGETHER! Repeat after me: You will do just fine! You will do...how long is this flight anyway?!"

After another 20 or so minutes of mentally torturing himself on the airship, it finally landed in the Kingdom of Atlas. As soon as he got off the flight and took a cab to the Ace Ops HQ, he was greeted at the front entrance by the Ace Ops leader.

"There's our latest recruit!" greeted Clover. "Welcome to the Ace Ops, Jaune Arc! I'm Clover Ebi, leader of the world's most elite group of Pokémon Rangers!"

"IT'S AN HONOR TO BE HERE, MR. CLOVER SIR!" yelled Jaune. Clover was surprised to see Jaune greet him in such a weird manner and noticed Jaune looking pale and sweating.

"Are you okay, Jaune? You're looking rather ill. Did you have a bad flight?"

"The flight was good, sir! I assure you I am 120% ready for anything, sir!"

"If you say so! Before the interview, I'd like to give you a tour of our building! Ready to see what makes the Ace Ops the best Rangers in the world?"

"Yes, sir!"

"Oh, and try to keep your voice down? You're coming off a little too loud."

"Yes sir, sorry sir," said Jaune, lowering his voice and already fearing he made a bad impression.

Clover showed Jaune around the various offices and training facilities inside the Ace Ops HQ. As nervous as Jaune was, he was amazed at seeing how luxurious the Ace Ops had it. There was an entire floor dedicated to creating and testing new gadgets, while another floor was a personal gym where Ace Ops members trained with their Pokémon. Jaune felt he was in some kind of science fiction action spy movie come to life.

"As you can see," said Clover, "we've got the best resources when it comes to saving the lives of Pokémon and mankind alike! And don't think you're just some pointless cog in a machine! Whether you're part of the high-ranking elites or a rookie getting started, everyone here plays a vital role in the Ace Ops!"

"Wow," said Jaune. "This is..."

"Amazing, isn't it? That's the beauty of being part of the most advanced kingdom in Remnant. But at the end of the day, the most valuable resource isn't any of the tech you see here. It's all the hard-working men and women out there making the world a better place! We can't be Ace Operatives without the OPS!"

After the tour of the building was wrapped up, Jaune and Clover headed to the main conference room to conduct his interview. In the room were four other Ace Ops, one of them being the Faunus that tried to initially recruit him back at Beacon.

"And now I'd like to introduce you to our best field agents!" said Clover. "You already know our charismatic recruiter over here, Marrow Amin!"

"Nice to see you again, Jaune!" said Marrow.

"This one is our brute force of the group, Elm Elderne!"

"Hello," said Elm in a very stern manner.

"Our passive comrade, Vine Ziki!"

"Greetings," said Vine in a calm manner.

"And our speedy firecracker, Harriet Bree!"

"Hey", said Harriet in a nonchalant manner.

"It's a pleasure meeting you all!" said Jaune, trying his best to make a professional impression. "It'll be an honor to be working with you all!"

"WITH us?" said Harriet. "Whoever said you'd be working with us?"

"Huh? But I'm an Ace Op too now...right?"

"Did you think you'd be working alongside us?" said Elm. "You start at the bottom like everyone else Marrow drags in."

"Now hold on," said Clover. "He may be new here, but I think he should be ranked accordingly."

"He's probably just here because he flunked his finals," said Harriet.

"And what's wrong with that?" asked Marrow. "Some people just can't handle exams and there's nothing with that!"

"It is when you're the one scouting them."

"Well I don't see you searching for new prospects!"

"Because I've got better things to do than grunt work!"

Jaune could feel his skin clam up hearing Marrow and Harriet bicker with each other and was wondering if storming out of the building and never coming back was a good idea.

"That's enough from both of you!" said Clover, ending the argument Marrow and Harriet were having. "As for you Jaune, I don't care whether you were a drop out or valedictorian. I only care that you have a strong heart, and if you're smart enough to know right from wrong, that's all I need!"

"Great speech as always, sir!" said Marrow. Harriet muttered something under her breath about Marrow being a suck-up.

"Of course, that doesn't mean we don't have standards. You'll be assigned based on your experience and intelligence. Being a recent graduate I know you don't have experience, so we'll have to go on the latter."

"And here is where we learned he's a flunky like the rest of Marrow's finds," said Harriet.

"I'm not a flunky!" said Jaune. "I passed and I have a license!"

"HA!" said Marrow. "Looks like I have an eye for talent after all!"

"As if!" said Harriet. "He probably scored the bare minimum to pass!"

"First and foremost Jaune, congratulations!" said Clover. "Even if you just barely passed, that just shows you have great potential."

"Thank you, sir!" said Jaune.

"And if it's not too much to ask, what did you score on your final?"

"Um...do I really to share it?"

"Go on, newbie!" said Harriet. "Tell us so we can find out how worthless Marrow is at recruiting!"

"Well..." said Jaune, coughing to clear his breath. "I...scored..."

This was the part Jaune was dreading the most. Ever since he saw what he scored on that exam, he thought it had to be a mistake. Either the computer glitched that day or somehow his exam got mistaken for somebody else's, because there was no way anybody was going to believe him when he revealed the grade he achieved.

"...the 100th Percentile."

As Jaune expected, everyone was taken aback by Jaune revealing he somehow scored perfect marks on his finals.

"HOW?!" yelled Harriet.

"By correctly answering all the questions," said Vine.

"I mean how did this dope get a perfect score?"

"I don't know myself!" said Jaune. "To be honest even I thought it was a fluke!"

"No it wasn't," said Clover. "Nothing is a fluke. You earned that perfect score because you know a lot more than you realize."

"Or he just got lucky," said Elm.

"Nothing wrong with that either!"

