With the Power Course coming to a close, there's only one block left to get to today! And that's Block D, the block that Blake's in! Will he be able to win, and defeat the rivals he's competing against? Or will his actions be futile? What events will he have to compete at to win, and what obstacles will he have to overcome to get to Ayame? Things are only going to get more exciting from here on out!

The Nomination Round for the Pokemon Academy Best Girl Competition has begun! Here are the current nominees! We've got fourteen girls so far, which is quite a good number already, and this is just day one! If there is anyone else that hasn't been nominated yet, be sure to nominate them!

Currently Nominated: Alcea, Ange, Ayame, Caelia, Callie, Cynthia, Elaina, Gabrielle, Joyce, Maddi, Nikita, Sango, Sylvia, Vic

KedharS: A pretty terrible cost. Which says a lot, since she didn't even care that much about winning in the first place, unfortunate as it is.

Arbiter8991: Yeah, Dakota's got power alright. Unfortunately for everyone, including herself.

Hyphenman: I like expanding on Nick a lot. He's a subtle character, but you're right, he doesn't show up very much. So I like to give him as much focus as I can when I don't need to focus on other characters first.

Pokemon Academy: Beginning of Beginnings

Chapter 1329

It took some time for things to settle after the resulting skirmish from Block C. Akira never returned to his seat, and Nick came back with Callie in his place.

"I don't get it," Cynthia grumbled. "Why do I have to be the one to sit up here?" She glanced over her shoulder at her friends, who were all sitting together.

"Because I need to sit by Nick, that's why!" Callie insisted, wrapping her arm around his. "He's in a fragile state after being trashed like that! He lost that match, and I need to support him with everything I have!"

"The only reason he lost is because he chose that for himself," Cynthia muttered under her breath, turning to face forward. She felt sympathetic for the situation that Nick was in, but she still felt a little slighted getting kicked up front.

"Well, that was a really exciting round, wouldn't you agree, Darla?" Lila asked, exaggeratedly wiping sweat from her forehead.

"You said it, Lila," Darla nodded. "Everything was fast-paced and intense, we didn't know who was going to win until the very last seconds!"

"Those are definitely the sort of nail-biting situations we want to see in a Pokeathlon," Leanne admitted. "Although I'm not sure how much of that last event was really in keeping with Pokeathlon tradition." And that was as much as she was going to say on the subject. The strategy to team up like that against one person wasn't against the rules, but it seemed to fly in the face of the gentleman's agreement that was Pokeathlons, and she didn't really support it.

So she kept the rest of her thoughts to herself.

"Now then," she continued, "it's time for the final part of today's competition!" The crowd broke out into applause.

"Block D, right?" Lila clarified.

"Congratulations, Lila!" Darla said sarcastically. "You know your alphabet! Maybe tomorrow, we can teach you to count!"

Lila swatted her friend in the arm as Cynthia burst out laughing, and even Nikita gave that one a couple snickers.

"For Block D, our students will be taking part in the Skill Course," Leanne explained. "They will be taking part in a series of events that test the skills and dexterity of their pokemon!"

"Ooh, that sounds fun!" Lila said, nodding eagerly. "Way more exciting than some dumb power stuff, don't you agree, Darla?"

"I think you're right on the nose there, Lila," Darla agreed, nodding. "A skill competition should be really engaging! What sort of events can we expect to see, Leanne?"

"Well, the events all test the skills of pokemon," Leanne replied, as if that was in any way a clear explanation. "Basically what that means is that it tests the strategy and technique of the pokemon, things like how well they can plan ahead and think tactically about a situation. The smarter the pokemon and the trainer, the better they'll perform in the Skill Course."

Everyone paused for a second to let that sink in.

"Oh, so it's not just about physical prowess then!" Kitty gasped. "This should be really interesting, don't you guys think?"

She turned to her friends to see what they thought on the matter.

"…Well, I guess that's it for Sango," Cynthia sighed.

"What a pity," Nikita shook her head. "She really tried her hardest to get this far."

"She definitely deserves to respect for the effort she put in," Callie nodded.

