- Location
- Belgium
A mix of all those things, varying from person to person + a relatively high price point.
A mix of all those things, varying from person to person + a relatively high price point.
Chapter 20, part 2
- Location
- Belgium
Ran wanders out of the Pharmacy with an exhausted Skorupi resting in his ball, a backpack that's significantly heavier than when he entered the store and a whistle on his lips. Though the Pharmacy's need for Skorupi-venom has been filled completely, ensuring he won't be making any equally profitable return visits in the near future, he's still left feeling as if he made out like a bandit.
Not quite in hard cash sadly, but the various medicines and supplements now sitting in his backpack would've been ruinous to purchase normally. In that light, enough supplements to enrich his complete current team's food for the next three months, plus a doubling of his normal healing items like Potions and Paralyze Heals, makes for an extremely productive afternoon. Additionally, Edith, which he'd learned was the old lady's name, had mentioned an interest in cutting a similar deal further in the future, if he ever felt like swinging by Cianwood City again.
He didn't really have any hard plans to that end, but if his team showed a clear preference or growth from the Pharmacy's products, then he'd have to consider that carefully. If the Pharmacy's wares proved largely useless, then all he'd have lost was a few hours of training for Skorupi, at most. However, the benefits of stuff like X Attack and Calcium had been researched and proven, so he was quite hopeful that the Pharmacy's wares might also prove worthwhile.
For now, he wanted to get started on the day's training, but before he could, his pokégear finally buzzed with an incoming message. Immediately, the good mood he'd left the Pharmacy with evaporates, as anxiety rears its head once more.
Not wasting any more time, he looks to see just what Cianwood City's Gym is contacting him for.
Cianwood City Gym: Cianwood City Gym is looking for suitable profiles for a comparative pokémon development study. Applicants will have to prove their ability as trainers. Payment to be discussed. Please let us know if you are interested in applying.
A pokémon development study?
That doesn't sound like it has anything to do with letting the local fighting-types practice against his own poison-types. In fact, it sounds vague enough for him to have no clue whatsoever as to just what it's going to be about. However, considering he's going to be spending the next two weeks in Cianwood City anyways, he can't deny that his interest's been piqued.
Ran: I'm interested in applying.
Message sent, Ran moves to close the messaging window and carry on with his day, however, before he can, a notification shows up indicating that a reply is already being written. Surprised by the speed of the Gym's reaction, he waits patiently for the next message to come in.
Cianwood City Gym: Excellent! Are you available for a briefing in thirty minutes?
Ran: I am. I'll be there.
Cianwood City Gym: Splendid! Please present yourself at the reception desk, we'll be expecting you.
He closes the message with a sigh, a glance at the hour showing that it's five in the evening already. Any plans of training before dinner will have to be shelved for now, but at least he'll get to find out what Cianwood's Gym wants from him. Perhaps he'll even get some insight into whether Bugsy is pulling any of the strings behind the scenes, though that might be presuming a bit too much.
Opting not to waste any time, he turns to head directly to the Gym, arriving there after about twenty minutes. The receptionist, her workday clearly coming to an end from the three glances she shoots at the clock over the two minutes Ran spends around her, swiftly directs him up the nearest stairs and to the second door on the left.
Politely following her instructions, Ran slides open the wood-and-paper door to walk into a small meeting room, a large oval table taking up most of the room's floor space. That isn't what draws his attention however, as rather than any of the room's interior features, like the apparently constant use of wood lattices and paper sliding walls, he focuses his attention on the room's lone other occupant.
A dark-skinned young woman meets his curious gaze with one of her own. Neither of them immediately speak, as Ran focuses first and foremost on the three pokéballs on her belt, before properly taking in the rest of her. She's got black hair falling to the back of her neck, whilst in the front her bangs fall to just between her eyes. She wears a gold-and-pink training jacket - the colors a dead giveaway for something that hails from Goldenrod City - over a black tank top. For the lower part of her body, the ensemble is completed by black sport leggings and gold-and-pink sneakers.
She's about his own age, potentially even an unsponsored rookie like himself. Notably, however, her hands are taped and there's a taut muscularity to her frame that hints at a physical strength cultivated over time. As for the eyes that meet his own, stony and hard-to-read as they are at first glance, are an odd brownish gray that, through the soft light that penetrates the room's paper walls, seems almost a mixture of silver and bronze.
Their mutual staring match comes to an end when the girl blinks, rising from her seat and approaching with an outstretched hand. Ran has to suppress his instinctive desire to reject the approach, before he manages to meet her hand with his own, as they shake hands whilst she introduces herself.
"I'm Doro." She greets him, her handshake firm almost to the point of being painful.
"Ran," He replies in turn, as they release each other and he takes a few steps to the other side of the table, eyeing a chair of his own, "I guess you're also here to apply for the study?"
"I do not know yet," She answers calmly, her surprisingly deep voice carrying an odd accent he doesn't manage to place, "It will depend on what exactly they want, and what they are willing to offer in return."