"Looks like I know how to pick them, don't I?" bragged Marrow, taking delight at getting one over Harriet.

"It sure does, Marrow!" said Clover. "Which is why I'm officially assigning Jaune as your field partner!"

Marrow's good mood suddenly took a nosedive and Harriet's mood went way up when they heard the words "field partner."

"Field partner?" said Jaune. "Does that mean...?"

"It means you'll be paired with Marrow for all of his assignments," explained Clover.

"But he doesn't have enough experience for that!" said Marrow.

"I'm sure with his intelligence, he'll be very quick to adapt, especially when he has such a staunch supporter in you!"

Marrow tried to think of a reply but couldn't come up with the words to do so.

"Congratulations, Jaune Arc!" said Clover. "Once we get you situated in your dorm, we'll have a briefing about your first assignments!"

"Thank you, sir!"

"Now let's get you your new uniform!"

Clover took Jaune to get his uniform, leaving the rest of the Ace Ops to discuss what they thought of the new guy and Marrow getting stuck with him.

"I take it back, Marrow!" said Harriet. "I guess you do have an eye for talent!"

"Oh shut up already!" moaned Marrow.

"Jealous of the new guy, are we?" said Elm.

"I AM NOT JEALOUS!"

"I believe the proper term would be envious," said Vine.

"I'm not that either!"

With Jaune now an official member of the Ace Ops, Clover was giving Jaune a more detailed tour of the facility. Jaune was barely comprehending anything Clover was saying as he still couldn't believe he not only joined the Ace Ops but was now positioned to be on the same level as the elite members.

"Mister Clover sir, can I ask an honest question?" asked Jaune.

"Something wrong?" asked Clover.

"Is it really okay for me to be a field agent this quickly? I mean I literally have no experience with actual Pokémon battles and training them. In fact all I have is this Bulbasaur I just got from graduating!"

"That would be an issue. Afterall, we expect everyone to catch and raise their own Pokémon like everyone else. Can't be an Ace Op without your own ace partners!"

Before Jaune can worry too long about not having the Pokémon necessary for the job, Clover suddenly pulled out a case containing several Poké Balls and some potions.

"So lucky you, all members are issued a team of Pokémon for traveling to missions! You've got a Pidgeot for air traveling, a Lapras for water travels, and a Mudsdale for land travel. They're all pretty strong too, so feel free to use them to help you catch your own Pokémon!"

"Oh," said Jaune, feeling slightly more relieved that at least one of his several problems were resolved.

"There's one more tool we issue our Ace Ops, and it's the most important tool you'll need."

Clover then pulled out a glove with a mechanical device attached to it the size of a scroll, with what appeared to be a spinning top attached to the end of it.

"This is our patented Ace Capture Styler. There will be times you'll find yourself in a situation where you'll be needing a wild Pokémon's help, or perhaps an environmental hazard is causing nearby Pokémon to panic. With this styler, you can calm them down long enough to give them orders. Think of it as catching Pokémon for a temporary amount of time."

"Whoa," said Jaune, putting the glove on and looking over the device. "How does it work?"

"It's simply. You just press this button on top to launch the capture disc you see there and control the speed and distance with your device until the Pokémon is 'captured.' But you must remember it won't work on all Pokémon, especially the ones causing a dangerous situation."

"Okay. So I press this button and-"

Jaune pressed the launch button at the top, sending the capture disc flying instantly out of his hand and into a nearby wall. Jaune was about to freak out thinking he had just broken the disc and nearly had it hit Clover along the way.

"OH JEEZ I'M SO SORRY MISTER CLOVER I-"

"No worries!" said Clover. "I know how exciting it can be to get a fancy new gadget! I'll help you practice how to use the device properly. In the meantime, press that button again to have the disc automatically come back."

"Got it," said Jaune, relieved that his new boss didn't immediately fire him for his buffoonery.

#

The Northern shores of Anima was a hotspot for vacationers who wanted to enjoy summer weather and go swimming near the beautiful beaches. One popular tourist destination was "Torusy Island", a small town with a pristine beach and boardwalk attractions. Unfortunately, the main attraction of the town was seeing a downturn in business thanks to an unsavory Pokémon driving people away.

As the children were building sandcastles with their pails and shovels, the giant armored Bug Pokémon known as Golisopod suddenly appeared on the beach, catching the attention of the tourists. Just one look at its menacing face was enough to cause everyone unease. The Golisopod looked around and noticed one of the kids sculping their sandcastles with their shovel. The Golisopod ran up to the child and crushed the sandcastle, knocking the shovel away for good measure. This of course caused the kid to start crying and incur the wrath of the child's parents.

"What's the big idea you cockroach?!" yelled the child's father.

"Golisopod!" yelled Golisopod, looking ready to fight the father. With most tourists leaving their Pokémon behind, nobody was prepared to really fight back and backed down before the Golisopod did something worse.

The Golisopod continued going around destroying every sandcastle in its wake, causing the tourists to call it a day and leave the beach, most threatening to never come back to the town. The mayor of the town was getting more frustrated by the day seeing tourists walk away in droves, which meant less business for the town.

"This Golisopod situation is getting out of hand!" said the mayor, looking at the beach getting less populated by the minute. "At this rate nobody is going to want to come here anymore!"

"What should we do?" asked one of the assistants.

"The only thing we can do: Call the Ace Ops!"

#

With Jaune now in his new uniform - consisting of a white long-sleeved jacket with dark blue pants and black boots, and a red sash along his waist to indicate his position as one of the elites - Jaune was in the practice room going over the capture styler with Clover.

"Okay Jaune," said Clover. "Let's go over it one more time. When do you use the styler on the Pokémon?"

