Here's some review replies before we get started!
pokemonking0924: Hooray for worldbuilding! As for what the Five Legends are up to...well, we'll see how it turns out later.
jjjdunk1: You like Professor Boris? Well that's a first! Grant's not going to enjoy it though... As for Asher's extreme memory, she was submitted by somebody called HumanWiki, so I suppose it's not's too much of a surprise! It will definitely be interesting to explore later on.
As for your 'joke'...I think I got it, but yeah, I try to avoid M-rated content wherever I can, because I am only seventeen (though the 11th will probably pass before I get this chapter out, which means I'll be eighteen! I don't even know how to drive yet, though...) If you have some less M-rated jokes to share though, that would be great!
coolhuh0526: Hello, another long review I see! Woo!
Huh, I didn't expect that for Ray...but I think I understand! I'll definitely try to make Mystery Dungeons and Dragonites fun for all involved!
Hmm, the Queen is definitely near the top of this school's hierarchy. Whether that has corrupted her remains to be seen. Perhaps we'll get more insight into her character when she makes her physical appearance.
Yeah, Boris and Grant are not going to have a fun relationship, that's for sure.
Hmm...who knows, we may have a corrupt scientist or two in here somewhere. Who knows if it's the Sensei or not.
Yeah, the Aztecs were an inspiration for my take on the Celestica people. It's why I directly tied the 'Mew temple supposedly discovered in South America' to them. It will definitely add some interesting stuff to the narrative, that's for sure! As for giving ancient Pokemon different names from their modern counterparts, I'll work on that, because it just makes sense.
This was a short chapter (sadly), but the lore is definitely the highlight! I love reading lore, and creating some of my own!
Rescue Wolf: Poor, poor Grant.
As for Asher, I mentioned that they were biologically female all the way back in the first chapter they showed up in. And no, Boris has nothing against nonbinary people, they just confuse him. He's an old man you see.
Ash-Greninja has nothing to do with any of the stuff I introduced. I did not intend in any way for that to be the connection people see. Ash is the only one with a Greninja of that capability, hence its name. And he most likely won't show up here.
I do like history and old ruins, as you can tell! You can expect plenty of mysteries and lore to explore in here, that's for sure.
Who knows? Grant might shape up. As for Boris and his sight, it's just a medical condition really. Terre might be your snapshot into romantic relationships here, or he might just see things that aren't there. All things I'll explore later on!
AnonChan1: Hello again!
Yeah, the facilities spare no expense, that's for sure. And no, most teachers haven't been running late, although Boris was rather slow to get up this morning. He's old, y'know?
I do like trying to be creative and design tree names for every professor I write. But sometimes I do have some trouble.
Boris doesn't really NEED a Pokemon to help him get around, but he probably has one anyway that I'll show later.
The Grant/Tom Tom dynamic is fun to write, that's for sure! Not fun for Grant, though.
Asher is very observant, that's for sure. Who knows if their hypothesis is right, though.
Yeah, Grant has trouble paying attention sometimes. Wonder why...
Asher doesn't mind too much. They love being helpful!
Naru takes offense! He IS a ninja, just not trained yet! But in all seriousness, yeah, he's not a good ninja. Probably why he's been assigned to stand sentry at the sushi bar until Asher shows up. They'll probably take their time for that one, though, as they try to determine whether or not it's a good idea.
It is a coincidence that almost every teacher has a plant name...no it's not! That was totally on purpose and not just something I only just realized!
Darn, now I need to find a plant name for the principal...
Acacia loves her job, that's for sure! And no, the Celestica is not just a one-time thing. It has a greater purpose in our narrative...
Muahahaha! I am a writer. It's my job to leave you hanging! And I ain't sharing nobody's secrets too fast!
DoubleScimitar: Oh, introducing new regions of Pokemon won't be a problem. I already have plans to implement Paldea, once I've played through Scarlet/Violet...
Let's see how much in this chapter you guys will get to analyze, shall we? (-o-)
The Ranger Course students were gathering near the Nature Reserve, in a secluded area of trees. Many of them looked pumped up for this - there were no faint-hearted students here.
