The exam continues on! Will Sango be able to beat the odds and make it through the rough trials that lie ahead? Review!
Aakareo Kokokuhikari: Yeah, Petal is great. Her sister is awesome, too.
Duskzilla: Yup, teachers are ruthless sometimes.
Just a Bad Writer For Fun: More or less… but the right answers matter, too. It isn't just about writing down anything, you gotta be right. This ain't no lame "everyone's a winner" test.
Tambry96bj: She was 15 when I first wrote her, she's considerably older (and in an entirely different universe) now. Probably in her 20s. Idk. I can't do math. Call her "youthful". Unless you feel like dying.
Hellraiserphoenix: More or less. Ukulele Pichu, but with a guitar instead of a ukulele. Because guitars are cooler.
KedharS: Continuity is just, like, a word, man. But if anything I'd say games before Manga or Anime. In truth this is my continuity. There are many like it, but this one is mine.
Pokemon Academy: Beginning of Beginnings
Chapter 112
Finally. She was finally done. Sango lifted her hand with a faked confidence she didn't feel, shaking in her boots as Petal stepped closer.
She didn't say a word as Petal flipped through her booklet, she kept her eyes forward, staring at the short ranger.
Without a word, Petal closed the test booklet and dropped it on her desk. Sango didn't even know whether or not to let out the breath she was holding in relief. The ranger didn't say anything, so presumably she had passed? Was that something she could hope for? Petal walked away, leaving Sango to stew in her juices for a while longer. The number of students who had failed were more than half, and they were still dropping like flies. Ritsu's guitar was strumming like she was on stage, and every "twang" of her chords meant another examinee was out.
Finally, mercifully, the exam came to an end.
"Now then, the lot of you!" Petal shouted, drawing their attention. "Pencils down! Anyone still writing, you failed. Get out of here, and put some work on your speed for the next run, got it?!"
Another couple dozen of students glumly stood up and tromped out of the room.
Sango swallowed.
"As for the rest of you… you've passed the first exam!" Petal declared, Ritsu thrumming a triumphant chord.
Smiles broke out across the remaining examinees, along with a smattering of cheers. Petal quickly put a stop to THAT though.
"What are you smiling about?!" She snarled. "This is only the first test! There's two more tests to follow, you know! Cheer when you've passed, got it?!"
Ritsu strummed and angry chord to punctuate her point, the joy in the class dying down.
"Now, all you lot have shown is that you have the smarts and fortitude necessary to succeed as a ranger. But that ain't all that you're gonna need. As for what else… you'll find that out going forward! Now, the rest of you, head through that door."
Petal pointed to a door at the front of the room.
"That'll lead you outside. There, you'll meet your second proctor… and begin the second test!"
The class swallowed nervously and rose from their seats, filing outside obediently.
Sango sighed in relief. This meant that she wouldn't have to worry about seeing this crazy woman anymore.
The number of test takers left numbered about 70. They all stepped outside, staring out at the ocean.
"The sea!" A very familiar voice cheered, Marion running ahead of the others, already reaching for the fishing pole on her back.
So she managed to pass… Sango thought, more than slightly surprised.
"Freeze!" A sharp voice shouted, Marion freezing in place. Walking up from a clump of trees, followed by a wave of pokemon was…
"Ahaha! Nice to see you brats again!" Petal chortled, Ritsu striking her guitar.
"How?!" Sango exclaimed in shock, a feeling reciprocated by other people present.
"You were expecting another proctor, but it was I, Petal!" Petal smirked, Pichu striking a chord from Jojo to accentuate her proclamation. "Welcome to your second test!"
Great… Sango could not hide her visible disappointment. Thankfully, though, the stunning "surprise" had shaken her out of her tension, somehow.
"Before I explain the details of the second exam, first let me return your partner pokemon to you," Petal said, nodding to the crowd of pokemon behind her.
The examinees ran up to reunite with their pokemon, Petal scanning for-
"Cast!" Silver flew towards her, headbutting her affectionately.
"Silver! I told you, I'd be back before you knew it," Sango smiled.
"Cast!" Silver nodded gratefully, tears falling from his eyes.
"Yes, yes, this reunion is touching," Petal said, rolling her eyes. "Now then, the second test is simple."
She pointed up at the sky, or more specifically, the sun.
"You have until the sun has set on the horizon to find the location of the third exam," she stated. "That's all."
"Wh-what?" Sango said, confused.
"The Third Exam will take place on a special island off the coast of Unova," Petal explained. "Known as the Nature Preserve. A place where all manner of pokemon can be found. But where could it be? Who's to say?"
She leaned back, and smirked.
"Those of you who manage to get there before sunset… will move on to the final exam. As for the rest of you… it will show you lack the resourcefulness and preparation necessary to become a true Pokemon Ranger."
Petal stepped down the hill leading toward a small pier, and speedboat.
"I'll be heading out to the Nature Preserve myself. If you're fast, maybe you can follow the wake of my boat, but if not… well, that's your problem."
Petal hopped in the boat and gunned the engine as the other prospective rangers chased after her frantically, Sango included.