"When I either need their help temporarily or to calm down panicked Pokémon," said Jaune. "But it won't work on dangerous Pokémon, so that's when I use my Pokémon to battle and contain them."

"Perfect answer! But I shouldn't be surprised you adapt so quickly, mister Ace Graduate!"

"I guess not," said Jaune, unsure if Clover was trying to compliment him on his fluke perfect score. "So does this mean I'm ready to go?"

"It sure does. The only thing we have to wait for is a mission to come up for you to take."

"Captain Clover, sir!" said Marrow, entering the training area with a form in hand. "We've just gotten a call from the mayor of Torusy Island!"

Clover took the form from Marrow and glanced through the details, letting out a laugh at the perfect timing.

"Today is really your lucky day, Jaune!" said Clover. "An assignment just came in with your name on it!"

"Really?" said Jaune. "Are you sure I'm cut out for it?"

"Of course, I'm sure! Afterall, Marrow will be there helping you out and showing you the ropes. Unless he thinks this mission is too hard?"

"Of course not, sir!" replied Marrow. "No mission is too hard for me!"

"All right then! Here's the mission: The mayor of Torusy Island needs help dealing with a Pokémon causing havoc on their beach and scaring away the tourists. An assignment like this is perfect to get Jaune's feet wet!"

"Um...was that a joke, sir?" asked Jaune. Marrow tried to keep himself from smirking at Jaune not getting Clover's joke.

"You're really tense, Jaune. Ease up a little! With Marrow's guidance you'll get through this mission easily, right Marrow?"

"We'll be done before the sun even sets, sir!" said Marrow.

"That's what I like to hear. Well then, off you go, Ace Ops!"

The Ace Ops saluted Clover and headed to the launch pad where the Ace Ops would call out their Pidgeots and Fly to their destination.

"So how does it feel, Jaune?" said Marrow. "First day in and you already get to go on an assignment with the Ace Ops' best. At this rate you'll be leading the whole group by next week."

"Marrow, if you don't mind me asking," said Jaune, "you're not mad about me joining the Ace Ops, are you?"

"Now WHY would I be mad?" said Marrow sarcastically. "Just because I've been fighting for years to get this position and some nervous wreck fresh out of baby school is promoted to my level like he's my equal?"

"Well if it's really bothering you, I can tell Clover I don't-"

"You will tell him NOTHING!" interrupted Marrow. "The last thing I need is to be made to look like the bad guy and have to hear it from the others about being jealous of the new guy! Just remember that despite our ranks, I'm still your superior, so don't get any ideas just because you got a perfect score!"

"No ideas! Got it!" replied Jaune.

#

Using their Pidgeots to fly from HQ, Jaune and Marrow arrived at Torusy Island. They were quickly greeted by the mayor of the small town.

"Thank goodness you've arrived so quickly!" said the mayor.

"Greetings, mayor!" exclaimed Marrow. "Marrow Amin, Ace Op, at your service!"

"I'm Jaune Arc, also an Ace Op," said Jaune.

"According to the report, you have a Pokémon causing problems on your beach?"

"It's terrible!" said the mayor. "We've been getting constant complaints about a Golisopod bullying people on the beach and driving them off. If this keeps up, our town is going to end up in financial ruin!"

"Don't worry, mayor!" said Marrow. "The Ace Ops will stomp out your bug problem for good! Let's go Jaune; we've got a pest to exterminate!"

The three of them headed towards the beach, passing by the many souvenir shops and restaurants the town was known for having. Some of the tourists noticed the Ace Ops by their uniforms and waved to them, with Marrow waving back to his fans. Jaune pulled Marrow aside to learn more about what they were going to do.

"So what happens now?" asked Jaune.

"Cases like these are basic," said Marrow. "We find the offending Pokémon, battle them, and catch them with one of our Poké Balls."

"What's the plan?"

"Since I'm the experienced one, I'll fight the Golisopod. You keep an eye out for anything else just in case, and make sure you watch how I handle it."

"Got it. Just stay back and watch!"

"Here we are gentlemen," said the mayor. "Our would famous beach!"

The three of them stepped on the boardwalk and looked out on the famous Torusy Island beach. Jaune was amazed to see a beach look so beautiful and clean. There was hardly any refuse laying around and the sands looked barely touched save for the people already on the beach.

"I've never seen a beach look this good!" said Jaune. "How does this beach remain looking so pristine?"

"It's all thanks to the Wimpods that live nearby!" said the mayor.

"Wimpods?" Jaune took out his PennyDex to look up more information. "Penny, tell me about Wimpod."

"The Wimpod is a small, cowardly Pokémon known for traveling in packs," explained Penny. "They are nicknamed 'Nature's Cleaner' for their habit of devouring any garbage in their path."

"Thanks to those Wimpods," said the mayor, "our beach always looks brand new! But none of that is going to matter as long as that Golisopod keeps harassing everyone!"

As if on cue, the trio heard a commotion down the beach. The Golisopod had destroyed another child's sandcastle, causing everyone around to start yelling and complaining, but Golisopod refused to back down and set his sights on the next sandcastle to demolish.

"There it is! Please get of it already!"

"We'll be done in no time!" boasted Marrow. "Let's go, rookie!"

Marrow and Jaune quickly ran up to the crowd trying to get Golisopod to go away. As soon as one of the beachgoers noticed the pair of Ace Ops, they suddenly had the crowd's attention.

"Mommy, mommy! It's the Ace Ops!"

"What? The Ace Ops are here?"

"FINALLY someone here to do something about it!"

Jaune was surprised to suddenly see himself surrounded by people cheering for him and Marrow. He didn't even complete his first mission and people were suddenly acting like he was a hero. Not used to having so many people stare at him, he was at a loss for words of how to address everyone around him.

