The Pokeathlon Competition has begun! Which pokemon will everyone use for the first leg of the race? Does everyone have the right kind of pokemon to even compete? Things are going to get very interesting, so hopefully we have nice, fun game without anyone messing things up or cheating, and that Blake will manage to get through to Ayame and remind her of who he really is!
KedharS: Hopefully it goes well.
Tambry96bj: Yeah those two are definitely amusing.
Hyphenman: I've gotta say, I wasn't expecting their interaction to be so popular, or so much fun to write. It's honestly a blast.
Pokemon Academy: Beginning of Beginnings
Chapter 1290
Darla and Lila took their seats in the announcer's box as the students sent out their pokemon to start off the race. Olivia didn't join them. Rather, the third person in the announcer's box was Leanne. As the leader of the faculty involving the Caretaker Course, she was the person they could most count on to comment on the students' actions in an event like this. Every detail of the race was being covered on the close cameras.
A few students got off to an early lead. Among them was Sango.
"Let's go, Ayer!" She shouted, getting on the back of the Aerodactyl. The prehistoric pokemon screeched, and for a second Nikita was terrified that it would shake the girl off and go on a rampage. But no, Ayer flapped his wings and took to the sky with Sango astride him, and the two shot off on a fast start.
"You gave her your pokemon, didn't you?" Alcea asked, looking to Elaina. Elaina said nothing, staring calmly at the field. Finally she decided to speak.
"That's right," Elaina nodded. "Sango wanted to enter this competition. But it was not the sort of avenue I had any business entering myself. So I was happy to oblige her request to use my pokemon to get across."
Nikita winced. She felt bad hearing the way Elaina said she didn't have 'any business' entering a competition like this. It wasn't fair. Her harmonia turned her into too much of a threat to compete in even a small tournament like this one.
Sango wasn't the only trainer who was off to an early lead.
"When it comes to speed, there's no competing with Dash!" Vic snarled. She flung her pokeball into the air and released her Arcanine.
"Arc!" Dash barked, allowing Vic to climb on top of him. She clung to his mane and he ran ahead, quickly getting an edge on the other competitors due to his speed.
"That's the spirit!" Dakota chirped. She winked at Serefina and Akira. "Don't hold this against me, you two," she cooed. "Let's go, Bolt!"
"Manectric!" Dakota's Manectric emerged from his pokeball, fur crackling with electricity. It had felt like a lifetime since Dakota had used any of her pokemon. She climbed onto his back and with a spark he dashed ahead, leaving Akira and Serefina to choose their own pokemon.
"Caffein, go," Serefina ordered, sending out her Vigoroth. She got on the back of the energetic pokemon and it charged through the grass, although not moving as fast as Dash or Bolt.
Akira had a decision to make of his own. "Harris, go," he said, sending out his Heracross. The large bug flapped his wings and took to the sky, wrapping his arms around Akira's chest and carrying him off into the air.
This was a rather common tactic. Blake stepped in to do the exact same thing.
"Let's go, Weiss," he ordered. Weiss was by far the fastest pokemon he had at his disposal for something like this. And if he wanted to get a good lead, then he'd need to rely on the swift insect to keep him ahead.
"Foof!" Ayame called, sending out her Wooloo. For a second, everyone was shocked, even the announcers.
"She's using her Wooloo?!" Lila asked, gobsmacked. "But she can't even ride him!"
"She's probably thinking of something," Darla assured her. But she was wary. No way Ayame was expecting to just run the whole race herself, right? That would be crazy talk. But given the kind of girl she was, it was a very distinct possibility…"
"Foof, use cotton guard," Ayame ordered.
"Wool!" Foof nodded, taking a deep breath. The cotton wool that covered his body then expanded, until the pokemon was nearly three times his normal size.
"Gooood work!" Ayame grinned, patting her Wooloo on the head. She climbed into the cotton mass, looking rather ridiculous as she rode her tiny pokemon safely within the cotton.
Then she proved why she was able to do this professionally, and a lot of other people weren't
"WOOLOO!" Foof shot forward, moving at a speed that shouldn't have been possible for such a small pokemon. He wasn't even moving the way a Wooloo would normally move in this situation, he wasn't rolling. No, he was dashing ahead, using his speed the way any pokemon would, and to everyone's shock, he was able to keep pace with the head of the pack that way.
"Whoa," Cynthia whistled. "Ayame sure got bold! But just because she's being creative, that doesn't mean she's got everything!"
