A true hero... in training (Pokemon Gym Leader's apprentice quest)

The next morning was a quiet one. Your sister had to leave earlier than usual to work for some reason, so you had to make breakfast on your own. A bowl of cereal for you, a bowl of pokemon food for your pokemon. All of you eating slowly and in silence as you fought off the feeling of needing to go back to bed. Each movement was pain for you, so it probably was the same for your pokemon. Maylene doesn't go easy on her training… At all.

Once breakfast is over, you decide to start your day. You planned on going to see what that training from Akahime is about. You are equal parts excited and nervous. It seems like they have some sort of organization and don't follow Cynthia's orders… But if Rose is with them, they can't be that bad, right?

You will call Cynthia first to ask permission, just in case. She probably knows more about them than you do.

It's too early to call her and… To be honest you don't feel like training yet. It's technically your first free day, so you will spend at least the first half doing something YOU want to do that doesn't involve training… And what you want right now is to check on your two companions. Violet seemed much better yesterday, and Lily devoured the sweets you brought her like a really healthy Muchlax. Maybe they can leave the hospital now? You forgot to ask Violet where she will spend the two weeks. You do have a spare room since your sister moved to your parents'.

Once you are ready, you return your pokemon to their pokeballs. Fang gets too nervous walking in crowded streets and Maelstrom is too slow. They are safer in there.




You take a walk around the neighborhood before going to the hospital. It's still early, and you don't want to wake them up if they are still resting. You would probably get another face full of pillow, and maybe now with a more psychical impact behind it.

The walk is a nostalgia trip. You revisit all the places from your childhood. From the park you met Maylene and where you played with her every day to your old school, now full of children. You remember those days. You really wanted to grow up… Until you reached the academy and realized that school was MUCH easier.

You also met some of the people you know. Neighbors, old classmates… Just the people that lives close to your home. It's been a long time since you saw them. Some just nod their head at you in acknowledgement, some stop to talk for a couple of minutes. Not much, but helps you remember the past.

Once some time passed and you had enough, you head to the hospital to check on your friends.

You head straight to the pokemon section where you find Violet and Lily. Unlike yesterday, Violet has her normal clothes, a sign she can now leave the hospital. Something tells you Lily still can't. They are sitting in some sort of lounge area between rooms. Books, sofas, a tv… Probably a place where patients can entertain themselves or socialize instead of staying in their rooms all the time. Lily is the first to see you, sitting in front of Violet as you approach from behind the girl.

"Idiot is here." You hear in your mind. Soft and feminine. Seems like Lily can use her powers again… Even if it feels slightly off. Like someone trying to talk with a sore throat. Short words and the connection breaks quickly instead of staying there.

Violet turns around and smiles at you, waving before looking back at her pokemon. She says something about not using her powers too much yet. Once you get closer, you can see a free seat next to Violet, so you sit down. "Good morning Haru. Aren't you going to train with Maylene today?" Violet asks curious. There are a couple of magazines open on the table between her and her pokemon. It seems like they were looking at science magazines.

You shake your head. "Not today. Maylene has something to do, so I have free time. I thought about training more but… I can't move a muscle without feeling pain." You say with a sigh, a hand going to the collar on your neck. You still feel the pressure of the added weight, even if your body is getting used to it.

Violet seems worried, but Lily knows it's nothing serious and just smirks at you. "Are you okay?" Violet asks, now paying full attention to you. You shake your head, letting her know it's not important.

"And what were you girls doing?" As you ask, you look at the magazines on the table. They are both pretty famous science magazines based on new pokemon research and technology. You used to read them all the time at the academy. It always helped your grades if you had something interesting and new to add when talking to a teacher about a topic you read about.

Violet follows your gaze and picks up one of the magazines, giving it to you. "We were reading about the new discoveries on megaevolution. It's been years since they started to produce more megastones and it's still a mystery how it works. A professor in Kalos made some advancements last year." She tells you, clearly interested in the topic. Interested in megaevolutions or just pokemon science in general? You take a look at the article. It talks about the effect the megastones have on the pokemon's natural energy. Somehow they supercharge the natural flow of energy inside the pokemon forcing a temporary additional evolution.