"I thought she really had a chance of beating Blake, too, what a shame," Reiner groaned. "That would have been great!"

"It's unfortunate that she won't be able to make use of the pokemon I leant her to the best of their ability. I wish they would be enough, but I'm afraid it won't help," Elaina said, frowning. She'd really hoped Sango could turn this around.

"A shame, is it?" Alcea mused.

"C-Come on, guys! It's not THAT bad!" Kitty said. "Stop kidding around!" She tried to laugh it off. "I know Sango's grades aren't the highest, but that doesn't mean she's in a bad position! Right, Julia? She can win a game of strategy and thinking, right?"

Julia stared at Kitty and then turned away, unable to meet her eyes.

"Julia!"

"You're being a little hard on Sango, don't you think?" Nick said. "She's not that… well…"

"You're absolutely right. That girl won't lose so easily."

Several people gasped and Alcea's face lit up at the sound of Olivia's voice. She forced herself not to look too excited to see her secret partner standing in the aisle with a haughty smile, Ayame standing beside her.

"You think she can win?" Kitty asked, her eyes shining eagerly.

"No. But with Marion, there's no way she'll get last, at least," Olivia smirked. "Unless fishing was added to the Pokeathlon, that girl couldn't perform her way out of a paper bag."

She paused and turned to Ayame.

"…Aya, fishing isn't part of the Pokeathlon, right?" Olivia actually didn't know jack about the activities, since she had no interest in sports or the like. She let the people beneath her handle all the finer details of this tournament.

"No, boss," Aya said, shaking her head.

"Olivia, what are you doing here?" Alcea asked. She kept her voice even, and it was clear to everyone's ears that she was trying to hold in her emotions.

They just didn't know the emotions she was trying to hold in.

Callie, and everyone else, assumed that Alcea was being polite because she was trying not to lose her temper, when in fact, the real reason for her restrained question was that if she let how she really felt sink into her voice right then, her question for Olivia would have sounded like an eager squeal of a maiden in love.

And that was not something she could afford to do right now.

"I sponsored this event," Olivia reminded her with a purr. "Shouldn't I get the right to watch it for myself?"

Internally, she was squealing with joy because Alcea was asking after her.

"You have a private viewing room though, right?" Cynthia questioned.

"That's true, I do," Olivia said, curling a lock of her hair absentmindedly. "But you see, I thought it would be nice to show my support for Aya here by coming out to watch her boyfriend perform in person. It's certainly worth cheering him on, wouldn't you agree?"

"I-I didn't ask you for that!" Ayame exclaimed, her face heating up. "And remember, Blake isn't my boyfriend anymore. That's passed."

"…Of course dear, of course," Olivia said, not sounding like she believed that at all, and with good reason given Ayame's attitude. "Now then, could we please have some seats?"

She batted her eyelashes innocently at the couple sitting beside Alcea, and the two were eager to get out of their seats and make room for the two of them.

"I hope you don't mind us sitting together?" Olivia asked innocently, sitting down beside the redhead with a smile.

"Not at all," Alcea said, smiling back.

Ayame, who was well aware of what was going on between the two of them, and was the only one who knew, resisted the urge to roll her eyes as she sat on the other side of the Empress.

"You raised a good point though, boss," Ayame said, nodding. "The Skill Course of Pokeathlons is focused on strategy. Sango, Andy, and even Marion might have more physical ability than Blake, but when it comes to skill and strategy, I'd wager he has all of them beat."

Olivia looked at her in amazement.

"You… remember that?" She asked, surprised.

"Wh-What? No, I'm just guessing," Ayame clarified. "From what you all have said about him. Is that wrong? Is he an idiot?"

"No, you nailed it on the head," Cynthia nodded. "Blake's not, like, super smart, but he's smarter than Sango, that's for sure. And the rest of them too."

"Like you're one to call others out in terms of intelligence," Nikita scoffed, adjusting her glasses. Cynthia glared at her.

"I've played him in Go before," Olivia said, holding her head up high. "I know what he's capable of. There's nothing to worry about. It will just depend on the events."