Ran nods along agreeably whilst Doro also returns to her previous seat, the two of them facing each other from across the table when he agrees with her, "Same here. It sounds interesting enough and there's definitely more than a few ways for the Gym to make anything worth my while, but they've been frustratingly vague so far."
"Agreed." Doro accepts severely, before falling silent.
Ran is content to leave it at that and wait quietly for whoever else might be joining them, or for one of the Gym's employees to come and explain just what their offer is, but Doro appears to feel differently, as she speaks up once more.
"I am unsponsored and I am on my first circuit. I have won the Plain Badge from Goldenrod City, the Fog Badge from Ecruteak City and the Mineral Badge from Olivine City." She announces proudly, not asking anything of Ran in turn, though the look in her eyes makes it clear that she does so out of politeness, rather than a lack of interest.
Figuring that fair is fair, he replies in kind, "I'm an unsponsored rookie too. I've won the Zephyr Badge from Violet, the Hive Badge from Azalea and the Plain Badge from Goldenrod."
"Hive Badge?" Doro asks, her head tilting slightly to the side in evident confusion, "What has happened to the Whirlpool Badge?"
"Walter retired. Azalea Town's new Gym Leader, Bugsy, is a bug-type specialist." Ran clarifies easily, though he is careful to say no more than he has to, not particularly wanting to get into his own history with Bugsy.
"I see." Doro accepts, pausing yet again. Though she seems inclined to continue the conversation once more after a moment's thought, she is prevented from doing so, as the door to the meeting room, previously having been closed by Ran when he himself entered the room, opens once more.
The man that enters is barefoot, has a belly that obscures muscle rather than fat and is the owner of the most peculiar facial hair - with a bare chin sitting under a massive mustache that connects directly to his mutton chops - that Ran has ever seen. Crucially, he is also extremely recognizable, as both Doro and Ran jolt in their seats as they are surprised by the presence of Gym Leader Chuck, rather than a member of his staff.
"Don't get up, don't get up." Chuck offers good-naturedly as he turns for a moment to close the door once more.
Ran obliges, sagging back into his seat, but Doro is clearly of a different mind, as she stands up fully and waits in place as Chuck turns to face them once more. The Gym Leader clearly notices her changed positioning, but doesn't speak on it, instead moving to sit at the head of the table. Only once he's done so, does Doro also sit down again.
"Alright, let me get right to it," Chuck starts immediately, seemingly intending to get right to the crux of the matter, "You've both been asked here because your profiles are well-suited to answer a curiosity of mine."
Chuck pulls out a small remote from underneath the table before pointing it at the distant wall, where a white screen swiftly rolls down from the ceiling before an image appears upon it. It takes a moment for the picture to become sharp enough to see properly, at which point they're all left looking at what is clearly a pokémon, and one Ran rather recently saw his first picture of.
"That's a Croagunk," Chuck offers dryly, as he gestures at the dark blue bipedal pokémon on the screen, "A poison-fighting-type from Sinnoh."
Attention now fully captured, Ran can only listen quietly, oblivious to whatever reaction Doro is having, as he can only gape disbelievingly at the odds of what he believes is about to happen, happening to him again.
"I recently came into possession of a pair of them. It'll be my first time working with the species, but I'm not inclined to train up two at the same time. I want a single one to focus on fully, to really examine just what it's potential is. So that leaves me with one to spare. At which point I figured it might make a fine prize to support one of Johto's many fine young up-and-comers." Chuck explains, Ran hanging on his every word as the conversation continues to go down a path that feels like it can only have one conclusion.
"However, none of my sponsored trainers are in the area at the moment and I don't want to favor one of them over the others anyways. So, I told my receptionist to be on the lookout for a potential fighting- or poison-type specialist. I figured, either we could learn something interesting about the impact of different fighting-type specialists' training methods on the same species, or we could learn something interesting about the impact of a species with a dual-typing being trained by two different mono-type specialists." Chuck continues, his tale so far seemingly more intended as an explanation of his thought process, than an actual clarification on what he wants from Ran and Doro.
That changes when his gaze sharpens as he turns from looking at the screen, to examining each of them in turn as he questions them, "The two of you happened to show up on the same day, with one of you seemingly specializing in poison-types and the other apparently doing the same with fighting-types. So, first things first, are you both planning to fully specialize in those typings?"
"I am." Ran acknowledges confidently, not shying away from the Gym Leader's demanding stare.
"Yes." Doro replies mono-syllabically, attention still fixated on the image of the projected Croagunk.
"Alright. In that case, I have an exotic pokémon available that'd make a fine addition to either of your teams. I'd expect a short, weekly report on its progress, half an hour's work worth at most, as well as a battle between the Croagunk that leaves with you and the one that stays with me after this year's Silver Conference Finals. Other than that, the Croagunk is free of charge and will be considered yours in its entirety. So, are either of you interested?" Chuck finally offers, gaze panning from Ran to Doro and back.