"It's immoral." You hear Lily say, her telepathy still feeling a bit off. "The megastones force too much energy and it always brings some sort of trouble." As she talks, a couple of magazines more that were on the ground next to the couch start to float. They have more information on different pokemon. She looks at a couple of pages of each one as she talks. "Scizor's starts to melt after using megaevolution for too long, Tyranitar's back splits open to the point that he only keeps going by sheer rage, Gyarados' brain becomes smaller and only capable of feeling rage…" Once she is done with her rant, she lets the magazines drop. She seems to be focusing now, maybe this was too much strain on her recovering body. "It's cruel." She says, the voice slowly fading. Lily grows a look of frustration on her face.

"Lily, stop using telepathy. You haven't recovered yet… And maybe it's not that bad? Most of that information comes from unreliable sources. There is evidence of some pokemon reacting badly, but not all of them… Maybe it's like an allergy and only some suffer?" Violet asks. It seems like she likes this topic and doesn't want to just declare it totally evil. Lily scoffs, not replying. They clearly had this conversation before.

"So…" You speak after a moment of silence. "I see you are having fun." You are slightly concerned because they seem to argue about the topic, but they are not angry at each other or anything.

"Better than waiting." Says Lily, returning to short sentences. Violet nods, grabbing the magazine.

"It's always fun to talk about this sort of thing. Hospitals are always quiet, and you can read and talk about this stuff easily." She says, probably from experience. She is still smiling even if her hand twitches in the direction of her eyepatch for a second.

Thinking about it… Makes sense the can have these conversations. Lily is loud, but using telepathy only the people she wants to talk to can listen. Violet is just naturally quiet… Now you wonder if with Lily your final tests at the academy would have been much easier… Probably not, she would tell you to study and not allow you to cheat.

After that conversation you spend some time with them talking about megaevolution and other advances in pokemon research. Who knew that spending all morning at the hospital would be fun as long as you are with friends?




Hours pass. Your little group moves from the lounge to a small garden behind the hospital where the patients can spend time under the sun. Fang and Maelstrom are happy to spend some time outside their pokeballs just being lazy. They also talked with Lily as soon as they saw her. Now that you think about it, it's the first time they've seen her since the fight. She is clearly embarrassed, too much attention from two worried companions.

"I said I'm fine. Stop asking." Lily said in a slightly annoyed tone, but even saying that, she lets Fang rub his head against her. She even pets him. That made your pokemon pretty happy. Even Maelstrom seems happy seeing that, a bond forming in your group between everyone, not just the two trainers bonding with each other but also the pokemon… At least you think that's what he is thinking.

After some time relaxing and playing around, in a calm way of course because Lily is still recovering, you ask Violet where are they going to stay. She told you already she is free to go but will stay tonight with Lily, she will be healthy enough to leave by tomorrow.

"We will stay at the gym. While you train, I'm supposed to help Maylene with running the gym… I think that's why this was the first place you are training, for what I heard, Maylene is having a hard time…" Violet says almost in a whisper, as if this were secret information. You then realize that it might be, and you are talking to an actual high-ranking individual.

Sometimes you forget she is the assistant to what is basically the queen of Sinnoh… And your childhood friend is also a high-ranking individual.

You feel a bit like a nobody sometimes. You've technically done nothing as Cynthia's apprentice yet.

"Oh, well, makes sense. I thought you would come to my home. My sister would love to have you around." You reply with a smile. For some reason, Violet blushes, thinking about something. "I also wanted to show you around the city, there is a place near my house that makes amazing ice-cream. I guess we can still go even if you are not staying at my house."

She is quiet for a moment, thinking about it. Before she is able to answer, the girl turns her head around to look at Lily, blushing more than before. "I-It's not a…" Violet starts to tell her pokemon before closing her mouth and looking down. "...Are we going with your sister or Maylene or someone…?" She asks softly, not looking at you.