Ayame considered the events for the Skill Course. She didn't know Blake very well, but he shouldn't have an issue with them… right?

"The events will be tricky, though," Callie said. "Remember, a lot of them are suited to Andy's abilities due to her skill as a tennis player."

Right on time, Leanne began her explanation of the events.

"The first event for the Skill Course is the Snow Throw," Leanne said, and the focus of the screen shifted towards a new section of the field. It was a large enclosed area covered in snow, with mounds of snow set up all over.

"How do they keep the snow cold?" Lila asked curiously.

Darla gave her a sideways glance. "Is that really the important thing right now?" She asked, raising her eyebrow.

"We use special cooling pads beneath the field," Leanne explained, happy to answer the question. "We want to keep the snow as cool as possible, after all!"

"That is pretty cool," Lila grinned. "Can I get some of those for my room?"

Darla rolled her eyes and snickered.

Leanne stayed focused, though. "The way this event works," she continued, "is that the trainers will use all of their pokemon out in the field, along with themselves."

"So the trainers will be working with their pokemon, huh?" Lila asked curiously. "Wait, they're not going to get pelted with snowballs, are they?"

Not only were those tracksuits not very stylish, they didn't look very thermally resistant. She shivered just thinking about it.

"They are, in fact," Leanne nodded. "That's the goal of this event! Hit as many of your opponents with as many snowballs as you can! The trainer's pokemon will make snowballs, and throw them at their opponents! Every pokemon they hit with a snowball will win one point, and every trainer they hit with a snowball is three points!"

"You get triple the points for hitting a trainer with a snowball?" Darla winced. "Yikes, sounds like that's the way to go."

"It's definitely a viable strategy," Leanne nodded. "That's why the goal of the pokemon is to keep their trainer safe, and for the trainers to evade as many snowballs as possible. Another important fact: the trainers can't throw snowballs themselves! They have to count on their pokemon to do it!"

"That sounds really rough," Lila winced. "Getting hit by those many snowballs…"

"Yeah, I'm not sure how many I can take," Darla agreed. "It sounds like this event requires some stamina, too, not to mention agility."

"It's a very engaging event, that requires a tactical mind," Leanne nodded. "This is how skill is tested in a Pokeathlon! If your pokemon get hit with enough snowballs, they might even be stunned! You've got to be very careful."

"And you better not use any Dragon types," Lila teased, glancing at Darla and wiggling her eyebrows. "They don't like snow very much, do they?"

Darla scowled in response.

"That sounds like a really rough activity," Nikita winced. When she heard skill, she'd thought that the events would be more strategic than this. But this required physicality as well. "Do you guys think Blake will be able to do it?"

"He'll be fine," Cynthia said. "This is perfect for him! It requires brains, and being fast on your feet! And if Blake can outrun our speed queen over here, he can handle this!"

Ayame glared at Cynthia.

"The risk is Andy, though," Callie said. "Her pokemon are trained tennis professionals, they're built to score highly at events like this."

That was definitely a risk, and no one could ignore that.

"Scoring is fairly straightforward," Leanne informed the crowd. "Once the time for the event runs out, we take the combined points from all the pokemon, and multiply that number by three. Nice and straightforward."

"It certainly sounds like an exciting event!" Lila nodded. "What's the next one?"

"The next event is a classic we just finished watching," Leanne said. "The Goal Roll!"

"Oh, that one again?" Darla raised her eyebrow. "Well, hopefully our competitors in that round will be a little bit more wild. I don't want to get another 'everybody teams up against one person' event again, if you don't mind."

Leanne frowned. She hadn't wanted to say anything on the subject, but Darla lacked her calm state of mind.

"Well it kinda makes sense, I guess?" Lila asked. "I mean, that event really looked like you needed to use your brain to think it out…"

Darla rolled her eyes. "Just because you can't do the math doesn't mean that applies to everyone, you know," she reminded her.

Lila stuck out her tongue.

"Lila isn't wrong," Leanne said, coming to the pink girl's defense. "After all, the Goal Roll is a tactical event where strategy and accuracy is required. We saw a lot of that in the last round, as you may remember."