It's a tough question, as on the one hand a poison-fighting-type would be a great addition to his team, serving as a great counter to the troublesome steel-typing. On the other hand, he's only got two slots remaining and those are earmarked for a member of the Nidoran-line and a member of the Bulbasaur-line respectively. Adding an unexpected additional steel-type counter throws the careful balance he'd planned out completely out of whack. Of course Skorupi eventually gaining the dark-typing has done a lot to resolve his team's crippling weakness to psychic-types already, rendering the acquisition of a Gengar unnecessary, but adding a poison-fighting-type?
The intended Nidoking he'd planned on eventually adding to his team, an addition initially postponed by the thought of Skorupi potentially gaining the ground-typing upon evolution and then by a desire to move on from Goldenrod in favor of Cianwood, was supposed to be his steel-type counter. If he instead adds a Croagunk, does that make Nidoking surplus to requirements? Its great bulk and immense movepool would both be sorely missed only to be replaced by, ultimately, a pokémon he knew very little about.
He could also forget about the Venusaur he was still dreaming of for his sixth team slot, trusting in Aria and Golbat to do the heavy lifting as far as countering ground-types goes… Neither of them actually has much in the way of super-effective attacks for those match-ups though.
The desire to properly analyze the situation keeps him mute and oblivious to his surroundings for long seconds, which is why he doesn't know how Doro initially responded to Chuck's offer. When she stands once more and speaks up clearly, however, Ran is drawn out of his thoughts rather harshly.
"I am interested." She declares confidently, arms crossing in front of her chest as she looks not at Chuck, but instead opts to stare Ran down.
He can feel his metaphorical hackles rise at the evident challenge, but he just barely manages to restrain his instinctive need to match her. Instead, he hurriedly tries to reduce the question to its absolute essence.
Is he interested in adding an exotic poison-fighting-type to his team? And, if he isn't, can he really accept backing down now that Doro's thrown down the gauntlet?
His chair scrapes audibly across the floor as he stands up and meets Doro's flinty stare with a venomous one of his own, "So am I."
Author's Note: One thing to clarify here, for those shuddering at the 'bitter' stuff from the Pharmacy, no worries on that front, I've changed that to the Pharmacy not being too well-known / busy for other reasons. As for the rest of the chapter, as called by some, there's a Croagunk to potentially be won and Ran, whether out of actual enthusiasm or an unwillingness to be 'bested', is going to compete for it. I'm curious to read what you're all expecting to happen and what you expect the outcome to be. Any guesses as to Chuck's precise motivations would also be fun to read about. I hope you enjoyed the update!
If you want to read ahead or feel like supporting my writing, please go and have a look at my Patreon or Ko-fi . Patreon for member benefits like 2 weeks of Early Access whereas Ko-fi is for one-off donations that go towards artwork. It's no exaggeration to say that this story and it's current upload schedule are only possible thanks to Patreon, so if you have anything to spare and want this story to continue, please go and have a look, every little bit helps.
Not quite in hard cash sadly, but the various medicines and supplements now sitting in his backpack would've been ruinous to purchase normally. In that light, enough supplements to enrich his complete current team's food for the next three months, plus a doubling of his normal healing items like Potions and Paralyze Heals, makes for an extremely productive afternoon. Additionally, Edith, which he'd learned was the old lady's name, had mentioned an interest in cutting a similar deal further in the future, if he ever felt like swinging by Cianwood City again.
He didn't really have any hard plans to that end, but if his team showed a clear preference or growth from the Pharmacy's products, then he'd have to consider that carefully. If the Pharmacy's wares proved largely useless, then all he'd have lost was a few hours of training for Skorupi, at most. However, the benefits of stuff like X Attack and Calcium had been researched and proven, so he was quite hopeful that the Pharmacy's wares might also prove worthwhile.
For now, he wanted to get started on the day's training, but before he could, his pokégear finally buzzed with an incoming message. Immediately, the good mood he'd left the Pharmacy with evaporates, as anxiety rears its head once more.
Not wasting any more time, he looks to see just what Cianwood City's Gym is contacting him for.
Cianwood City Gym: Cianwood City Gym is looking for suitable profiles for a comparative pokémon development study. Applicants will have to prove their ability as trainers. Payment to be discussed. Please let us know if you are interested in applying.
A pokémon development study?
That doesn't sound like it has anything to do with letting the local fighting-types practice against his own poison-types. In fact, it sounds vague enough for him to have no clue whatsoever as to just what it's going to be about. However, considering he's going to be spending the next two weeks in Cianwood City anyways, he can't deny that his interest's been piqued.
Ran: I'm interested in applying.
Message sent, Ran moves to close the messaging window and carry on with his day, however, before he can, a notification shows up indicating that a reply is already being written. Surprised by the speed of the Gym's reaction, he waits patiently for the next message to come in.
