Chapter 4
Trainer Exam Results
It was Saturday morning, and I met Marcus outside our home at 7:40am, five minutes early. In the two weeks I'd been here I'd noticed the sun rising a little earlier, and the weather getting a little warmer, though it hadn't stopped the mornings feeling a little chilly. I also had the Caterpie on my shoulder that had joined me Thursday, because after not having to fear for his life for a single day, he had decided that civilization was the best andbeggedme to let him stay. His living expenses were coming out of my allowance, and yesterday I'd been forced to grab extra leaves after school so he wasn't eating through my savings too much.
When I arrived he looked at his watch, nodded, then set off.
"We can talk while we walk." said Marcus, and I nodded. After 20 seconds though, he still hadn't said anything, so I asked first.
"So, what will we be doing?"
"We will be doing a form of Aura awareness training. It doesn't help strengthen your Aura or anything, but for simple Aura awareness I believe it's much more effective than meditation. Although you're Aura is still weak, it should be strong enough for you to gain awareness"
"Cool, so what is it?"
He looked around, and even though nobody was there, still said in hushed tones. "I'll tell you when we get there."
I rolled my eyes.
"Can you at least tell me where we're going?"
"The Cerulean Gardens." He replied, before adding. "This is too slow. Let's jog"
I couldn't really get a read on Marcus if I was being honest. In some ways it would have been better if he was more mouthy, because then you could at least talk about stuff, but instead he seemed to operate on a need-to-say basis, so if he wasn't interested in talking, then every word needed to be pried out of him.
If we went on a Journey together that could get old real quick… but I would gain Aura awareness first. Besides, there was a good chance that we would be going with Ivy, and she talked enough for two.
We made our way there quickly, and while I was running too hard to really talk anyway, to Marcus it seemed like an easy jog.
Cerulean was quieter on Weekends. It had around 300,000 people, so it wasn't a true Metropolis like Saffron or Celedon, and neither was it an industrial hub like Pewter, or an important port city like Vermillion. It was an important frontier city, and served as an important checkpoint to allow agriculture to flourish towards the interior of Kanto without wild pokemon completely destroying the harvests.
When we got to the gardens we beelined straight for a deserted but cosy corner of it, which made me quite confident that it wasn't the first time that Marcus had been here.
We stopped, and he let me put my hands on my knees to catch my breath while he pulled a small packet out of his backpack. He handed it to me and I took it, and I noticed it had no identifying marks.
"What is it?" I huffed out between breaths.
"Stun spores." He said, and I looked back to the packet with newfound interest, and even Caterpie moved closer for a better view. I wasn't sure if it was legal for him to carry it around, but at this point I wasn't about to ask.
"The trouble with Aura awareness is that the easiest Aura to sense is your own Aura, but as your Aura reflects your own emotional state, it's easy to dismiss sensations of your Aura as sensations of your own emotional state. Does that make sense?"
When I nodded he continued.
"Personally, I suspect that this is one of the main training methods that Clans use, though it only works if the Aura has already reached a certain threshold. I've also heard rumours on the internet that Poison Powder works even better, but even I didn't do that, and given your history… yeah."
"Thanks for your consideration." I said with a smile. "To be honest, while I wouldn't be that against it, I'm pretty sure if I ended up in hospital due to self-inflicted poison, the Doctor that treated me would finish the job herself." I then looked towards the packet I was holding. "I take it that paralysis isn't as bad."
He grimaced.
"It's not dangerous, but most certainly not pleasant. I wouldn't recommend it…"
I raised an eyebrow.
"In most circumstances." He amended.
I gave a laugh, then asked. "So how do I take it? Do I just rub it on some skin, or do I have to eat it or something?"
"Don't eat it, just rubbing it on some skin will be enough to disrupt your natural Aura flow, especially seeing you're nowhere near as strong as a Pokemon. However, I recommend meditating first so that you're more sensitive to the sensations in your body."
"Sounds good, I'll get started now." I said with a nod as I started to get myself comfortable then paused. "What about you, what are you going to do while you wait?"
He shrugged.
"I'll find something to keep myself busy. Even though I've gained Aura awareness, meditation still helps with Aura control, as well as clearing the mind in general. Once we get our own Pokemon, having greater control will allow us to better cleanse their Aura, which is a fundamental skill for a trainer's pokemon to get stronger." He suddenly grimaced. "It's also why Clan kids are at such a large advantage. Cleansing all the different types of energy is difficult and each one takes some getting used to, so being able to practise on a bunch of different Pokemon before you even start your Journey is a massive advantage."
"How do you know all this?" I asked, curious about the source of all this information.
"I gained my Aura awareness over a year ago, so I've been practising on the Pokemon we have at the orphanage."