Whether you agreed with the strategy or not, she silently added.

"That definitely seems like the kind of event Blake could do well at," Kitty said, trying to sound optimistic.

"Are you sure?" Elaina asked. "You have to stay in that square, after all. And Blake doesn't strike me as the kind of person who will feel comfortable restraining himself and just letting his pokemon handle everything."

"That's quite an understatement," Julia muttered under her breath. They could all agree that if Blake had his way, he'd be running right along with his pokemon in spite of the risk to himself. He was that kind of guy.

"In fairness, Sango would do exactly the same thing," Cynthia snickered. "She'd probably do better than some of the pokemon!"

Again, no denial there.

"So what's the last event then?" Lila asked. "These are both pretty technical… you said it's one that we've already seen, right?"

"That's right," Leanne nodded. "The third event of the Skill Course is an event from way back at the beginning of the day, the Pennant Capture!"

"Oh wow, that is a long way back!" Lila gasped. The Speed Course had just been this morning, but it felt like a month ago.

"Oh wow!" Olivia said, mimicking Lila's faux cutesy voice. She turned to Ayame with her mouth wide open. "Aya, you and Blake will have competed at the same event! How adorable is that?" She giggled, and Ayame rolled her eyes.

"Are you kidding me?" She groaned.

"I think it's fate," Cynthia said, getting in on the teasing. "And who knows? He might get a better score than you did!"

Ayame's face turned serious and she glared at the redhead.

"There's absolutely no way that will happen," she growled.

"I don't know, that event involves a lot of running," Reiner said. "And from what I hear, Blake's faster than you are. Maybe he'll win!"

"It's definitely an event that's suited for him," Nick agreed.

Ayame said nothing, turning her focus to the announcers as they explained the Pennant Capture again for anyone who had missed the first block's events, or just couldn't remember all the rules for that one in particular.

"So how did the Pennant Capture go again?" Lila asked, leading Leanne's answer. And Leanne was happy to oblige her

"This event is a simple, yet exciting one!" She grinned, and the screen shifted to show the sandy area, which had been left intact when the earlier stages were struck over the lunch break. "The competitors will run alongside their pokemon and gather as many flags as they can from around the obstacle course! And the flags will spawn repeatedly."

"And they can hold as many as they want, right?" Darla remembered. "And when you go back across the line, the flags are deposited permanently. But before that, you could drop them!"

"That's right, it's a fairly risky event," Leanne nodded. "But there's nothing to worry about! It's incredibly safe!"

It sure didn't sound safe. Especially not as memories of Ange's performance that morning flashed through everyone's minds.

"The scoring for this event is pretty simple, as well," Leanne continued. "Like with the Snow Throw, the total number of Athlete Points a team gets will be determined by how many flags they manage to pick up, multiplied by three!"

"It's always multiplied by three," Darla said, rolling her eyes. "Again, sounds pretty arbitrary to me, but whatever…"

"And I thought Lila was the one who didn't like math?" Leanne sniped, earning a scowl from the idol.

"That seems pretty intense!" Lila said, wincing. She remembered Ange's performance pretty well herself. "All this stuff… it's so rough! I thought the goal of the Skill Course was to use your brain, but this is all physical stuff!"

"Well, it is a Pokeathlon," Darla pointed out. "It's expected that there will be a bit of physical performance, don't you think?"

"…Yeah, I suppose so," Lila admitted. "Working your brains and your body! That's something really exciting!"

"And completely foreign to you, I bet," Darla mumbled under her breath.

Lila opened her mouth to say something in response, but was cut off by Leanne aggressively clearing her throat.

"If you two are done sniping at each other," she said, "I think it's time we meet the teams competing in this final block of the tournament!"

Alright, things are getting exciting! We've finally reached Block D, where Blake is! And he's going to be competing against Sango, Marion, and Andy! The events are going to be grueling, not just on a physical level but a mental one! And if Blake wants to go up against Ayame in the finals, he's going to have to defeat some incredibly talented opponents!