Cianwood City Gym: Excellent! Are you available for a briefing in thirty minutes?
Ran: I am. I'll be there.
Cianwood City Gym: Splendid! Please present yourself at the reception desk, we'll be expecting you.
He closes the message with a sigh, a glance at the hour showing that it's five in the evening already. Any plans of training before dinner will have to be shelved for now, but at least he'll get to find out what Cianwood's Gym wants from him. Perhaps he'll even get some insight into whether Bugsy is pulling any of the strings behind the scenes, though that might be presuming a bit too much.
Opting not to waste any time, he turns to head directly to the Gym, arriving there after about twenty minutes. The receptionist, her workday clearly coming to an end from the three glances she shoots at the clock over the two minutes Ran spends around her, swiftly directs him up the nearest stairs and to the second door on the left.
Politely following her instructions, Ran slides open the wood-and-paper door to walk into a small meeting room, a large oval table taking up most of the room's floor space. That isn't what draws his attention however, as rather than any of the room's interior features, like the apparently constant use of wood lattices and paper sliding walls, he focuses his attention on the room's lone other occupant.
A dark-skinned young woman meets his curious gaze with one of her own. Neither of them immediately speak, as Ran focuses first and foremost on the three pokéballs on her belt, before properly taking in the rest of her. She's got black hair falling to the back of her neck, whilst in the front her bangs fall to just between her eyes. She wears a gold-and-pink training jacket - the colors a dead giveaway for something that hails from Goldenrod City - over a black tank top. For the lower part of her body, the ensemble is completed by black sport leggings and gold-and-pink sneakers.
She's about his own age, potentially even an unsponsored rookie like himself. Notably, however, her hands are taped and there's a taut muscularity to her frame that hints at a physical strength cultivated over time. As for the eyes that meet his own, stony and hard-to-read as they are at first glance, are an odd brownish gray that, through the soft light that penetrates the room's paper walls, seems almost a mixture of silver and bronze.
Their mutual staring match comes to an end when the girl blinks, rising from her seat and approaching with an outstretched hand. Ran has to suppress his instinctive desire to reject the approach, before he manages to meet her hand with his own, as they shake hands whilst she introduces herself.
"I'm Doro." She greets him, her handshake firm almost to the point of being painful.
"Ran," He replies in turn, as they release each other and he takes a few steps to the other side of the table, eyeing a chair of his own, "I guess you're also here to apply for the study?"
"I do not know yet," She answers calmly, her surprisingly deep voice carrying an odd accent he doesn't manage to place, "It will depend on what exactly they want, and what they are willing to offer in return."
Ran nods along agreeably whilst Doro also returns to her previous seat, the two of them facing each other from across the table when he agrees with her, "Same here. It sounds interesting enough and there's definitely more than a few ways for the Gym to make anything worth my while, but they've been frustratingly vague so far."
"Agreed." Doro accepts severely, before falling silent.
Ran is content to leave it at that and wait quietly for whoever else might be joining them, or for one of the Gym's employees to come and explain just what their offer is, but Doro appears to feel differently, as she speaks up once more.
"I am unsponsored and I am on my first circuit. I have won the Plain Badge from Goldenrod City, the Fog Badge from Ecruteak City and the Mineral Badge from Olivine City." She announces proudly, not asking anything of Ran in turn, though the look in her eyes makes it clear that she does so out of politeness, rather than a lack of interest.
Figuring that fair is fair, he replies in kind, "I'm an unsponsored rookie too. I've won the Zephyr Badge from Violet, the Hive Badge from Azalea and the Plain Badge from Goldenrod."
"Hive Badge?" Doro asks, her head tilting slightly to the side in evident confusion, "What has happened to the Whirlpool Badge?"
"Walter retired. Azalea Town's new Gym Leader, Bugsy, is a bug-type specialist." Ran clarifies easily, though he is careful to say no more than he has to, not particularly wanting to get into his own history with Bugsy.
"I see." Doro accepts, pausing yet again. Though she seems inclined to continue the conversation once more after a moment's thought, she is prevented from doing so, as the door to the meeting room, previously having been closed by Ran when he himself entered the room, opens once more.
The man that enters is barefoot, has a belly that obscures muscle rather than fat and is the owner of the most peculiar facial hair - with a bare chin sitting under a massive mustache that connects directly to his mutton chops - that Ran has ever seen. Crucially, he is also extremely recognizable, as both Doro and Ran jolt in their seats as they are surprised by the presence of Gym Leader Chuck, rather than a member of his staff.
"Don't get up, don't get up." Chuck offers good-naturedly as he turns for a moment to close the door once more.
Ran obliges, sagging back into his seat, but Doro is clearly of a different mind, as she stands up fully and waits in place as Chuck turns to face them once more. The Gym Leader clearly notices her changed positioning, but doesn't speak on it, instead moving to sit at the head of the table. Only once he's done so, does Doro also sit down again.