"Um...hi everyone!" said Jaune. "I'm Jaune...an Ace Op...and uh..."

"Attention, people of Torusy Island!" loudly exclaimed Marrow. "The Ace Ops are here to save the day!"

The crowd cheered for Marrow's loud boast; Jaune was amazed by the confidence Marrow had. The crowd soon dispersed to let Marrow confront the menacing armored Bug. The Golisopod turned around and stared down the proud Ace Op.

"Hold it right there, Golisopod! Your days of terrorizing people on this beach are over!"

"Golisopod!" replied Golisopod, waving its arm as if to tell Marrow to get lost.

"Want me to get lost? I'm only leaving on two conditions: You captured in a Poké Ball, or you surrendering at will! Either way, I'm not running with my tail between my legs!" Hearing Marrow's speech caused the crowd to cheer louder.

"He's really got the crowd fired up!" thought Jaune. "Though is any of that really necessary?"

With Marrow deciding not to leave, Golisopod got into a fighting stance and awaited Marrow's Pokémon. Marrow called out his signature Pokémon, Lucario.

"All right Lucario!" said Marrow. "You ready to teach this pest some manners?"

"Lucar!" replied Lucario. Before Lucario was even ready, Golisopod quickly sped towards him and unleashed a series of rapid strikes with his claws, slashing away at Lucario multiple times until Lucario was knocked over. The crowd was aghast at seeing Golisopod appear to take the advantage already.

"What attack was that?" thought Jaune, taking out his PennyDex to find out.

"Golisopod used its signature attack, 'First Impression'"; explained Penny. "It attacks with a series of powerful strikes immediately at the start to assert its dominance."

"Figures a vile monster like you would try to sneak attack me like that!" said Marrow. "It'll take more than that to beat us, right Lucario?"

"Lucar!" replied Lucario, getting back up and ready to fight.

"Lucario, show them what real speed looks like with Extreme Speed!"

Lucario disappeared and instantly reappeared in front of Golisopod, knocking Golisopod back with a lightning-fast palm strike. Golisopod curled up and used Iron Defense to reinforce his armor as Lucario used his lightning-fast speed to attack Golisopod. Once Lucario was done using his Extreme Speed, Golisopod uncurled himself and used his claws to Slash at Lucario, dealing some moderate damage.

"Lucario, get back and use your Aura Sphere!"

Lucario distanced himself from Golisopod and formed a ball of powerful pure energy, blasting it at Golisopod; Golisopod blocked the attack with his plated arms. He then broke off a piece of his armor and used his Razor Shell technique to throw it at Lucario like a shuriken. Lucario dodged the shell and kept firing his Aura Sphere, always landing a hit thanks to the aura's ability to home in on the opponent. The two kept firing projectiles back and forth, Lucario constantly rolling out of the way of the Razor Shells until one of them slashed across his arm, leaving a bad looking cut in its wake. The audience was worried Lucario was going to be done for.

"It's not over yet folks!" assured Marrow. "Lucario, time to power up with Work Up!"

Lucario concentrated on his aura, using it to power up his strength. Golisopod broke off another part of his plated arms and fired his Razor Shell; Lucario used his Extreme Speed to dodge the attack and kick Golisopod in his exposed ribcage. Golisopod countered with his Slash attack; Lucario dodged the attack and landed another hit with his Extreme Speed. Frustrated from missing, Golisopod tried to lunge forward at Lucario, only for Lucario to quickly form his Aura Sphere and land a critical blow on Golisopod at point blank range, sending Golisopod flying back several feet and dealing major damage. The beach tourists were back to cheering for Lucario getting one over on the Golisopod.

"All right Lucario, one more big Aura Sphere should do the trick!"

Lucario walked up to the fallen Golisopod and focused all his aura into his palms, forming the biggest Aura Sphere he can muster as Golisopod tried to get back to his feet. Seeing Lucario getting ready to fire his most powerful attack, the Golisopod realized there was only one thing it can do now.

"GOL! GOL!" cried Golisopod, suddenly curling up like a ball and cowering in fear of Lucario. Surprised by Golisopod afraid to fight, Lucario immediately stopped forming his Aura Sphere.

"What are you doing, Lucario?" asked Marrow. "Why did you stop?"

"Lucar!" said Lucario, pointing out how Golisopod appeared to be surrendering, not wanting to take a serious beating at the hands of Lucario. Marrow began to laugh at Golisopod begging for mercy.

"Would you look at that!" said Marrow. "Turns out the big bad Pokémon is nothing more than a WIMP!"

As the crowd joined Marrow in egging on the cowardly Golisopod, Jaune was wondering why Golisopod wasn't fighting back.

"Why is Golisopod suddenly scared to fight? He's not even close to looking like he can faint."

Off in the distance, Jaune noticed a few Wimpods come out and go up to Golisopod, almost as if checking if Golisopod was all right. Before Jaune can figure out what was going on, his train of thought was interrupted by Marrow and the crowd's jeers at Golisopod.

"I tell you what, Golisopod!" said Marrow. "You run away like the coward that you are, and I won't have to take you in!"

As Marrow pulled out an Ultra Ball to catch Golisopod, Golisopod suddenly got up and ran away, the Wimpods following behind. The audience cheered and were relieved to see Golisopod run away, hopefully to never bother anyone again. Proud of accomplishing his mission, Marrow recalled Lucario and caught up with Jaune.

"And that, rookie, is how we deal with a menacing Pokémon!" said Marrow. "Once we confirm our mission is complete, we call up the captain and give our report. Easy enough that even you can do it, am I right?"

"Yeah...," said Jaune.