No way… how can I get to an island of all places?! She glanced at the other students to see what they were thinking, and her face went pale. She noted most of them had large flying pokemon or water-based pokemon alongside of them, and the ones who didn't… they wore the same look of confusion that Sango no doubt shared.
I see… Sango slowed her run, walking numbly across the beach. So from the beginning… I was already never going to pass this test the first time… I never would have known… that I needed a pokemon to carry me over water… How… how could I… So why… why did I even try so hard just to stop here…?
The only examinees left were the ones with pokemon that had no ability to cross the ocean, like Silver. Probably students who, like her, were taking this test for the first time and hadn't known any better. They all looked down dejectedly, staring wistfully out at their compatriots following the far off trail of Petal's boat.
No.
"Silver! We aren't giving up here!" Sango exclaimed, kicking the sand in frustration.
"Cast?" Silver asked, tilting quizzically to the side.
"This ocean's gotta be teeming with water pokemon! All we have to do is get one under control, and then it can give us a ride to the island! Even if we don't have a capture styler… we've still got to try! We won't give up until the end!" Hearing Sango's words, some of the other examinees were nodding agreement.
"Yeah, she's right! I'm not giving up, either! Let's go, Croagunk!"
"Even if you aren't big enough to ride, Lotad, you can still help me find a water type!"
"That's the spirit!" A voice called out from behind her. Sango whirled around to see Marion, still standing a ways behind her where Petal had commanded her to go.
"Being a ranger means never giving up! You gotta give it your best!"
"Uh… what are you doing?" Sango asked.
"I was told to freeze."
Sango slapped her face in frustration. "Get down here!"
"Roger dodger!" Marion bubbled, skipping down the dune. "Now, then! What's the plan? Fishing? You wanna fish? Lemme help! I love fishing, if you didn't know, it's, like, the best thing ever, and-"
"Yeah, I know," Sango said. "So, um, do you mind… lending me that fishing pole for a little?"
"Nope, it's mine," Marion rejected her immediately, smiling. "What do you want next, my heart? Or maybe a lung? Not a chance." This girl…
"But I'll do ya one better," she chortled. She raised her fingers to her lips, and let out a sharp whistle.
"Mana, it's me! You can come out!"
The water broke, and a large, dark figure emerged from it.
"Man!" The Mantine cheered, looking up at Marion. Marion knelt down in the sand, petting the slick surface of the manta ray pokemon.
"This is Mana, my registered partner pokemon," Marion said.
"So," she glanced up at Sango, smiling conspiratorially. "Want a ride?"
"This is amazing!" Sango cheered, the large Mantine carrying them both over the waves. Even larger than a Lapras, there was room enough for both to sit, with some space to share.
"It gets even better," Marion grinned. "Mana!"
"Man!" Mantine nodded, sending out a wave of sonic energy through the ocean.
"What's she doing?" Sango asked curiously.
"Mana's speaking with all my other fishy friends," Marion said. "They're telling her where to find the island! So we'll get there in a flash!"
"Amazing!" Sango exclaimed. "And at this speed, we'll get there with time to spare!"
"I know, right?" Marion smiled. "Mana's faster than anything in the ocean!"
Sango nodded, staring out over the horizon. The sun was still high in the air, the afternoon sky a bright blue. As they drew closer and closer… suddenly… Mana began to slow down. And then she stopped moving completely.
"Huh?" Sango said, confused. "What's going on?" She glanced back at Marion.
"Hm~hm~" Marion hummed, casting her line out into the ocean as she sat back, waiting for a bite.
"…What are you doing?"
"Fishing."
"…Why?"
Marion waved her arm out vaguely. "Ocean, duh."
Sango felt like she was about to blow a blood vessel.
"What is the matter with you!? I thought you failed this test all the time?! What, why are you risking taking a break?!"
"I know, it's weird," Marion huffed. "Every time, I get going, make it out to the ocean heading toward the island, and then I start fishing and for some reason by the time I make it to the island I've already failed~"
"…For some reason."
"Yuppers."
"The reason is freaking obvious!" Sango exclaimed, wanting to shake the girl senseless. "Why the hell are you fishing at a time like this?! No wonder you fail every test, you blow your time fishing when you could be making progress!"
"But, but… fishing!" Marion protested. "I can't just not fish! I'll die!"
"You can and you have to!" Sango snarled, grabbing the fishing rod.
"Sango no! Lemme fish! If I don't fish I'm gonna die, really!"
"Didn't you say this was your last chance?" Sango demanded. "Didn't you say you couldn't bear the idea of failing, because you needed to get your license for the upcoming semester?"
"But… fishing…"
"Priorities!" Sango snapped.
"…" Marion looked like she was going to cry, but she reluctantly allowed Sango to take the fishing pole from her.
"Mana, back on course…" Marion glumly asked her partner.
Sango sighed in relief, holding Silver tightly to her chest as she clenched the fishing pole.
"Thanks," Marion mumbled to her. "Sorry, I… when I need to fish, I just… I can't help myself."
She gave Sango a grateful smile.
"I'm glad I gave you a ride… if I hadn't, then I'd probably end up fishing again, and I'd fail for the 13th time… You saved me, Sango. Thanks."