"Alright, let me get right to it," Chuck starts immediately, seemingly intending to get right to the crux of the matter, "You've both been asked here because your profiles are well-suited to answer a curiosity of mine."
Chuck pulls out a small remote from underneath the table before pointing it at the distant wall, where a white screen swiftly rolls down from the ceiling before an image appears upon it. It takes a moment for the picture to become sharp enough to see properly, at which point they're all left looking at what is clearly a pokémon, and one Ran rather recently saw his first picture of.
"That's a Croagunk," Chuck offers dryly, as he gestures at the dark blue bipedal pokémon on the screen, "A poison-fighting-type from Sinnoh."
Attention now fully captured, Ran can only listen quietly, oblivious to whatever reaction Doro is having, as he can only gape disbelievingly at the odds of what he believes is about to happen, happening to him again.
"I recently came into possession of a pair of them. It'll be my first time working with the species, but I'm not inclined to train up two at the same time. I want a single one to focus on fully, to really examine just what it's potential is. So that leaves me with one to spare. At which point I figured it might make a fine prize to support one of Johto's many fine young up-and-comers." Chuck explains, Ran hanging on his every word as the conversation continues to go down a path that feels like it can only have one conclusion.
"However, none of my sponsored trainers are in the area at the moment and I don't want to favor one of them over the others anyways. So, I told my receptionist to be on the lookout for a potential fighting- or poison-type specialist. I figured, either we could learn something interesting about the impact of different fighting-type specialists' training methods on the same species, or we could learn something interesting about the impact of a species with a dual-typing being trained by two different mono-type specialists." Chuck continues, his tale so far seemingly more intended as an explanation of his thought process, than an actual clarification on what he wants from Ran and Doro.
That changes when his gaze sharpens as he turns from looking at the screen, to examining each of them in turn as he questions them, "The two of you happened to show up on the same day, with one of you seemingly specializing in poison-types and the other apparently doing the same with fighting-types. So, first things first, are you both planning to fully specialize in those typings?"
"I am." Ran acknowledges confidently, not shying away from the Gym Leader's demanding stare.
"Yes." Doro replies mono-syllabically, attention still fixated on the image of the projected Croagunk.
"Alright. In that case, I have an exotic pokémon available that'd make a fine addition to either of your teams. I'd expect a short, weekly report on its progress, half an hour's work worth at most, as well as a battle between the Croagunk that leaves with you and the one that stays with me after this year's Silver Conference Finals. Other than that, the Croagunk is free of charge and will be considered yours in its entirety. So, are either of you interested?" Chuck finally offers, gaze panning from Ran to Doro and back.
It's a tough question, as on the one hand a poison-fighting-type would be a great addition to his team, serving as a great counter to the troublesome steel-typing. On the other hand, he's only got two slots remaining and those are earmarked for a member of the Nidoran-line and a member of the Bulbasaur-line respectively. Adding an unexpected additional steel-type counter throws the careful balance he'd planned out completely out of whack. Of course Skorupi eventually gaining the dark-typing has done a lot to resolve his team's crippling weakness to psychic-types already, rendering the acquisition of a Gengar unnecessary, but adding a poison-fighting-type?
The intended Nidoking he'd planned on eventually adding to his team, an addition initially postponed by the thought of Skorupi potentially gaining the ground-typing upon evolution and then by a desire to move on from Goldenrod in favor of Cianwood, was supposed to be his steel-type counter. If he instead adds a Croagunk, does that make Nidoking surplus to requirements? Its great bulk and immense movepool would both be sorely missed only to be replaced by, ultimately, a pokémon he knew very little about.
He could also forget about the Venusaur he was still dreaming of for his sixth team slot, trusting in Aria and Golbat to do the heavy lifting as far as countering ground-types goes… Neither of them actually has much in the way of super-effective attacks for those match-ups though.
The desire to properly analyze the situation keeps him mute and oblivious to his surroundings for long seconds, which is why he doesn't know how Doro initially responded to Chuck's offer. When she stands once more and speaks up clearly, however, Ran is drawn out of his thoughts rather harshly.
"I am interested." She declares confidently, arms crossing in front of her chest as she looks not at Chuck, but instead opts to stare Ran down.
He can feel his metaphorical hackles rise at the evident challenge, but he just barely manages to restrain his instinctive need to match her. Instead, he hurriedly tries to reduce the question to its absolute essence.
Is he interested in adding an exotic poison-fighting-type to his team? And, if he isn't, can he really accept backing down now that Doro's thrown down the gauntlet?
His chair scrapes audibly across the floor as he stands up and meets Doro's flinty stare with a venomous one of his own, "So am I."
Author's Note: One thing to clarify here, for those shuddering at the 'bitter' stuff from the Pharmacy, no worries on that front, I've changed that to the Pharmacy not being too well-known / busy for other reasons. As for the rest of the chapter, as called by some, there's a Croagunk to potentially be won and Ran, whether out of actual enthusiasm or an unwillingness to be 'bested', is going to compete for it. I'm curious to read what you're all expecting to happen and what you expect the outcome to be. Any guesses as to Chuck's precise motivations would also be fun to read about. I hope you enjoyed the update!