As Marrow walked off the beach getting congratulated by the beach goers, Jaune couldn't help but feel conflicted about how that battle ended. Everyone was happy to see the Golisopod run away and never show his face again, but the way Golisopod cowered in fear and made those Wimpods worried had Jaune feeling uneasy. He didn't know why exactly, but something about what happened felt wrong.

With the tourists finally able to enjoy the beach in peace, the Ace Ops met with the mayor on the boardwalk to give the good news.

"You won't have to worry about Golisopod anymore, mayor!" said Marrow. "But if that thing ever dares shows its face again, you know who to call!"

"Will do!" said the mayor. "Thank you for your help, Ace Ops!"

Marrow saluted the mayor and took out his scroll to call Clover. Before he can contact Clover, he noticed Jaune looking down on the ground like he was contemplating something.

"What's wrong, rookie?" asked Marrow.

"Something's been bothering me about that Golisopod," said Jaune. "Doesn't it seem weird the Golisopod had no problem attacking people, but backed down as soon as it felt it couldn't win a fight?"

"Because that's how heartless bullies always act!"

"No offense, but I've dealt with bullies a lot, and they don't back down that easily."

"What's your point, rookie?"

"Excuse me mayor," said Jaune, "but what exactly was the Golisopod doing to people on the beach?"

"Aside from scaring them away," said mayor, "he was always going up to the kids making sandcastles and destroying them."

"See?" said Marrow. "Classic bully behavior!"

"And what about those Wimpods we saw?" asked Jaune. "Have they ever caused trouble?"

"Never!" said the mayor. "The Wimpods do us a big favor by cleaning up the beach between dusk and dawn! But lately they stopped doing it and then that Golisopod started causing trouble."

"Clearly that Golisopod was a bad influence!" said Marrow. "But now that Golisopod was taught a lesson, I'm sure the Wimpod will go back to being nice again!"

"I'm sorry Marrow," said Jaune, "but something feels off about all this. I don't think that Golisopod is the bad guy we think it is. Mayor, when does this beach close?"

"Once the sun goes completely down," replied the mayor.

"If you don't mind, we want to investigate the beach during the night."

"By all means! Take as much time as you need."

Marrow gripped his scroll tight, resisting the urge to throw it down in frustration. A simple mission was now going to turn into a possible all-nighter, all thanks to the newbie having to open his big mouth. Once the mayor was out of sight, Marrow pulled Jaune aside to remind the rookie of his place.

"What are you doing, Jaune?" said Marrow. "I told you not to get any ideas!"

"I know!" said Jaune. "But I can't help but think there's more to this story than meets the eye. As Ace Ops, isn't it our duty to investigate these kinds of matters?"

"What's there to investigate? We know the Pokémon causing the problem and we already taught that roach a lesson!"

"That's just it. What if Golisopod ISN'T the one causing the problem? Pokémon just don't radically change from good to bad overnight. The mayor said the Wimpods would clean this beach, then for whatever reason they stopped, and now a Golisopod gets involved? I think something happened to cause Golisopod to retaliate."

"First day on the job and you're already pretending to be a big shot!" said Marrow. "Okay rookie, why do you think Golisopod is harassing tourists?"

"I don't know," replied Jaune. "Maybe some bad kids snuck onto the beach and attacked the Wimpods? Maybe that's why the Golisopod is attacking people."

"So you're just going off one big hunch? All because the Golisopod looked scared and ran away from a fight?"

"Well...yeah! I mean, what do we got to lose spending the night here?"

Marrow had a hard time trying to come up with a response that didn't result in him exposing the real reason he didn't want to continue doing this mission.

"Now there's no way we can leave now!" thought Marrow. "If Jaune ends up blabbering about this to the others, I'll never here the end of it! I can't let this newbie upstage me!"

"All right, rookie," said Marrow. "You want to shine so badly? We'll investigate the beach after dark. But if it turns out to be a waste of time, I'll have the captain demote you to being our intern. Understood?"

"Yes, sir!" said Jaune.

#

Once nighttime fell and the beach was now deserted, the Ace Ops combed the beach to investigate any kind of activity. Aside from the sounds of the tide along the coast, the beach was dead quiet. Jaune was vigilantly observing everything around him, while Marrow kept his arms folded and just stared at the sand, which only had sandcastles and the occasional piece of garbage left behind.

"There's nothing here but a bunch of sandcastles," said Marrow. "Kind of nice to see one without that giant bug stomping them out."

"Maybe if we wait a bit longer something will happen," said Jaune.

"I hope you're right, rookie. I'd hate to think what the other Ace Ops will say if this turns out to be a blunder. They'll probably give you a nickname like the 'Ace Time Waster.'"

"Are the other Ace Ops really like that? You make them sound like jerks."

"They're not so bad; except Harriet. She'll definitely never let you live this down. In fact, between you and me? I think she's hoping you embarrass yourself."

Hearing Marrow talk about how the other Ace Ops were hoping he failed was causing Jaune's self-doubt to bubble up again.

"Oh man, what happens if this does end up being a waste of time? I'll have made myself look like an idiot on my first day! Maybe it was a mistake for me to ever join the Ace Ops! I should just call it a night and-"

"GOL! GOL!"

The Ace Ops looked out and saw the Golisopod along with several Wimpods suddenly run up to them.

"Well look who's back!" said Marrow. "Trying to get a rematch, are we?"

"GOLIS! GOLIS!" yelled the Golisopod.

"Wait!" said Jaune. "Golisopod, we don't want to fight! I just want to know why you are attacking people on the beach!"

"GOL!" replied the Golisopod, frantically waving its arm as if to tell Jaune to go away.

"Why do you want me off the beach? Do you think I'm going to harm you or the Wimpod?"