This, at least, made Gwendolyn feel a slight sense of belonging. These kids were somewhat like her.
And yet, she knew that she was nothing like them at all.
As they awaited the teacher, she surveyed the group, picking out distinctive traits and sizing each of them up. She always wanted to know who was the most dangerous in a group, if worst came to worst.
There was that boy, Danforth. Tough-looking, definitely worked out at least sometimes. However, Gwendolyn was certain that she could overpower him in a fight.
She spotted Jeremy standing near him, feeding some berries to his Shuckle. Very average kid, didn't look like somebody who should be enrolling in the toughest course in the school. But his Shuckle...Gwendolyn sensed that something was very weird and creepy about it. She didn't want to mess with that thing unless she had Sashimi close at hand.
She noticed Kealoha, yawning and looking like they hadn't gotten much sleep last night. Gwendolyn couldn't really get a good read on them yet. She'd have to pay closer attention.
Victor was doing some stretches as he waited. Now, HE was somebody that concerned her. Tough, loaded with armor, and clearly had a clever mind if his various contraptions were any indication. Plus, it appeared he'd been on the rough end of the block himself. Gwendolyn knew that he would be a challenge if they ended up fighting. The Hisuian Zoroark following him around only heightened that fact.
Continuing her analysis, her eyes went towards Dravilius and Donovan. She could sense a 'spark' of sorts whenever she glanced at Dravilius, which immediately sent her on alarm. Something was different about him.
Something she felt worried about recognizing...
Donovan seemed strange as well. She wasn't sure what it was - maybe his unusual outfit, or his odd manner of talking with people like he'd already seen that conversation, or maybe the fact that she'd found him on the floor in the cargo hold of the ship - but she could see it.
It didn't help how he kept giving her strange looks, as if he was sad about something.
Shaking her head softly, Gwendolyn was then distracted by the sound of hoofbeats. Looking towards the path, she noticed a man riding up to them on the back of a Mudsdale.
He was rather buff, but was only five feet tall. He wore a green army uniform and thick black boots. His eyes were a tough, menacing blue, and his brown hair had been shaved close to his scalp. He had a short beard and mustache, and looked like he meant business.
Gwendolyn felt herself subconsciously tensing. Her instincts were shouting 'dangerous!' But she wasn't sure why.
She hated being so unsure about everything.
The man rode up to a stop right in front of them, at the exact same time the clock struck nine. He stood squarely in front of them, and projected himself as tougher than everyone else there, even though many of the kids were taller than he was.
"Alright, listen up, you pack of Sunkerns! My name is Sergeant Forrest, and I ain't gonna take no shenanigans in my class! So you better stay in shape, or I'll mess you up so bad you'll be crying to mama!", he shouted, making it very clear this guy had been a drill sergeant once.
Gwendolyn had had some bad experiences with soldiers like him before. Perhaps that's why her hard-earned instincts were acting up.
But she doubted that was the only reason.
He continued, "Now, follow me for a moment. Class takes place somewhere different from here."
He walked through the trees, heading for a fenced-off area. At first glance, it looked like another part of the reserve, but upon closer inspection Gwendolyn realized was actually something different.
Sergeant Forrest walked towards a locked gate, and took out a ring of keys. "Now, this area we're about to enter is for training purposes only! No catching Pokemon without my exclusive permission, and no battling for any reason! Anyone I catch breaking those rules will have a free one-way ticket right off this island, you hear me?"
"Yes sir!", everyone shouted, too intimidated not to. Gwendolyn, however, only said it to avoid attracting his attention. She was trying very hard to figure out why he was setting off her danger radar, and she didn't want to make him suspicious of her.
Not yet, at any rate.
The sergeant unlocked the gate, and everyone followed him to an open clearing, with a path leading off to what appeared to be their 'training area'.
It was utterly insane.
The path led into a colossal, very long obstacle course, that extended as far as the eye could see. It snaked through its designated area before finally making its way back to the start, and Gwendolyn could see everything from climbing walls to rope bridges to pits of mud to...