You think about it for a moment. It's supposed to be a tour around some places in the city, so your sister and Maylene will get bored pretty quickly. You shake your head. "No, I wasn't planning on inviting anyone else, why?" You ask. You expect her to bring Lily, so with them and your pokemon is a big enough group. She keeps blushing and Lily smiles widely.

"B-because… Nothing, nothing. Yes, I would like to go get ice-cream with you." Says Violet with a small smile, even if she is still not looking at you. That confuses you slightly, but doesn't matter.

Conversation winds down quickly and Lily has to return to her room for a check-up before being released tomorrow. You say your goodbyes and start to leave. It's noon, so you grab something quick to eat and get ready to call Cynthia. You've been… Kind of leaving this for later, but now is later.

You still can't believe you have the number of the champion and can call her anytime you want.

"...She offered you personal training? That wasn't in Violet's report." You hear Cynthia say with a sigh from the other end of the line. You couldn't see her face. Poketchs traded the camera for portability, but it was easy to recognize some annoyance in her voice. Not directed at you or Violet, of course.

"Well… Yeah, she did. I think I forgot to tell Violet that, sorry." You answered sheepishly, looking around. You were sitting on your bed. You wanted to hang around a park in your neighborhood, but this conversation was really confidential for multiple reasons. You even made sure your sister was at work before calling your master, just in case she wasn't on board with going to train to some weird place.

"Well, don't worry. I already had enough work just by knowing they are in the region." You hear papers shuffling in the background. She is probably in her office… That's weird, Violet told you she tries to spend as little time in her office as possible. "Before I give you my answer tell me, what do you know about The Guardians?" She asked in a tone that reminds you of your teachers at the academy.

After thinking about it for a moment, you answer. "Well… They are some sort of group that helps people? I'm not sure. There is not a lot of information online. The only things I found are news reports about the group stopping criminal organizations and stuff. Apart from that I only have what my… friend Rose told me. But she said they were superheroes and I'm pretty sure that's not a thing." You said. It was frustrating how well hidden the information was. It seems like they only have direct contact with the gym leaders and champions of the regions they help, not making anything public.

"A friend? Oooh, is Akahime using a cute girl to drag you into their group?" She asked. You don't need to see her to FEEL that smile she is giving you. "That's pretty underhanded even for her. And here I thought the cute girls I sent with you would be enough to keep you away from those things. Do I need to send more?" She asked, destroying any sense of severity this conversation had, making you blush and stare angrily at the poketch even if she couldn't see your face.

"D-don't say that! I don't want to train there because of her!" You replied, maybe a bit too quickly. You tried to think of something clever to answer, but it wasn't easy. "And… You know a lot about Akahime. Are you friends or something?"

"We were… A long time ago, but people change." She replied, and then silence only broken by the sound of the severity of the situation coming back, crashing through a wall. You shouldn't have said that. "But I don't think she is planning anything to bad. I just don't like her organization in Sinnoh unless we actually need them. Having a strong group of trainers for our protection when nothing bad is happening only makes people more nervous."

A couple more seconds of silence. "So… What should I do?" You asked.

"Go ahead. She is a good trainer. Maybe as good as myself. You could learn a lot about her, but… Be careful. I will have Lily scan your brain for psychic tampering tomorrow. I don't expect anything like that to happen but I want to be sure." She said, making you shudder. You knew she was just being cautious, but that was scary.

After that, you talked about your training until now and how everything was going on her end. It seems like the E4 is trying to pass a law against pokemon exploitation and they needed Cynthia to meet with a bunch of politicians. The cause was good, but she felt constantly tired and had no time to train. You said your goodbyes after that.

Maelstrom and Fang stopped playing on your room's floor when they saw you getting ready. Awaiting news about what are you going to do today. "Let's go train with a mysterious organization." You said at them. "Seems like a fun way to spend the afternoon."

You sent a text to Rose while getting ready telling her if it was okay to train with her boss today. It would be funny if after all of this turns out she is busy today. She quickly replies saying she is going to ask and not even five minutes later you receive a text from an unknown number with only an address to a warehouse at the edge of town.