My eyes widened in shock. "You've had Aura awareness for ayear! Why didn't you get a Youngster License?"
He winced. "The standards of getting a Youngster License are actually harder than getting a normal Trainer License, as you don't need to just pass the Trainer exam, but also exceed the average score of those older than you that passed the normal Trainer exam that year. If you don't, but your score exceeds the minimum pass-rate of those that earned a sponsorship that year, you can still get people to vouch for you… But the only person I could get to vouch for me was Elizabeth, which didn't count because she was my Guardian, and it didn't help that I had no one prepared to travel with if I'd passed."
It obviously still bothered him, so I tried comforting. "Hey man, it's honestly amazing you've done as well as you have. The stats say that 95% of the people that earn the Youngster License are from Clans, and not only are you not from a Clan, you don't even have parents to support you. The fact that you got so close purely by your own effort is impressive, and something to be proud of. I'm sure you'll destroy the circuit this year!"
Halfway through my spiel his gaze had turned to the ground, and when I finished speaking he didn't respond. After a few moments he looked back up.
"You should start meditating, and you of all people don't have any time to waste." He stated, making it obvious he wanted to brush the previous topic aside. "I want to try cleansing the Caterpie, I haven't worked a lot with Bug energy before. Is that ok?"
I shot a questioning gaze to Caterpie who nodded enthusiastically. I checked his profile briefly which stated:
Caterpie (M)
Current Strength: 2.29 / 2.48
Expected Potential: 0.8284 - (0.9994*) - (4.2475*)
His strength had increased a bit, but the thing that surprised me most was his potential. Before it had stated:
0.7832 - (0.9542*) - (4.2022*)
That meant, after just a few days of good food and no real training, it had already increased by about 5%. After Caterpie had pleaded to stay, I'd looked into Caterpie survival rates in the wild, and had been astounded. According to experts, they estimated 96% of Weedle, and98.5%of Caterpie that hatched never reached their final evolution. I thought that when Caterpie had been scared of that Spearow that perhaps it was being a little bit of a drama queen, but after reading that example I'd had a change of heart and decided that I would look after it until it became a Butterfree. Nature was pretty metal here.
While it was eating a lot now, it would be pretty low-maintenance once it became a Metapod, and it could earn its keep and maybe do me a few favours when it fully evolved into a Butterfree
I turned back to Marcus. "Sure, feel free too."
I was also interested to see how cleansing would affect its stats as well, but first I had to meditate.
-break-
Some time later I felt something gently shake me out of my session.
"How long was it?" I asked.
"About 30 minutes. You were pretty quick, I could tell by your Aura you'd gone deep enough."
I nodded, then glanced at the Caterpie. My eyes widened.
Caterpie (M)
Current Strength: 2.35 / 2.49
Expected Potential: 0.8728 - (1.0439*) - (4.2919*)
In only half an hour, the Caterpie's potential had increased by 0.05! That was insane!
I tried to maintain a facade of calm, and turned back to Marcus.
"So… how did your session go?"
He shrugged.
"I got all the low hanging fruit. I'm pretty good with Normal, Fighting, and Flying energy, and decent with Water energy as well, so I've removed most of that. I'd have to dig deeper though if I wanted to remove the Grass, Rock, Ground and Fire type energy as well, as it seems to still have plenty of that."
I calmed down a little when I realised that meant he couldn't increase potential by a point per day… That would have been a little too unbelievable.
"It also helps that he's weak. We're not bonded, so usually their Aura resistance would be pretty tough, but because it's just a Caterpie I could still do it with little issue." He turned to the Caterpie. "No offense."
The Caterpie just gave a little wiggle, and Marcus nodded. Then turned back to me and frowned.
"It looks like you gain focus quickly, but lose it pretty quickly as well. We had better get started then."
Even though the last time I'd been inflicted with a non-volatile status condition it had not been a good time, I was actually really excited for this. I'd been pushing myself to the limit non-stop for the last few weeks, and it would be a massive relief if I could finally get this monkey off my back. Or was it Mankey in this world? There were normal animals in this world, like cows, and sheep and goats, and humans as well as Pokemon farmed them apparently. I wondered…
"I can tell by your Aura you are completely distracted, do another meditation session and then we will jump into it while you're still focussed."
"Sorry Marcus."
-break-
My body was battered and bruised, and every movement of my body reminded me of another ache or pain. I glared at Marcus as I lay crumpled on the ground, but he looked back unrepentant.
"I'm certain this is the best method of practise, it makes a lot of sense to me." He said simply. "We don't have a lot of time, and the paralysis effect on your Aura is much more obvious when you try to move."