"Holy Arceus, is that a minefield down there!?", exclaimed Danforth.
The sergeant glared at him. "You're damn right it is. Luckily for you, they won't kill anything."
He looked towards everyone. "Alright then! For your first lesson, all of you are going to run through that obstacle course! I will be grading you on your speed to complete it...as well as the number of faults you make."
He barked, "Single file, now!"
Everybody hurriedly lined up. Gwendolyn found herself in the back of the line, and sighed. Great, now he'd think she was weak and had purposefully tried to hide in the back, as if she was scared of him.
One by one, he started walking down the line of students, jotting notes before sending them to run the course. Gwendolyn stood up straight as he grew closer, showing that she was a foot taller than he was.
When he finally reached her, he frowned, looking her over. "Miss Tenara, I assume?"
Gwendolyn replied, "Yes, sir."
He said, "I feel like I've heard that name before...in a not-so-positive way."
Gwendolyn shrugged. "No idea."
"Hmm...", he mused, "Very well. Start running!"
Gwendolyn took off at once, speeding along like a Rapidash. She was glad that this first lesson didn't involve sitting down and listening to lectures. Patience and sitting still were not her strong suits.
But running? Oh, she could run. She could run very well.
She quickly started overtaking the others, even with their headstart. It wasn't long before she reached the first obstacle - a large array of stumps across a ditch.
As nimble as an Ambipom in the trees, Gwendolyn leaped from stump to stump, focusing on each step. She could sense just the right way to hop, the quickest paths to where she needed to go.
Others weren't so lucky, trying to jump to just the wrong stump. It appeared some of them were wobbly, sending kids sprawling into the dirt. Not Gwendolyn though. She wouldn't dare make that mistake. It could very well mean the difference between her continued survival or her premature demise.
And she would choose survival any day of the week.
She rapidly reached the other side and continued on her way, catching up to the people in the lead.
The next obstacle was the first of the rock climbs. It was pretty simple, only a ten-foot wall leading up to the continued path with bright-colored handholds. Gwendolyn scaled it effortlessly.
The obstacle after that, though, wasn't so easy.
It was a series of ropes hanging over a mud pit, which students needed to swing over. Gwendolyn could see Kea struggling to not fall, while Victor, Dravilius, Danforth, and Donovan sped ahead of him. Gwendolyn readied herself to go after them.
But before she could get there, another girl rammed into her from behind, and they both fell over, nearly toppling into the mud pit.
"Argh! Hey!", snapped Gwendolyn furiously.
The girl who'd hit her rolled aside like a natural acrobat, revealing her features. She was tall and lithe, much like Gwendolyn, with a black jumpsuit covered by a trench coat and thick boots. She had a large backpack, as well as a utility belt around her waist. She had long, braided red hair, as well as ferocious orange eyes. A scar ran over her forehead.
She said, "Sorry, but I've got to go!"
She leaped onto one of the ropes, and started speeding across them much like Gwendolyn would've.
Gwendolyn growled animalistically, and raced to catch up. She swung across the ropes and started hurrying after that girl.
The next obstacle was a field of webs, complete with Spinaraks. Several students screamed, which caused Gwendolyn to roll her eyes. There were FAR more terrifying things out there.
But the webs were quite a nuisance, sticking to her boots and slowing her down. Nala had crawled up onto Gwendolyn's back at the mud pit, and was doing her best to avoid touching the webs with her paws.
Ahead, the girl was also struggling against the webs. They had a knife drawn and were cutting through them, but there was a lot to get through.
Her anger reignited by the sight of the girl, Gwendolyn started tearing across the field, getting closer and closer to the girl.
"Who are you, and why do you think you can get off running into me!?", yelled Gwendolyn.
"My name is Victoria, and you were right in my path!", replied the girl, "Of course I'd run into you!"
"Well, now you're in mine!", shouted Gwendolyn. But Nala bit her ear before she could do anything rash. Gwendolyn cursed, but she knew the Luxio was right. Now was not the time to get petty.
So instead of bowling over Victoria, Gwendolyn ran past her. But she made sure to flash a rude gesture on her way past.