Ominous.




The place wasn't as bad as you expected. The building was one of those solitary warehouses on the other side of the city instead of near the sea like the rest. It stood alone at the end of a solitary street. It would make you think you got the wrong address if it wasn't for the banners with their logo on either side of the main door and the bubbly girl racing her Torchic… And maybe her Slowpoke, but the latter was standing still at the starting line.

Once you got close enough, she saw you and stopped her training, smiling at you and waving. It seems like Rose was waiting for you since you sent that message earlier. Something tells you she doesn't have a lot of friends.

"Haru! You took too long!" Rose said as you got closer. She didn't seem annoyed or anything at least.

"Well, I live on the other side of the city, and I can't fly yet… Have you been here waiting for me?" You asked, a small smile on your face. The idea of her waiting for you at the door like a puppy was amusing.

"Of course. I had to be the one welcoming my eternal rival!" She proclaimed, hands on her hips trying to look bigger. She was still shorter than you.

You blinked in silence, processing what she just said. "Wait… rival? Since when?" You asked perplexed.

"Since you decided to train under my master too! I can't let you be a better student than I am, so I started to train more seriously!" She said proudly. The Torchic next to her, Ares, copied her pose too. Proud of his strength.

Torchic ♂
Fire Type
Rank: D
Ability 1: Speed Boost (Increases speed every round.)
Ability 2: Blaze (Increases fire type power for each round lost.)
Trait 1: Hero (Stronger when fighting for something he believes in. Can grow up to EX+ rank.)
Trait 2: Brave (Highly resistant to fear. Immune to moves based on causing fear on the opponent.)
Moves: Scratch, Ember, Growl, Aerial Ace, "Blaze Kick?"

Click to expand...

Click to shrink...

Looking more closely… He does look stronger than last time you saw him. More or less as strong as Fang. You wonder what kind of training she is using on him. "So… I'm your rival now? I'm not saying no to that, but I'm not going to train with Akakhime forever. I still have my own teacher." You said calmly. Rivals were a serious thing for trainers. You can't just go around declaring someone is your rival until you have fought at least once.

"I know," She replied, not missing a beat. She was expecting that reply from you. "but Cynthia is the strongest trainer in Sinnoh. My boss is also the strongest, that means we are both training under super awesome trainers! We are perfect rivals." She nodded to herself, her opinion on the matter pretty clear. Something tells you the decision is now out of your hands.

"I guess that makes sense. But we better wait until we at least have a battle to decide that." You say with a sigh. You can't say no to her right now. She seems too excited to be refused. At least you can get a bit more of time for her to calm down.

"That's a great idea! Let's battle right now!" She shouted raising a fist into the air. Ares doing the same. You blinked, that was… definitely not how you expected this to go. "I've been training a lot, so I know I can win!" She said before looking back at where her improvised race track was. Flash, the Slowpoke, was now at the other side where the finishing line was. Huh, you guess he technically won the race being the first to cross that line. You have no idea how the Slowpoke walked there without any of you noticing. It seems like Rose thought the same, leaving you alone for now to approach her pokemon.

She hugged the Slowpoke with a big smile, saying something about being the fastest Slowpoke and winning the race on his own without her having to push him all the way. That would sound condescending coming from anyone else, but you feel she is being genuinely happy. You coughed to grab her attention. Now was your chance to change the subject before she challenges you again. "So… Where is Akahime? I probably need to talk to her if I want to train." You said.

Rose's eyes opened wide, realizing something. "Oh, right, she is probably waiting!" She stood up and rushed to your side, grabbing your hand and dragging you into the building. "Come on! I'm sure her training will be cool!" Ares was following you two. Flash, on the other hand, was still at the finish line, enjoying the feeling of winning a race.