If you want to read ahead or feel like supporting my writing, please go and have a look at my Patreon or Ko-fi . Patreon for member benefits like 2 weeks of Early Access whereas Ko-fi is for one-off donations that go towards artwork. It's no exaggeration to say that this story and it's current upload schedule are only possible thanks to Patreon, so if you have anything to spare and want this story to continue, please go and have a look, every little bit helps.
TimEd
Meteor maker
As a study comparison, Ran clearly has the advantage. Then again, Ran's team so far is built up of mostly fragile Pokemon so aside from hoping for an evolution to Drapion, it seems as if Ceasar the Arbok is gonna have to take up the main tank role. That makes his team quite focused on the offense and in danger of wiping badly from a sweeper.
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- Location
- Around here
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Is it strange to say that I don't really expect to see Ran win this Croagunk? He just added a new member to his team gifted by a Gym Leader, so it seems a tad early for him to expand his team a second time in a similar manner.
(Not to say that I'm not fond of Croagunk- I like them a lot! But it doesn't seem fitting to me at this point in time.)
That said, Croagunk does force him to stretch his battling style in a novel way- being a Fighting type is a pretty different set of assumptions from his existing team's status focus- which might be a sign that he gets Croagunk, but doesn't keep them?
If I were expecting another 'unplanned' Pokemon, I might expect it to be his sixth one, forcing him to reckon with how to adapt his 'finalized' team to cover for its holes while leveraging its strengths- or even shift his team around, trading one Pokemon out (Aria, coming full circle with Bugsy?) to make room for a seventh.
(There's a big question about his Bulbasaur dreams, too- how can he get one? The nido's can be found in the wild, but Bulbasaur are only received from Oak. I'd need to dig back through the thread to identify if he had a plan.)
(Unrelatedly, I picked up a Koffing in a Nuzlocke I've been on and he's become a real trooper. Poison types are great.)
(Not to say that I'm not fond of Croagunk- I like them a lot! But it doesn't seem fitting to me at this point in time.)
That said, Croagunk does force him to stretch his battling style in a novel way- being a Fighting type is a pretty different set of assumptions from his existing team's status focus- which might be a sign that he gets Croagunk, but doesn't keep them?
If I were expecting another 'unplanned' Pokemon, I might expect it to be his sixth one, forcing him to reckon with how to adapt his 'finalized' team to cover for its holes while leveraging its strengths- or even shift his team around, trading one Pokemon out (Aria, coming full circle with Bugsy?) to make room for a seventh.
(There's a big question about his Bulbasaur dreams, too- how can he get one? The nido's can be found in the wild, but Bulbasaur are only received from Oak. I'd need to dig back through the thread to identify if he had a plan.)
(Unrelatedly, I picked up a Koffing in a Nuzlocke I've been on and he's become a real trooper. Poison types are great.)
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- Pronouns
- He/Him
Honestly, I think adding Croagunk would be a mistake on Ran's part. Nidoking is a more versatile pokemon, with better bulk than can be expected from most poison types. As it is, Croagunk doesn't really provide anything that Ran needs, while also locking down a team member slot.
Against steel types, Nidoking would be more effective, because of its access to more potent special attacking ground and fire type moves, which gets around the incredible defense stat of many steel types. Comparatively, even though Croagunk's fighting type moves are also super effective, they will still be less effective because they have to get through the physical defence that steel types specialize in. Outside of steel types, Nidoking's better move pool and stat alignment make it superior to Croagunk as a generalist answer to many pokemon.
Against steel types, Nidoking would be more effective, because of its access to more potent special attacking ground and fire type moves, which gets around the incredible defense stat of many steel types. Comparatively, even though Croagunk's fighting type moves are also super effective, they will still be less effective because they have to get through the physical defence that steel types specialize in. Outside of steel types, Nidoking's better move pool and stat alignment make it superior to Croagunk as a generalist answer to many pokemon.
- Location
- Omniverse #1345
There's also the fact that an unsponsored trainer getting two pokemon from two different gym leaders is… weird. Really weird. As in attention getting weird.
In Ran's position I would have declined when Doro said yes because it's fine if it's being offered just to me, but making it a competition changes the calculus a bit.
In Ran's position I would have declined when Doro said yes because it's fine if it's being offered just to me, but making it a competition changes the calculus a bit.
Chapter 21, part 1
- Location
- Belgium
The next day, ridiculously early in the morning, hours before the Gym even opens, Ran looks down from the tall steep cliff Chuck has taken them to with a faint sense of unease. Cianwood City is by no means a small town, yet from the height they're at, it suddenly seems quite insignificant, only further increasing Ran's awareness that they're very, very high up. Not that he's discovering a fear of heights he wasn't previously aware of, there's just something… humbling about being so high up. It makes everything seem so much smaller.