She was allowed to be a LITTLE petty, right?
The electric shock Nala gave her suggested otherwise.
Gwendolyn muttered, "You know, if you weren't my Pokemon, I would absolutely refuse to tolerate that."
"Luxi!", Nala growled.
"Yeah, yeah, I need to control my temper, I know. But I refuse to tolerate abuse like that.", Gwendolyn replied, "I know how bad it can be allowed to get."
Nala mewled sadly.
Gwendolyn felt frustrated with herself. Gosh darn it, now she'd made Nala feel sad. They all hated remembering...
Gwendolyn saw another rock wall ahead, but this one was taller and did not have colored handholds. Not a problem. Up she went.
The obstacle after that, though, was not going to be fun. It was a field of spinning wooden poles, each with several sticks attached. Dravilius was smacked to the ground by one, but he simply started laughing.
Donovan had also slowed down, being careful as he slipped through the poles. Victor didn't care, though, using his armor to absorb the hits as he brute-forced his way through.
Gwendolyn decided to go the Victor route, charging in like a ferocious Rhyhorn. One pole whacked her, and with an angered yell she punched it, snapping off one of the sticks. She smiled slightly. Now, THIS would be a good way to vent her anger.
Gwendolyn crossed to the other side, nearly two dozen poles the unfortunate victims of her anger. She raced over a rope bridge, uncaring of how it swayed beneath her. Danforth slowed when he reached it, causing him to fall behind. Now it was just Victor and Gwendolyn in the lead, with Donovan close behind.
Up ahead was the tallest rock wall of all. Unlike the other ones, this one Gwendolyn slowed for. It reminded her too harshly of one of her darker memories.
She shook it off, but by then Victor was already a third of the way up. Gwendolyn growled - again - and started climbing as well.
When she reached the top, she could see the path led downwards, through several more fields. The first one was full of floating rocks, obviously a Stealth Rock attack.
Gwendolyn made sure Nala was on tight, and started running through it, holding herself tight as the spikes slashed at her skin. She was growing closer and closer to Victor, and knew that she might actually beat him in the race!
Next up was the minefield. Eyeing the ground carefully for every hidden bomb, she darted across the field, nearly neck-and-neck with Victor.
But right as she would have caught up, Victor stepped on a mine. As soon as he heard the click, he rolled forward, letting the bomb explode in Gwendolyn's face instead.
Instead of fire and shrapnel, though, this thing shot whipped cream instead. Gwendolyn cursed and spluttered as it splattered over her face, and Victor left her in the dust.
Gwendolyn wiped most of it off her face, before running again. Nala lapped up the extra, as they reached the next field: a field of pit traps.
Glancing over her shoulder, Gwendolyn noticed the others catching up behind her. Dravilius was gliding elegantly across the ground, while Danforth was puffing heavily and Kea not much better. Jeremy had just barely finished the rock climb, and he was being followed closely by another strange girl.
As for Victoria...gah, she was catching up!
Gwendolyn had been beginning to lag, but that gave her her second wind. She started speeding ahead, leaping agilely over one of the pits and drawing close to Victor again.
The path began to level out, snaking around for the final stretch. Ahead was a river full of leaping Magikarps, with only a few beams to cross it with.
Victor raced over it, Gwendolyn close behind. There was a loud splash behind her, but she didn't check to see what it was. Her eyes were solely on the man ahead of her, and getting ahead of him.
And she did, speeding past and causing his eyes to widen in surprise. Gwendolyn smirked, before kicking some speed into her step. She was full of exhilaration. She was going to win!
Then she reached the last obstacle.
Jets of flame burst from the ground ahead of her, and Gwendolyn's face turned ghostly pale and her heart was filled with icy dread. Her mind was flooded with memories of rising flames, of horrible screams...
"LUXIO!", shouted Nala, zapping her and sending Gwendolyn back into the present. She shivered, and noticed that Donovan, Victor, and Victoria had gotten ahead of her. She started running, but she knew that she was not going to catch up now.
Getting past the fire jets, she reached the finish line after Victoria, breathing heavily and suddenly full of exhaustion. Nala nuzzled her softly, trying to make sure she was alright.