"We aren't the ones harming anyone you overgrown roach!" said Marrow, stepping up closer to the Golisopod. Before Marrow can get another word in, Golisopod suddenly shoulder tackled Marrow and pushed him to the side, knocking him down to the sand.

"That's it!" yelled Marrow, getting up and taking out his Ultra Ball. "I'm taking it into custody!"

"Marrow, hold on!" said Jaune, getting between his partner and the Golisopod. "Golisopod, listen to me! We don't want to harm you or the Wimpod! Please believe me!"

Jaune raised his arms high and slowly approached Golisopod to make sure the Pokémon knew Jaune meant no harm. Jaune tried to walk slowly but the Golisopod wasn't calming down.

"GOL! GOL!" yelled Golisopod, pointing to the ground. Jaune noticed the Wimpods start shaking and whimpering in fear as well. Jaune looked down and noticed a sandcastle with a shovel still attached to it.

"The sandcastle?" said Jaune. "Is there something strange about it?"

Golisopod nodded. Jaune bent down to look at the sandcastle and the shovel attached, which caused the Golisopod and the Wimpod to freak out even more. Jaune stood back up and slowly moved away from the sandcastle; Golisopod then ran up and kicked the shovel out of the castle, sending it flying several feet away.

"Okay, what the heck is going on?" asked Marrow. "Does this thing have a phobia or something?"

"Maybe he does!" said Jaune. "Golisopod, are you afraid of the sandcastles?" The Golisopod nodded.

"Are you telling me this thing have been scaring people off because it has a sandcastle phobia? They're just mounds of dirt you big baby!"

To prove his point, Marrow went up to the closest sandcastle next to him that also had a shovel sticking out of it.

"Though I have to say, I don't know why these kids forget to take their shovels."

"GOL!" yelled Golisopod, as if trying to warn Marrow.

"Marrow, wait!" said Jaune.

"Wait for what?" said Marrow. "There's nothing to fear! Watch, I'll pick up this shovel and-"

As soon as Marrow grabbed the shovel, he felt an icy cold chill suddenly take over his body. Not only did he feel frozen, but he could feel parts of his body start to go numb.

"Marrow, let go the shovel!" yelled Jaune.

"I'm...try...," muttered Marrow, trying to let go but something was forcing his hand closed. Jaune ran up and tried to loosen Marrow's grip to no avail. Golisopod quickly broke off a piece of his armor and launched his Razor Shell at the shovel, knocking it hard enough for Marrow to finally let go.

"Are you okay, sir?" asked Jaune.

"What just happened?!" said Marrow. "It felt like my soul was being drained!"

The sandcastle with the weird shovel suddenly grew bigger, with a hole shaped pattern forming in the center and two pebbles coming together on top, almost as if the sandcastle was forming a face. Now it was the Ace Ops that were starting to freak out.

"Did that sandcastle just come to life?!" yelled Marrow.

"It's not the only one!" said Jaune. The Ace Ops looked around and noticed all the other sandcastles start to take the same shape and let out an eerie cry.

"Are these things Pokémon?!"

"Only one way to find out!" said Jaune, reaching into his PennyDex and scanning these haunting life forms.

Sandygast

Sand Heap Pokémon

According to legend, grudges of the dead have possessed a mound of sand and become a Pokémon. It takes control of anyone who puts their hand into its mouth, forcing them to make its body bigger.

With the Sandygast surrounding everyone, the Wimpod quickly huddled into a group and hid behind Golisopod, who looked almost as scared as the Wimpod.

"No wonder I felt like my spine got cold!" said Marrow. "These Ghosts were literally trying to take my soul!"

"This is why Golisopod kept destroying sandcastles!" said Jaune. "It was protecting the Wimpod from these things!"

"Okay rookie, new objective! We take down every one of these grainy geists!" Marrow got back on his feet and called out his Lucario while Jaune called out his Pidgeot. "Lucario, hit every one of them with a Dark Pulse!"

"Pidgeot, use your Wing Attack!" said Jaune.

Lucario immediately got to work firing a Dark Pulse at every Sandygast that tried to approach the Ace Ops, while Pidgeot flew around tackling into them with its wings. Golisopod chipped off several parts of its armor and threw multiple Razor Shells. Every time a Sandygast took a major hit from their attacks, the sand would soon dissolve back to the ground, only for more Sandygast to soon pop up.

"It's like there's no end to these things!" said Jaune.

"Don't back down now, rookie!" said Marrow. "These spirits have to run out eventually!"

Several of the Sandygast ganged up on Lucario and blasted him in the face with a Sand Attack, causing Lucario to nearly go blind. Pidgeot was thankfully able to fly in the air and avoid Sandygast's attacks. Lucario tried to launch another Dark Pulse but could barely see and ended up missing the Sandygast. With Lucario wide open for an attack, one of the Sandygast bulked up and charged into Lucario with a Bulldoze attack. Seeing Lucario in trouble, Golisopod quickly jumped in front and used their Iron Defense to bolster their hard armor before the Sandygast knocked into them, barely causing any damage.

"Lucario doesn't look okay," said Jaune. "Call it back!"

"Right!" said Marrow, recalling Lucario and calling out the Ace Ops Water transport specialist, Lapras to take his place. "Lapras, hit them with your Ice Beam!"

Lapras opened her mouth and fired an Ice Beam at all the surrounding Sandygast, dealing enough damage to knock them all out in one hit. The tide of the battle was soon turning into the Ace Ops and Golisopod's favor as they were able to regroup and start knocking out more Sandygast than could reform. Seeing themselves outmatched, the Sandygast seemed to run away and disappear into the ground themselves.

"Is it over?" said Jaune. "Did we win?"

"It looks like it!" said Marrow. "Nobody messes with the Ace Ops!"