Apparently I was no prodigy at sensing Aura. He said he had gotten the hang of it after just several hours of meditation under the effects of Paralysis, but when Saturday evening arrived and I still hadn't gotten the hang of it, he had cured me and we'd done some exercise together, and said we would pick up where we left off Sunday.
He had come back this morning filled to the brim with new ideas. While yesterday I had just been meditating, today I was supposed to try doing my normal workouts while Paralysed after starting the day with a meditation session.
"It's just like riding a bike." He continued straight-faced. "You'll have to fall a few times, but you'll get the hang of it eventually."
He took a look at his watch. "I'll run back to the orphanage and grab some lunch for us. Just continue exercising until I get back."
Without waiting for a response he ran off, leaving me and the Caterpie. I didn't know why, but it seemed happy watching me suffer.
Caterpie (M)
Current Strength: 2.50 / 2.61
Expected Potential: 1.043 - (1.214*) - (4.4621*)
It had continued getting cleansed, and now its potential had increased by 0.2 since we first started. I knew that Potential increased differently to Strength, so I was interested to know just how much it had benefited from the dozen hours of cleansing Marcus had done for it. Was it 10% stronger in the long run? 20%? More? I didn't know.
I sighed as I shakily got back to my feet. Trying to run while paralysed was terrifying. One moment you would be fine, and the next you would completely lock up, unable to do anything about it, and crash onto the ground. At the start I was still fine with it, and pushed through it, but it steadily accumulated until you were more paralysed by fear than you were by the Paralysis itself.
I stood there stockstill, mentally preparing myself to move when I had an idea. Back on Earth my younger twin brother Ron had started picking up injuries while training and playing soccer, and the physio had said that practising yoga would be a good way to improve his strength at extended ranges of motion, and also improve his mind-body connection. To be honest, I kinda thought it was hogwash, but then a bit of research showed studies supporting it, as well as anecdotal evidence from a lot of professional athletes, so I had dished out the money required to enroll him and Roxy in a local course, and also found some online youtube courses that seemed highly rated.
At the twin's encouragement I'd joined in occasionally, and with them kinda acting as my instructor I grew to enjoy it. I don't know whether I would have called it a 'Mind-Body connection', but it certainly increased your awareness of your own body, and that would be really useful right now.
Of course, the fact that I wouldn't be moving around would mean it wouldn't hurt myself so much when Paralysis struck, but that was totally just an added bonus.
I couldn't remember most of the poses, and also didn't want to overextend myself, so I focussed on making my breathing steady and went into a basic lunge with my hands extended above my head, and drawing my hands towards my chest as I breathed in. I can't remember what it was actually called by the online instructor, but I focussed on the sensations of my body as I moved slowly and deliberately in a controlled fashion. I was just going into a side lunge when -LOCK.
Slowly and steadily I toppled over to the ground. While the landing wasn't soft, it wasn't too hard either, and I smiled as I felt more clearly than before where the Paralysis had struck. When the Paralysis subsided I stood back up and picked up where I left off, much more relaxed than before.
I could do this.
-break-
When Marcus arrived back he had been doubtful of my method, but after observing for a few minutes he decided to join in, minus the Paralysis and falling over. I did my best to instruct him, trying my best to channel the serenity of the instructors I'd seen online, but that image was pretty tarnished by my dirty, bloodied appearance as well as the frequent collapses. We had been going slowly for over an three hours now, with only a short break when I said I was famished
"So this pose here is a balancing pose, where you stand on one leg like a Flamigo." I said, raising my right leg off the ground. I'd already shown him all the easy poses, and had now moved onto a few that might hurt if I failed, but wouldn't really injure me. "You lay your raised foot on your opposite thigh, then pivot the hip externally and press your hands-"
I locked up, and started tilting towards the right. I focussed on my traitorous leg, and I could sense the flow of energy frozen, preventing me from re-extending my right leg to regain my balance. And then, without really being aware of how I did it, I released that tension and my right leg stabbed out and steadied myself.
"I did it!" I screamed out.
"You did it?" Marcus asked, eyes wide.
"Yes!" I said happily, before subduing myself. "At least I think so?"
"Let me see." He stared hard at me. "Try concentrating your Aura in your right hand."
I did as he asked, closing my eyes and visualising the energy that I'd noticed locking up shifting to my right hand. When Marcus didn't say anything I continued doing so, deciding that I would continue trying until he said stop. Five minutes passed.
"Stop."
I released my concentration, and I felt the energy in my hand disperse. Or at least I was pretty sure it did, unless I had become fully delusional. I opened my eyes to see Marcus smiling, and my worries eased.
"Congratulations, you did it."