Cynthia had a more traditional choice in mind when it came to reaching the finish line.
"Let's go, Elise!" Cynthia shouted, sending out her Swellow. She hopped on the back of the bird pokemon and took off into the air after Sango and Ayer.
She wasn't the only one to make that choice, several students were choosing Flying type pokemon to get ahead in the race.
"Falco," Daryl said, sending out his Braviary. He climbed onto the back of the massive bird and it soared into the air, joining the others.
"Another Flying type," Lila noted. "Seems like a good choice for a pokemon."
"Flying pokemon seem like a good fit for this match," Darla agreed, nodding. "What do you think, Leanne?"
"I think you're right," Leanne agreed. "By relying on Flying type pokemon, the trainers can get to the finish line without having to worry about jockeying for space with their rival competitors. There's a lot of ground to cover, and it's much easier to pass people in the air than it is to shove other pokemon out of the way."
"Ooh, that's not good!" Lila winced. "So you're saying that the people using grounded pokemon are in bad shape?!"
"No, Lila, that's not what she's saying at all," Darla assured her, resisting the urge to roll her eyes. Sometimes Lila laid it on a little too thick.
Leanne just laughed. "I think the students will surprise you."
"Roden!" Julia shouted, sending out her Houndoom. It was the best pokemon she had for riding on top of. "Sorry boy. But let me ride you just this once."
Roden glared coldly at Julia, but then nodded. "Houndoom," he agreed. Julia beamed at her partner and got on his back, using his curled horns as handholds.
"Good thinking, Julia!" Kitty grinned. "But you won't outrun us! Right, Meomo?" The partner Kitty had chosen for this race was her Persian, Meomo. Normally a Persian wasn't a large enough pokemon for someone to ride comfortably, for trainer or pokemon, but because Kitty was so short and light she had more than enough room. She got on her pokemon and Meomo took off, running side by side with Julia and Roden.
"Weaver!" Reiner shouted, sending out his Zangoose. The scarred pokemon growled and got on all fours, allowing Reiner to get on his back. It looked a little uncomfortable, especially when compared to pokemon like Arcanine or Manectric that made for more suitable mounts, but it was an acceptable enough substitute.
He wasn't the only one who'd chosen a ride that seemed uncomfortable, if feasible.
"Opal," Ian said, sending out his Miltank. The round pokemon was used to rolling like Ayame's Wooloo, but she was more than equipped for traditional running, as well. And thanks to her large bulk, Ian had no trouble getting on her back and riding her to the finish line.
"Abbie!" Nick's choice was a lot more orthodox. Of course he was going to rely on his trusty Absol. He got on the Dark type pokemon's back and the canine let out a cry, dashing through the grass to try and catch up with the faster four-legged pokemon.
"Come on, Nick!" Callie cheered exuberantly. "You can do it!"
"Go, Reiner!" Nikita shouted. "Beat 'em all!"
The two girls glanced at each other and scowled.
Alcea laughed. "Seeing you root for the ones you care so deeply for warms my heart. Quite sweet, is it? I suppose I should root for my friends as well."
"What pokemon is Kate even using?" Nikita asked curiously.
Alcea shrugged. "I do not know. Perhaps she caught a new pokemon in the Unova-"
"ARI!" Kate shouted, tossing her pokeball into the air.
"ARBOK!" The tone of the race shifted immediately with Kate's selection. A massive Arbok more than twice the size of a normal one emerged from the pokeball with a roar. Its scales shined golden-bronze in the sunlight, and for a moment people weren't even sure what pokemon it was.
"Is… is that an Arbok?" Nikita asked, her jaw dropping. "That thing's a monster!"
Ari was infused with alpha might, radiating a powerful aura that dwarfed everything around her. Not only that, the pokemon was the size of a freight train.
Kate hopped on her back and the Arbok slithered forward, pushing other pokemon aside with her dominating bulk.
Callie and Nikita both turned to Alcea, where they were treated to something very uncommon. A look of shock stood out on Alcea's pale face as she was completely at a loss for words.
"…Didn't see that one coming, huh?" Callie asked, amused.
"What… what even WAS that?!" Alcea exclaimed, unable to believe that her friend had gotten her hands on such a powerful pokemon.
"It's like no Arbok I've ever seen," Nikita said, shaking her head. "And I'm not just talking about her color. No, shiny pokemon are one thing, but this… this is another animal altogether. The aura that thing gives off is bad news.