"Gol...Golisopod!" replied Golisopod, still sounding scared.

"What's wrong, Golisopod?" asked Jaune. "Are there more of them coming?"

"Then we'll just keep knocking them out!" said Marrow. "Bring it on you glorified dirt stains!"

As if by command, the ground started to shake slightly like an earthquake was about to happen. The Ace Ops looked around and saw a small mound forming near the Wimpods.

"Over there!" said Jaune. "Their forming near the Wimpods!"

"Then we'll just attack the moment they come out!" said Marrow.

Just as the mound appeared to form into a Sandygast, the mound suddenly grew rapidly and was constantly growing, well above what a Sandygast's height was supposed to be.

"GOLISOPOD!" yelled Golisopod, telling the Wimpods to get off the beach. The Wimpods tried to run away but a few of them were caught up in the sand mound as it continued to keep growing. By the time the sand finally took shape, the Ghostly figure before them wasn't a Sandygast, but this time a much larger, menacingly looking sandcastle composed of several palaces. The evil sand palace let out a loud horrifying roar.

"Is that...Sandygast's evolved form?!" asked Jaune, fumbling for his PennyDex to see what this new abomination was called.

Palossand

Sandcastle Pokémon

Palossand is known as the Beach Nightmare. It pulls its prey down into the sand by controlling the sand itself, and then it sucks out their souls.

"WIMP! WIMP!" cried the Wimpod trapped within Palossand's sandy walls.

"This is bad!" said Jaune. "We have to get those Wimpod out of there before it's too late!"

"Leave it to me!" said Marrow. "Lapras, Ice Beam attack!"

"Pidgeot, Wing Attack!"

Lapras fired her Ice Beam to try freezing the Palossand, while Pidgeot tackled into the Palossand with its wings. Even though it was enough damage to knock a chunk of Palossand off, the Palossand quickly started to reform itself. Before the Ace Ops Pokémon can attack again, Palossand created a large Sandstorm that entrapped Lapras and Pidgeot.

"Darn it!" said Marrow. "At this rate it's going to take forever to take this thing down!"

"What are we supposed to do?" asked Jaune.

"I'll figure out something! Lapras, keep firing your Ice Beam!"

Lapras kept firing the Ice Beam, although she had to stop constantly from the Sandstorm causing damage and blinding her; Pidgeot was having the same problems himself. While the Ace Ops Pokémon struggled to fight back, the Palossand remained standing strong as the Wimpods inside keep begging for help.

As the Ace Ops kept fighting, Jaune noticed a certain Pokémon suddenly absent from the fight. Jaune looked around and saw Golisopod crawled up like a ball and cowering in fear of the Palossand.

"Golisopod, what are you doing?" said Jaune. "Don't you want to save the Wimpods?"

"GOL! GOL!" cried Golisopod, sounding too scared to do anything.

"But Golisopod, if you don't do anything, they could get eaten by that thing! You need to do something!"

"GOOOL!" cried Golisopod again.

"Great! Not only can we barely do anything to Palossand, Golisopod is too scared to help! If only I can get him to calm down and help...wait..."

It suddenly hit Jaune that this was exactly the kind of situation Clover talked about when it came to using the Ace Capture Styler he was wearing.

"That's it! If I use the styler, maybe I can get Golisopod to stop freaking out and help us out! Here goes!"

Jaune aimed his launcher at Golisopod and fired the capture disc. Using the controls on his glove, Jaune spun the capture disc around Golisopod; the top gave off a soothing green aura as it made several revolutions around Golisopod. Once Jaune thought he made just the right amount of revolutions, he activated the capture disc again. The aura created by the capture styler caused Golisopod to suddenly stop cowering in fear and turn his attention to Jaune.

"It worked!" said Jaune. "All right Golisopod, listen up! Those Wimpods are in danger and they need your help!"

"Golis!" said Golisopod, still sounding somewhat worried about having to fight such a dangerous Pokémon.

"I understand that you're scared, but you know what? I'm completely scared too! In fact...I'm just a total wimp!"

"Gol?"

"Yeah, I be an Ace Op, but that doesn't mean I'm brave! There's all sorts of things that scare me, and big freaky Pokémon like that Palossand is definitely one of them! But I know despite being scared, when there are Pokémon and people in danger, I need to put my fears aside and do what's right! So Golisopod, it's time you step up you can save your friends!"

Golisopod thought about what Jaune said, and he was right. The day Golisopod evolved from the rest of the pack, it was essentially his duty to protect his fellow Wimpods from harm, even if he never had to deal with a situation this dire. Still, if a coward like Jaune could be brave enough to fight back, then Golisopod definitely could.

"WIIMP!" cried the Wimpods in the Palossand. The Palossand let out a loud roar in response, as if getting ready to devour the Wimpods. Desperate to save his friends, Golisopod decided to charge in without a second thought.

"Golisopod!" yelled Golisopod, fighting through the Sandstorm and lunging his claws at Palossand, striking it several times with his First Impression attack.

"About time that thing joined the fight!" said Marrow.

"I used the styler to get him to help!" said Jaune. "Now we should be able to save those Wimpods!"

"I hate to say it rookie, but we might be too late. Even Golisopod's attacks aren't enough to stop that thing from reforming."

"What? But then what are we supposed to do?"

"I'm thinking, all right?!"

As Jaune and Marrow racked their minds trying to come up with a plan, the tide of the ocean started to pick up. The water washed alongside the Ace Ops ankles, causing the sand beneath them to turn into mud. When Jaune took his boots out of the mud, he noticed how hardened and sludgy the mud was.

"Hey...I think I've got an idea!" exclaimed Jaune. "Marrow, get Lapras to the ocean!"

"What? Why?" said Marrow.