Sergeant Forrest walked over, frowning. "You did surprisingly well for your first time on this track, but I'm gonna have to take off points for that pause at the end there. You can not hesitate like that as a Ranger, and I will do what I need to fix that."
Gwendolyn didn't respond, still recovering from her shock.
He walked away to check on the other students, and Gwendolyn sighed to herself.
"Luxi...", murmured Nala.
"Yeah, you're right. I won't let this get me down.", Gwendolyn replied, "I'll just have to get better and stronger, until nothing can hurt me. Not even flames."
Nala sighed quietly.
Gwendolyn stood up taller, a determined expression on her face. "Well, let's see what else this day can try and throw at me." (-o-)
Later, Gwendolyn found herself in a small building near the Ranger Course.
Physical Education had never been particularly popular, so the area dedicated to it was not very large or fancy compared to the rest of campus. It was mainly an old-fashioned dojo-type building with a short running track outside it. Inside, the building smelled primarily of old sweat, and the mats across the floor reeked of it.
Gwendolyn didn't REALLY care, but it certainly wasn't her favorite place to be at campus.
There were few other students here. Most had chosen far more interesting classes, which meant that the only students Gwendolyn could recognize were Danforth and Victoria. She didn't mind, though. It wasn't like she had friends here yet.
Once again, directly as the time for the start of the class struck, Sergeant Forrest strode in. Once again, Gwendolyn's instincts acted up, for no explanation. She really, really hated how she didn't know why.
He looked over all the students, and declared, "Alright, you lightweights! Today, you all are going to go out there and give me fifty!"
"Is that it?", grumbled a student.
"I can increase it to a hundred, if you'd like.", the sergeant replied, "Now start running!"
Nobody dared to argue further. But there was complaining as people started running on the track.
"I sign up for a special, extracurricular class at a state-of-the-art university, and we're just running laps?", grumbled Danforth.
"Yeah, this is absurd!", complained another, "We do that in freaking elementary school! There's no purpose in this other than wasting time!"
Victoria smirked. "Or maybe...this is just a test of our patience."
Gwendolyn was curious about what she was talking about, but remained silent in a display of subtle loathing.
"Well, it's certainly testing mine!", declared Danforth.
Victoria chuckled. "Ah, but you see, with a bit of espionage I discovered that this is a test, to ensure that only those strong in spirit would continue. After all, the sergeant hates people who lack patience...or the fortitude to run fifty laps. So maybe you should stick around..."
Gwendolyn finished her first set of laps without issue, and ahead of everybody else. Nala happily ran alongside her, glad to get some extra exercise.
Neither of them would complain about this, even if it was just laps. It gave Gwendolyn time to hone her body and think about things. And it gave her Pokemon time to train in other ways and grow stronger as well.
Granted, she could do this herself in her free time, but having an extra hour to work with was nothing to scoff at, even if others didn't think so. So here she was.
The rest of the class ended up proceeding uneventfully, but as they started wrapping up Sergeant Forrest declared, "Be sure to show up tomorrow, for I'm gonna teach you all how to punch somebody!"
Gwendolyn rose an eyebrow. "That sounds pretty simple to me."
Sergeant Forrest glared at her, and she braced herself reflexively.
"I will teach you the special techniques...to punch VERY hard.", replied Sergeant Forrest, "Now, off with you! I'm not sharing any of those secrets at this time!"
Gwendolyn felt a bit of her faith in their teachers drop in that moment. But she didn't think much further than that, simply followed the others to their next class. (-o-)
The last general class was Trainer's Education, held near the Oak Study Hall. Gwendolyn hoped that this class would be somewhat interesting, but she didn't have high hopes on that.
Any hopes she did have sank even lower when Mr. Douglas walked over - the same guy who'd 'taught' Pokemon Training 101.
But this time, he didn't look so bored. In fact, he looked genuinely excited.
"Hello again, my pupils!", he declared, "Welcome to Trainer's Education! Unlike your other classes, this one is NOT about Pokemon, but rather the people who train them and all the things they have to deal with! Today, we will be discussing..."