"Ara… Kate brought quite a beast with her," Naya mused, snickering into her sleeve. Even though this was supposed to be a physical competition and most of the other trainers had come wearing exercise gear, she was still glad in one of her stylish kimonos.
It was clear that the sadistic Grass type trainer had no intention of actually exerting herself in this competition.
"Which pokemon should I use?" She murmured, considering her selection of pokeballs. The fact that she was taking her time even though the race had already begun was a bit unnerving, as if she didn't think she had a chance to lose for even a second.
"Ah, we'll go with you!" She finally decided. "Fia!"
"Leafeon!" Her Leafeon emerged from her pokeball, but she was clearly far too small of a pokemon for Naya to ride. That didn't matter to the black-haired and black-hearted trainer, though, she was more than capable of making up for that. As well as taking advantage of the intense sunlight beating down on them. Apparently, someone here was riding a Nintales, and its Drought ability had intensified the sun's rays.
Which was just perfect for a pokemon with Chlorophyll for an ability. Hence the reason why Naya seemed so nonchalant about everything. She knew just what her pokemon was capable of in the intense sunlight.
She just had to get her into a place where she could actually be ridden.
"Use growth, Fia," she ordered.
"Oh, that's a good move," Alcea noted, narrowing her eyes.
"Really?" Nikita asked. "But doesn't it just increase a pokemon's power in the sunlight?"
Alcea smiled. "…Among other things, is it?"
"Leafeon!" Using growth, Fia's body nearly doubled in size; more than enough for Naya to ride her comfortably. She got on the back of her pokemon and rode side saddle, definitely more risky and strenuous than regular riding, but far more classy and elegant, as was fitting a noble lady like Naya. She smirked as her pokemon dashed across the field, taking advantage of the intense sunlight to pull for the head of the pack.
"Whoa, is that okay?" Lila asked. "Using a pokemon move like that to get ahead?"
"I don't see why not," Darla shrugged. "Trainers aren't allowed to use their pokemon's moves to get ahead, of course; we don't want everyone using stuff like extremespeed, or attacking their fellow competitors. But using a move to make your pokemon capable of being ridden? It's not too different from what Ayame did, right, Leanne?"
"That's exactly right," Leanne nodded. "And besides, if we were going to penalize trainers for their pokemon using moves, we might as well chastise anyone riding on the back of a Flying type pokemon; after all, fly is a move itself, right?"
Elaina actually smiled hearing that, and a few people laughed. It was the kind of absurd logic that was, well, absurd, but made a strange sort of sense when you thought about it.
Lila's face heated up and she averted her eyes. I really should have thought of that, she thought to herself. Even though she was playing the fool, that didn't mean she liked it when she actually got something wrong or didn't know something.
Nearly everyone had already gotten started with the race. But there were a few students who were lagging behind.
"Come on, Rescue!" Joy chirped, climbing on the back of a big, furry Stoutland. "Let's show Joyce how it's done, shall we?"
"Oh shut up!" Joyce glared at her brother. She was riding on a Stoutland of her own. The bulky pokemon were good for plowing through harsh conditions to get to injured people and pokemon, but when it came to an actual race, they weren't exactly the fastest pokemon around.
For that matter, neither was Willa's choice of pokemon, a Parasect.
"What's she doing?!" Raizer groaned. "Why's she using a pokemon like that!? She should be relying on Zera, damn it!"
He stood up in his seat, cupping his hands over his mouth. "ZERA! Z-E-R-A! Use Zera!"
The fact that Willa was close enough to hear him was proof that her strategy wasn't the soundest one around. She turned and looked back at the stands, not knowing where exactly Raizer was, but not really caring, either. She flipped him off, sticking her tongue out. Then she reached into her lab coat and withdrew a syringe.
Without a second thought, she injected the syringe into her pokemon, just under the mushroom, where it was growing out of Bradham's back.
Immediately, the Parasect shook. His entire body twitched, as if experiencing a seizure. Then he dug his pincers into the ground and dashed ahead, plowing through the grass. He was moving practically at the speed of Vic's Arcanine! Will had to hold onto the massive mushroom she was riding tightly to keep her frantic Parasect from falling off.
Excellent, it seems my speed-boosting supplement is working magnificently, Willa thought with a smirk on her face. Exactly the effects I was hoping for.
Lila stared at that, open-mouthed. "…Okay, that CAN'T be allowed!"