The interior of the warehouse wasn't big and almost empty like you expected. They built walls to divide the space into rooms and even used the vertical space to make a second floor. It felt a bit like Maylene's gym, with corridors leading to multiple bedrooms and common rooms. You saw some people walking around, all in a white and blue uniform. They seemed pretty relaxed, talking and sometimes waving at Rose as she rushed past them, dragging you along. A couple looks of pity directed at you.

This place was incredible and a bit frightening. They had training rooms too, and you saw what looked like pretty strong pokemon. You think you even saw a Dragonite fighting an Aegislash… But had no time to look closer because someone was trying to rip your arm off every time you slowed down.

The building was probably one of the biggest warehouses in town. Once used to hold and process the ore mined from the mountain. They clearly took advantage of all that space to turn it into what looked like the real HQ of a big organization… Even if the exterior could use more work.

You finally reached your destination after going through a long hallway. You found yourself at the entrance of a big room, clearly used for more serious battles. It even had the official lines on the ground indicating the battle arena. In the middle of the room, Akahime waited for you, smiling.

"I've been waiting for you, Haru. I'm glad you accepted my invitation." She said, still waiting for you at the center of the room. Her words carried an invisible weight you only felt when Cynthia was being serious. They both had some sort of aura not easy to explain. Something only great trainers have.

"I'm sorry." You said. "I live on the other side of the city, and I can't fl-" You tried to explain yourself when suddenly, Rose rushed in her master's direction… Still dragging you along by the hand.

When she was close enough, she bowed. "I'm sorry Boss! I was too excited and made him take longer to get here." She said. "I might be… not too professional." She admitted blushing slightly. She probably had orders to take you to her immediately.

Akahime just laughed softly while you tried to recover from this last rush, your hand finally free. Your arm will feel sore for a while. "Don't worry little one." She replied to Rose. "What's important is that he is here now… Haru, you wanted for me to train you, right?" She asked you directly.

You nodded, a bit more serious than before. Talking to Akahime wasn't the same as talking to Rose. "Yes. I can feel how strong you are as a trainer and I want to reach your level one day. I need all the training from strong trainers I can get." Your face was still serious, she was still smiling. Rose was at your side oblivious to the seriousness of the situation. This was a chance to get better. To actually fit the role you've been put into.

"Oh, you want to reach my level one day? A bolder trainer would have declared he wanted to surpass me, not just reach my level… That's good. You have a clear goal in mind and know what you need to reach it." She was still smiling like before, but you saw her eyes shining briefly with excitement. You hear Rose mutter to herself something about wanting to surpass her master and being an actual clear goal too. "I was going to just train you on the basics. A little boost to your strength as thanks for helping Rose but… You are probably not happy with just that. You want real training."

You felt a bit nervous. You are not sure you like how she said the last part. Rose looked a bit nervous too but in a different way. She probably knows first hand how though her real training is.

She seems to think about it for a second, looking around until her eyes land on Rose before looking at you again. "I have an idea… I want you to battle Rose and her Torchic. I taught her a lot about battles, so it's not going to be easy… I want you to teach me what you can do and then I will give you real training…" You felt Rose next to you holding back. If she weren't trying to be serious and professional right now, she would probably be shaking you with excitement. She really wants that battle. "Or… you can just get the normal basic training. It's still a gift as thanks, so I will make sure it's a good one… It's your choice."

They both looked at you. Waiting for your decision. Akahime was calm, happy with whatever choice you pick, but Rose clearly was in favor of a battle against her. You sigh. Saying no to that proposition is going to be hard, but you are not sure about this «Real Training». It's the same training Rose follows, so it's probably more or less safe… But her Torchic is now at the same level as Fang… And you had to go through a life or death situation for him to grow that much so quickly. That makes you nervous.

On the other hand… This is the perfect chance to get more training under a champion-level trainer. Even if it feels like the training is going to be excessively harsh, you can't just turn down a challenge like that if you want to be champion someday… And Rose would probably be sad if you don't battle her.



[] Accept (Battle against Rose. 1v1, she will only use her Torchic. Will unlock special training with The Guardians.)
-Pokemon you will use and strategy.

[] Decline (Get normal training. Counts as two days of training with Maylene.)