"Yeah, no problem," Sango said. "Besides, if you failed, I'd be failing right alongside you, and I can't have that." Marion chuckled, and nodded her head, looking out over the water.
"Thanks to you, it looks like my dream is safe," Marion said.
"Oh?" Sango noted. With nothing to do in the meantime, it was worth it to have a little bit of conversation. "You said you wanted to be a Pokemon Conservationist, right?"
"That's the goal, sure," Marion nodded. "But that's just step one. My real dream… I want to open a nature preserve."
"A… nature preserve?" Sango asked.
"Yup. Think of it like the Safari Zone," Marion said, her eyes bright and shining. "But even better! Imagine… a floating nature preserve! I got the idea from the Aether Foundation, but I decided to put my own spin on it!"
Sango didn't know what the Aether Foundation was, but she decided to let Marion continue. She had a good idea of what the Safari Zone would like. And most importantly…
"For fish pokemon, right?"
"Exactly," Marion said. "It'll be a place where I can gather fish pokemon from across the world, and raise them in special environments best suited for them. Imagine, a small section of the ocean where all fish pokemon are gathered and looked after, free to swim as far and wide as they'd like!"
Marion smirked.
"But that's just step one. My dream is far grander than that! You see, in the center of that undersea preserve… will be a fabulous resort hotel!"
"A hotel?"
"Yup. The thing about the Safari Zone, and why it works so great, is the tourism! But just imagine! An underwater hotel, where people get to stay, and look out of large bay windows to get a view of the world underwater! Oh, Sango, it's marvelous! Part aquarium, part nature preserve, part hotel, and part fishing resort!"
"Fishing resort?"
"Yeah, see, we can't just look after the rare species! We need to treat all the fishies with care! But since we need to keep some species in check, the best way to do that is to let people fish for whatever pokemon they like! Looking for some Goldeen? We'll take you to the Goldeen section, and you can fish 'em out to your heart's content! Chinchou? Barboach? Corsola! Whatever you want, we'll get it for you! As many pokemon as there are… well, fish in the sea!"
She sighed wistfully, staring out in the ocean.
"Mwahaha… a resort paradise where I can do nothing but fish up my little fishy friends all day… ahhh, bliss…"
While her perception of Marion's dream wasn't as… orgasmic as Marion's was, Sango could admit that the picture she painted was a nice one. And underwater hotel was already a neat concept, and would be sure to bring in visitors. Combine that with a nature preserve dedicated to maintaining the habitats of the local pokemon and establishing habitats for other fish pokemon, so that they could all live like a big open-sea aquarium… it did sound like a nice, relaxing dream, if a little out there.
"But the first step is to build up my cred by taking the licensing course and working my practicum experience, so I can eventually get started on being a conservationalist," Marion explained. Sango nodded in agreement. It sure sounded nice
"What about you, Sango?" Marion asked. Sango flinched.
"What about me?"
"If you don't mind me asking… why do you want to be a Pokemon Ranger?" Marion asked. "Why are you so dedicated to passing this test?"
"…" Sango frowned, glancing back in the direction they'd come, Castelia City's skyline a faint blur on the horizon now.
"When I was a kid… I grew up in that city," Sango said. "And right now… my mom is buried there."
Marion gasped in shock.
"My mom… was a Pokemon Ranger. I looked up to her so much growing up. She really… loved pokemon with all her heart. She was my idol... I wanted to be just like her. I wanted to help pokemon and people the same way she did. Seeing the smiles that she brought to everyone… I wanted to do that to."
"…" Marion stared at her silently.
"One night… she got a mission to evacuate civilians from a rampaging pokemon. Even as good as she was… it still wasn't enough. She died on that mission… but her life was a happy one."
Sango looked up at the sky, and smiled.
"I'm certain she's smiling down on me. I want to follow in her footsteps. To become a ranger that can bring smiles to people and pokemon ever. I guess… that's my dream."
"…I see," Marion said, nodding. "I see. And you're sure… that's your dream?"
"Huh?"
"Nothing, never mind, just thinking to myself," Marion giggled, shaking her head. "But now that it's clear that both of our dreams are on the line, we need to hurry! Look!"
Marion pointed out to the horizon, where the sun was still sinking. And still no island in sight."
"Oh no! Will we be able to get there in time?!" Sango asked worriedly.
"I don't know, Mana's already going at top speed," Marion said. "We lost too much time with my fishing break! I don't know if we'll make it now! I don't even know how far away we are!"
She glanced back at Sango apologetically.
"I'm sorry, Sango… it looks like I blew both of our chances… I'm just a stupid fishing addict, I-"
"Marion," Sango interrupted, her expression serious. "What's your Mantine's ability?"
"Uhh… swift swim, why?" Marion asked, confused.
The corners of Sango's lips tilted upwards in a conspiratorial, and slightly crazy, smile.
"I just had a perfect idea," Sango said, petting Silver's head lovingly. "Hope you're ready."
Marion's eyes widened as she realized what Sango was getting at, and nodded excitedly, giving her a thumbs up and an equally wild smile.
"You go, girl! Let's do it!"
Well, this should be good. Will they be able to get there in time?