"…I've gotta agree," Darla said, looking to Leanne for confirmation. "How is that okay? It's basically doping, right?"
Leanne shrugged. "Pokeathletes regularly give their pokemon apricorn juice, so to ban EVERY substance that improves a pokemon's performance is a little-"
"Okay, there's supplements, and then there's straight-up doping!" Darla exclaimed. "And this is definitely in the latter category!"
Leanne shrugged. "Did the rules say anything about it?"
Lila and Darla dug through the rulebook. But no, there was nothing. Willa's tactic might have been slimy and not at all good sportsmanship, but unfortunately, it wasn't against the rules.
Darla grumbled something no idol should say, thankfully far enough from the microphone no one else heard her. But her mood quickly improved when she saw what pokemon Lana was using.
"Drakon, let's go!" Lana shouted, sending out her Flygon. The large dragon spread his wings and Lana climbed onto his back, joining the other trainers in the sky.
Most people had gotten started by this point, Donoma included. Even though she wasn't used to taking things like this seriously, she still found the idea of a competition fun. It was the whole reason she signed up; she wanted to get some more first-hand experience with something like this, because the idea of a pokemon race was sticking out to her as a really good competition for a game show. The wheels in her head were turning as she climbed on the back of her Drapion.
"See you at the finish line," she called to Chloe, who was chasing after her on the back of her Excadrill.
Chloe frowned behind her mask. Why had she even agreed to this in the first place?! She hated competitions like this, and showing off in front of people. Wasn't it enough that Vic and Tommy were joining in? Did the Commander really need to ask her, too?! Dvalinn wasn't even a good pokemon for riding, either!
If only she could be like Tommy and his Rapidash, that would be better…
Still, she was doing better than Will. I can't believe I agreed to this, Will thought. He was dead last, with the exception of a few stragglers. The reason for that? He didn't have a pokemon he was really capable of riding. So instead, he relied on his Beldum.
Or, more accurately, he was holding his Beldum above his head while the Psychic type pokemon slowly dragged him forward.
Oh, yea, I'm definitely losing this, he thought.
The contestant everyone was surprised by though was Marion. Because of her popularity in the Caretaker Course, people assumed that she would be rocking this Pokeathlon. But she hadn't even chosen a pokemon yet.
"She does have one, right?" Lila asked, looking to Darla. "What's taking her so long?"
Darla shrugged. "I don't know, don't ask me." Both girls turned to Leanne, who was smiling.
"She'll be fine," Leanne assured them. "That girl might be a bit unorthodox, but when it comes to ability… she's unmatched."
"Okay, let's go with you!" Marion decided. "Clawz!"
"Clawitzer!" The large shrimp pokemon shouted as he emerged from the dive ball Marion threw into the air.
"How's THAT pokemon supposed to help?" Lila asked, looking to Darla. It was an even crazier choice than the one Will had made.
Darla just shrugged. Again, she wasn't the right person to ask.
Leanne laughed.
"Okay!" Marion picked up her Clawitzer. She whirled around to face the stands. "Let's do this!"
"CLAW!" Clawz pointed his large pincer towards the ground, and fired a blast of pressurized water. Marion was launched backwards like a rocket, flying through the air with the power of the move as she was flung into the middle of the pack.
Lila and Darla stared in shock.
"HOW is THAT okay?!" They both shouted. Leanne just shrugged.
"Clawitzer can naturally do that, so-"
"BULLSHIT!"
While Marion was surprising the crowd, to the surprise of no one, while some people were taking this whole race seriously, Sylvia was not one of those people. She stood on the starting line with a smirk on her face, not about to do something as boring or predictable as trying to win.
"Mmmmmm…" She stretched. "Now, it would be amusing, to use trick room to mess with everything… but then I'd just get disqualified. Hmm, hmm, hmm… what's a way that I can win this whole thing that they won't see coming?"
She smirked. She had a great idea.
"Oh, I know! Letty, come on out!" She said, sending out her Golett. The tiny pokemon stared curiously up at her, wondering why she'd chosen them, of all pokemon.
"Carry me?" Sylvia cooed. Letty nodded obediently and picked Sylvia up in their arms. Then Sylvia snapped her fingers and disappeared.
Ooh, this is interesting. The race has gotten off to a good start! We've got a lot of contestants joining in, who knows who will be able to make it to the finish line? Hopefully our main characters manage to pull through! There's definitely some improvements to be made, though.