With the sun little more than a suggestion at this hour, artificial lighting and moonlight are the means by which the city is visible down below, whilst their own path up the cliffs was lit by flashlights. As he fully realizes just how high up they are, Ran can only warily wonder just what challenge Chuck has in mind for them.
Because when neither Doro nor Ran himself had backed down, Chuck had declared that he'd test them, to see which one of them was worthier of training a Croagunk. Something Ran had initially been more than happy to hear, as he figured any battle between Doro and himself would favor him in a big way, considering their relative type-specialties. But then Chuck had rather summarily dashed those hopes by declaring that he wasn't interested in watching them battle.
Instead, he sent them away for the day, with instructions to report back at the Gym at an absolutely unreasonable hour. Ran had balked slightly at that, but when Doro hadn't even blinked, he'd been left with no option but to accept as well.
Upon reporting to the Gym, Chuck had taken them on a demanding hike up the cliff sides, until eventually, after almost two hours of walking, pausing on the crest they were currently standing on. It leaves them standing on one of the highest ridges of the first of a series of mountainous spines that ring Cianwood City. There's a great variety between the different spines as well, as even at a glance deeper into the mountainous landscape, Ran spots signs of different plateaus, peaks and valleys.
He hadn't explained what exactly the challenge would be yet, but considering the long hike and the rather demanding pace Chuck set during it, Ran was growing increasingly worried that the advantage might not rest with him after all.
A slight distance behind him, Doro is stretching enthusiastically, her training jacket already tied around her hips. Compared to himself, his thick purple jacket still snug on his shoulders and his breath only just now leveling out after a few minutes' rest, it's a rather intimidating sight.
Chuck takes things to another level entirely of course, the man apparently not just going shirtless in his Gym, but constantly. It's as Ran looks in the Gym leader's direction, that the man responsible for the safety of Cianwood City and its surroundings finally breaks the silence that has been hanging over their group for the past two hours.
"Alright! That'll do for a warmup, time to give you the challenge!" He proclaims enthusiastically.
"Any second now, you'll be getting three locations close to the main hiking path sent to you through your pokégear. At each of these locations, there's a pair of flags present. Whichever one of you first gets me a flag from each of the three locations, wins the right to choose one of my Croagunk!" Chuck declares boldly, Ran's pokégear vibrating accordingly as he receives the locations.
"A few rules before you both get started and set out," Chuck continues, one finger raising in warning just as Doro tries to burst into motion and Ran starts to raise his pokégear, leaving both trainers to falter as they focus back on the Gym leader, "You can't do anything to the flags your opponent is supposed to be gathering, you can't mess with the main hiking path the flags are placed along and you can't directly attack each other. Otherwise, I'd have just let you two battle it out from the start, but that's not what I'm looking for here."
Ran and Doro both nod in agreement, though Ran can't help but wonder if those are really the only restrictions Chuck will be imposing. Because although the racing aspect of things will at the least ensure that there is a challenge, it feels somewhat underwhelming thus far, not to mention that as long as they stick to the hiking path, all that will be tested is their speed and endurance.
"Finally, there is no set order in which you need to gather the flags, nor do you have to stick to the main path, as far as I'm concerned. You're young and healthy and you've got pokémon besides, so use 'em! I'll be waiting for you both in my Gym. Oh, one final thing, I have a few Gym trainers out here on training sessions of their own, they're under orders to make things difficult for you. Good luck!" Chuck declares, before jogging towards the cliff's edge Ran is standing near and casually starting to scale down it.
Both Doro and Ran watch in disbelief as the man casually risks his life without a harness of any kind and whilst descending along a worryingly smooth surface. Chuck doesn't pay either of them any mind whatsoever however, merely whistling merrily as he descends at an impressive speed.
Ran glances towards Doro, the two of them both clearly caught equally off guard by Chuck's sudden departure. Then his expression hardens, as he hurriedly breaks eye contact and looks at his pokégear to determine where he needs to go to find the flags. In front of him, he hears the pounding of feet as Doro breaks into a run down the path immediately.
Which he can only assume means that she's just going to race along the main hiking path as fast as she can and assume that the flags are positioned visibly enough to be easily noticed. It's a valid plan and one she undoubtedly has the advantage in, as there's no doubt in his mind that she's got him beat in both stamina and speed. Still, it seems highly doubtful that just following the main hiking path, which by virtue of needing to be walkable is likely needlessly circuitous, is the only way to go about this particular flag hunt.
Even a quick glance at the map feature on his pokégear is enough to confirm as much, as the main hiking path winds back and forth amongst the cliffs as it descends to the valley separating the spine they're currently on, before ascending up the next one, only for the path to end up easily four times as long as the remarkably straight line that forms when he simply connects the three dots on the map as the bird flies.