-break-
After I had learnt how to sense my Aura, the priority immediately became the theoretical part of the trainer exam. I would still do a quick meditation each morning, but exercise went from over an hour a day to just 45 minutes every two days, with every spare moment spent studying.
Ivy joined the study sessions as well, and I was surprised to find out that despite her care-free attitude, her grades were actually better than my own. It made me wonder whether the personality she showed was just a facade, because it was clear that she had more going on than what met the eye.
My birthday was coming up this Saturday, but I asked Elizabeth if it could wait until after the Exam. If I was in Marcus or Ivy's position and was confident of my success, then I would have been happy to enjoy it on Saturday, but I was cutting it a lot closer than them.
When I needed a break from studying, because it simply wasn't possible for me to study more than 12 hours a day, Marcus showed me the first step on how to cleanse Pokemon, which was interesting.
I worked with Dot the Azurill as well as Caterpie, as due to their weak Auras I could observe them through their resistance, and so I became familiar with Bug-type Aura and Water-type Aura.
The week ended, and I became so stressed about the exam that I couldn't sleep properly, and so I spent most of Friday night studying. For the rest of the weekend I became dependant on Jigglypuff for sleep, she would help me get to sleep at night, and also supplement that with a few ~2 hour naps throughout the day. Elizabeth insisted that once I'd taken the exam that was to end immediately, but let me rely on it for the time being.
Finally Monday arrived.
I'd been put to sleep early in the afternoon on Sunday, then woken up and snuck in an hour of revision before dinner, then after dinner Jigglypuff had put me to sleep for the last time. I'd managed to sleep until 2am, had studied until 6:30am, which was when I decided to go for a 5km run to clear my mind and freshen up, had breakfast, did some last minute studying, and at last took the Trainer Exam at 9am.
After all the time, effort, and stress, the exam itself felt underwhelming. It was a 3 hour exam, and all the parts that weren't unique to the Pokemon world were a breeze, so even though they composed of 50% of the exam I finished it within less than an hour. That left two hours for the rest, and even though there were a few questions that I answered more with educated guesses rather than certainty, on the whole I felt like I had done a good job. I was confident I'd done the best I could, and in the end that was all that mattered.
-break-
Marcus, Ivy and I were all walking back to Trainer School that Friday. We'd had the rest of the week off, but today was the day we got our results back.
"How fucking funny would it be if after putting in all that work youstillfailed." Ivy was saying. "I mean don't get me wrong, like it would be devastating! But also pretty fucking funny."
I glared at her, but somehow it was eclipsed by Marcus's glare. The thing was, Marcus had no doubts that he would pass.
I knew how bad I wanted it, and how hard I had pushed for it, so it was actually crazy that it somehow felt like he wanted me to pass more than I did myself.
"Alright, maybe it won't be so funny." She conceded, raising her hands in surrender.
Marcus turned to me. "How confident are you that you passed?"
"Pretty confident." I responded, trying to shove down my nerves.
"On Monday you said you were really happy with how you went."
"Yeah well on Monday I hadn't pored over the exam sheet with you, so I didn't know I'd misread 1 questioncompletely, and with another 3 I'll be lucky if I got half marks!" I snapped.
I took a deep breath, then released it slowly.
"Sorry."
"It's alright. I'm 90% sure that even if you got four questions completely wrong, you should still pass." said Marcus.
And that was the thing. I was pretty sure I hadn't made mistakes outside those 4 questions… but what if I was wrong? What if I'd written down the wrong thing, even if I meant something else? Back on Earth I'd usually done well in school before I had to get a job, but I'd still always been prone to stupid mistakes. No teacher ever called me stupid… too much, but many of them had called me careless, and while I knew I cared, I couldn't eliminate the errors so I couldn't deny it.
We walked the rest of the way in silence, and I'm not sure if I was grateful or not of the fact.
-break-
Ivy ripped open the envelope containing her results.
"Pass!" She cried, waving the sheet in the air.
Marcus finished opening his own.
"Pass." He read aloud, then turned to me. I stared at, paralysed despite the absence of spores.
"Need help opening it?" asked Ivy, scooting closer. "I can read it for you if you want."
My jaw clenched. This was ridiculous. These were literal teenagers, barely out of their tweens, while I was an adult nearly a decade older than them… I should be better than this!
5 seconds passed in silence, then 10, and I finally handed over the letter.
I immediately regretted it.
She held it up to a light and tried to read it through the envelope. Then she asked if I wanted to make any prayers to a Mythical pokemon of my choice. She continued this song and dance until I was just about ready to take it back, then finally ripped it open and unfolded the sheet of paper inside with a flourish.
Oh dear…" she said, her face a mask of disappointment. However, I was elated, because no matter how convincingly she acted, she couldn't stop her Aura from telling the truth.