He slammed a folder of documents on a folding table. "Permits."
Everybody stared at him, confused about either his chosen lesson or maybe his shifted demeanor.
"Permits such as these have been around for ages.", he declared, "Ever since people started abusing privileges or their Pokemon, these wonderful documents were created to keep things nice and in-check. Perhaps you all remember how, when you reached the age of ten, that you would fill out a form sent by the International Pokemon League. If accepted, they would allow you to receive a starter, as well as catch Pokemon and have them registered to your name. This was the basic Trainer's permit, and it is the only document I will be describing today that is mandatory."
He smiled. "The others, however, are very important for your future careers."
He slipped a fancy, gilded sheet out of his folder, the back emblazoned with the symbol of the International Pokemon League - a globe shaped like a Pokeball, ringed with laurels. "This sheet is the Tournament Form, permitting you to participate in national tournaments and challenge people like the Elite Four. Among other things, it requires you to not use any illegal Pokemon enhancements, to possess a minimum of eight unique badges, and have a full team of six registered Pokemon. However, it also opens you up to corporate funding and elite benefits anywhere that respects skilled Pokemon Trainers. This is a form many of you are going to want to fill out."
He tucked it away, and pulled out another sheet.
"This is the equivalent for anyone in the performing arts.", he said, "It works much the same way, but in correlation to contests instead of battles. Additionally, you're less likely to find support for it in Galar."
He continued with another document. "This here is for budding professors. You need to fill this out if you wish to establish a lab and be confirmed to ethically study whatever your chosen field is. Requirements include having completed a professional paper and having a certified degree from a university such as this one. However, obtaining this permit will attract interest from other scientists and possible sponsors for research projects, which as we all know can get painfully expensive."
He looked at another document. "This one is basically the same thing, but with more specifics for medical purposes. After all, you want a certified doctor looking after you and your Pokemon, and NOT an unregistered one."
He slipped out a fifth. "Ah, this one is one of my favorites. The Ranger Certificate. To earn this one, you not only need to fill out a series of questions, but you need to enter and successfully complete the Junior Ranger Exams, as well as spend at least one year with a senior ranger mentor and receive a positive recommendation from them. Thankfully, you can start trying to enter the exams as soon as your first year."
He looked pointedly at all the Ranger students. "So I'd suggest you'd get cracking on some research very soon."
All of this had significantly piqued Gwendolyn's attention. Now this WAS something she'd needed to know. She had never heard of those exams before, but now she was absolutely certain she would enroll and conquer them. It would get her one step closer to her goal, and she wanted that BAD.
She tuned out the rest of his lecture, thinking intently over what she was going to do. As soon as she got the chance, she was going to look up those exams and figure out what qualifications were necessary to enter them. Then she'd earn those qualifications, and determine what she'd be tested on and how to beat it. Then she'd complete those exams, and find a mentor!
Ah. That last one wasn't going to be fun. Gwendolyn didn't like people, and it often led to the feeling being mutual. And all rangers Gwendolyn had met seemed grumpy and serious, which did not combine well with her unique personality.
She was severed from her thoughts when Mr. Douglas said, "Now, any questions?"
Grant held up his hand. "So, uh, you weren't so enthusiastic in your last lesson. What's different here?"
Mr. Douglas laughed. "Oh, it's easy. Watching people be stupid with Pokemon is boring and frustrating. Watching people be stupid with other people...that's entertaining. Especially when it comes to needless paperwork and bureaucracy!"
He looked towards the rest of the class. "Anyone else?"
No one spoke.
"Very well. Class dismissed.", he said. (-o-)
AN: Hooray, this chapter is done! Looks like we've got another thing to look forward to - Ranger exams!
Those won't be for a while, but prep for them will happen shortly! And on that subject...no more class chapters! It's time for interactions! Drama! Intrigue! Adventure! Comedy!
Mostly from Grant on that last one.
Anyways, don't forget to review, and I'll see you all next time! Probably a while after Scarlet/Violet release. They're going to be a lot of fun it looks like!