"Look below you; the water is turning the sand into mud! I bet if we both had Lapras hit Palossand with such a huge amount of water, it'll just collapse into a pile of mud!"

"Huh...that might actually work! Okay Lapras, time to get into the water!"

With the sandstorm still raging, Marrow's Lapras tried sliding into the water while Jaune called out his Lapras onto the ocean. Seeing the two Water Pokémon trying to get together, Palossand tried to capture Marrow's Lapras in a sand tomb, only for it to suddenly get distracted by a Razor Shell to the eyes.

"Golisopod!" yelled Golisopod, refusing to back down until Palossand let go of the Wimpod. The Palossand roared in anger and decided to try and trap Golisopod as well. Seeing Palossand trying to make Golisopod its next meal, Golisopod decided to take a risk and used Iron Defense to harden its body as Palossand began to engulf him entirely, hoping to buy the Ace Ops time to help save them.

Golisopod's distraction paid off as Marrow's Lapras eventually made it to the water and united with Jaune's Lapras.

"Okay Lapras!" said Marrow. "Take down that Palossand with a double Surf attack!"

The pair of Lapras used their strength to create the biggest tidal wave they could, creating a wall of water large enough to engulf the entire length of the beach. As Palossand was trying to consume the Golisopod, it looked up and noticed the inbound Surf attack about to come crashing down on it. With no chance of escape, the tidal wave landed on the beach and washed upon everything on the shore, including the Ace Ops themselves.

By the time the tide finally died down, the Ace Ops were completely drenched as the entire beach turned into mud. The Ace Ops stood back up and looked at Palossand, who had completely fell apart and was now just a pile of mud, appearing to have been knocked out.

"We did it!" said Marrow. "Palossand is done for!"

"Wait!" said Jaune. "What happened to Golisopod?"

With Golisopod nowhere in sight, Jaune trudged through the mud and ran up to the remains of the Golisopod. Jaune used his bare hands to try and dig up any mud he could, hoping to unearth Golisopod safe and sound. Suddenly, a claw started to sprout out from the mud. Recognizing it as Golisopod's, Jaune grabbed the claw with both hands and pulled up; out came the Golisopod, along with the other Wimpods he was holding with his other arm, all safe and sound.

"Thank goodness you're all okay!" said Jaune.

"Wimp, Wimp!" said the Wimpods, jumping out of Golisopod's arm and happy to finally be free of the Palossand's grasp. Just before they can breathe a sigh of relief, they suddenly heard Palossand moaning in pain. Some of the mud next to them started to take the form of Palossand's head as it tried to repair itself.

"I don't think so, Palossand!" said Marrow. "You're finished!"

Marrow took out his Ultra Ball and hurled it at the head of Palossand. With all its strength drained, Palossand could do nothing but get hit by the ball and end up captured.

"Hey rookie! You think the mission is complete now?"

"Definitely!" said Jaune, relieved this ordeal to finally be over.

#

As the beach was about to be opened to the public, the horde of Wimpods came out and scattered across the beach, giving everyone a chance to see how the Wimpods kept the beach so clean. Clover had arrived to confirm the mission completed with the mayor of Torusy Island.

"To think that the real cause of all this were Ghost Pokémon hiding in the sand!" said the mayor. "I can't thank you Ace Ops enough for capturing that Palossand!"

"All in a day's work for the Ace Ops!" said Clover. "I'm especially proud of you, Jaune! You had the foresight to investigate the situation and uncover the true culprit behind Golisopod's attacks. That's exactly the kind of work we expect from an Ace Op!"

"Thank you, sir!" said Jaune.

As the Wimpods cleaned the beach, they gathered around Jaune and cheered for him, thanking Jaune for saving them.

"And it looks like your biggest fan wants to say thanks as well!" said Clover. Jaune looked up and saw the Golisopod appear to thank Jaune.

"Gol, Gol!" said Golisopod.

"Hey, you're a hero too you know," said Jaune. "You were the one protecting the Wimpods in the first place!"

"Gol, Gol!" said Golisopod, getting on its knees and bowing to Jaune. Seeing himself getting praised this much was making Jaune feel embarrassed.

"Okay, I think we get the point," said Jaune.

"GOL! GOL GOL!"

"Um...what does it want now?"

"I think he wants to come with you," said Clover. Golisopod stood up and nodded.

"Wait, what? You want me to be your trainer?"

"He must have been impressed with your skills and wants to learn under you!"

"GOL GOL!" replied Golisopod.

"But if you leave," said Jaune, "who will protect the Wimpods if those Ghosts come back?"

"We'll have volunteers working to make sure the Wimpods are protected," said the mayor, "and we'll be encouraging everyone to not leave any belongings that those Sandygast can possess."

"What do you say, Jaune?" asked Clover. "Will you recruit Golisopod as part of your team?"

"Well...I do need more Pokémon to help me out," said Jaune. "If you really insist, welcome to the team, Golisopod!"

Golisopod and the Wimpods were joyous to hear Golisopod officially becoming Jaune's Pokémon. While Jaune continued to be surrounded by his new fans, Clover couldn't help but smile at Jaune's first completed mission. Marrow appeared to be smiling himself.

"One mission in and he's already made quite an impression," said Clover. "That kid is going to be one of our best agents in no time."

"He sure is," said Marrow.

"It's a good thing you've recruited him, Marrow. You seem to have a knack in scouting talent."

"I was just lucky, that's all."

"Nothing wrong with that!"

Marrow gripped his sleeves and bit his lip as he watched Jaune getting praised and adding a new Pokémon to his team. He was already imagining what his co-workers were going to say seeing this rookie already performing on his level, and how he wished he never took up the recruitment duties despite Clover's compliments.