As Ran examines things in more detail however, it also becomes apparent just why that's how the path runs. It's the only point where the slope isn't too steep to be feasible as a walking path. If someone wanted to make the straightest path possible through the mountain from the first flag to the second to the third, that would involve either extreme amounts of climbing and descending, or the use of explosives or drills to burrow through the rockface where it ascends far too steeply to be traversable.
Still, Ran at least wants to have a look at the shortest possible path, only for even a cursory glance in that direction to leave him looking directly at the steep ravine that runs between the mountainous spine he's on and the next one. Even worse, on the other side of the ravine there's only a slim ledge before the rock wall rises up at least another twenty feet. So simply traveling in the straightest imaginable line isn't humanly possible.
But that's the point. He isn't forced to rely only on what's humanly possible.
A single tap to the center of the Level Ball on his belt is enough for Aria to gain her freedom, as she materializes next to him. In the distance, Doro has long since turned the first corner, ensuring she doesn't see just what Ran has planned, rather than trying to race along the main path like his opponent.
"Aria," He asks, gesturing towards the chasm and the rockface rising behind it, "Can you make a rope across the gap?"
She chitters enthusiastically in response, mandibles moving apart slightly in clear preparation. Before she can act however, Ran hurriedly asks another question.
"Can you crawl up that cliff wall once you're on the other side?" He asks next, earning a moment's pause from his bug-poison-type, before she chitters in agreement once more. This time however, she doesn't move to act, instead turning those large purple eyes of hers towards him as she clearly waits to see if he's about to ask any other questions.
"Can you do so with me on your back?" He asks next, watching with mild amusement as Aria's pupils widen in surprise as she processes the question.
This time, she doesn't offer an immediate response, instead skittering over towards the edge and examining just how much of a distance there is to cover. Rather than pay her trainer any mind, Aria spits out a first massive strand of concentrated webbing, which plasters itself against the rock face on the other side of the chasm, a few feet above the ledge they're aiming for.
Ran watches quietly and whilst doing his best to seem patient, even as he warily tries to figure out just how much distance Doro is covering whilst he's still at the starting point. He's still got other options, ranging from Aria simply providing him with ropes he can use to scale down ledges, to grabbing on to Golbat's feet and finding out just how long the massive Bat Pokémon can carry so much dead weight. Not to mention the option of having Aria stick him to Caesar's back and letting his massive serpentine body go to work.
But the day promises to be a tiring one, so the more options he has and the better he can divide the load, the better. Which is why it's a good thing that Aria chooses that moment to fire off a second strand of webbing, parallel to her first one. She tests both strands for tension for a moment, hopping on to her makeshift bridge, before turning her head in his direction inquiringly.
He doesn't need any further prodding, as Ran hurriedly jogs over and delicately looks for a position on Aria's back. The position he settles on is uncomfortable and cramped, as he hooks his arms under the foremost of her limbs whilst forcing his legs to fold around the front of the vestigial limbs on her back. Considering the size disparity between them, it leaves him folded up uncomfortably, his knees and elbows only slightly over a foot apart.
Still, he sits securely, only momentarily feeling an immense urge to call the whole thing off when Aria first bursts into motion.
Her moves aren't tentative or hesitant in the least, as she opts for speed over caution, racing across the large chasm in mere seconds. Ran for his part instinctively squeezes down tightly on the joints he's wrapped himself around, only for a chiding hiss from Aria to have him ease up apologetically.
She pays him no further mind however, as even as Ran is still processing just how far there is to fall if things go wrong on their makeshift bridge, Aria's attention is already firmly on the second part of their challenge. Without hesitation, she moves directly from their makeshift bridge to the stone cliff, confidently starting to climb in spite of the dead weight hanging off of her back.
Ran does his best to make things easier for her, trying to keep his own center of mass as low and as close to the middle of Aria's body as he can. There's still a few moments where, due to the cliff bulging or receding oddly, it feels like they're unbalanced and there's a risk of them plummeting backwards, but Aria's attached tightly to the stone and Ran in turn clings closely to her. In the end, from the moment he took his seat to the moment Aria crests the top, only about thirty seconds pass.
Going by the racing of his heart, it might as well have been five minutes.
Still, he releases Aria hurriedly and stands up to take in the sight in front of them. A long plateau, before the ground drops away once more, the rest of the cliffs hidden out of sight below. Grinning confidently, Ran jogs forwards, Aria keeping pace by his side as he catches her up on just what they're doing. As he does so, he isn't blind to the clear signs of exertion his companion shows, making it clear that though she can serve as a temporary mount, it asks a lot of her.
When they reach the other side of the plateau, Ran looks down to take in their surroundings, the cliffside they've ascended up proving to conveniently be one of the tallest in the entire range.
There's more of what they've already faced, with deep valleys and steep walls alternating for at least a mile as the mountainous spines continue to run nearly parallel to each other, only to intersect randomly in places. Then, however, there's an entrance into the mountainside, as the path turns into a tunnel. A quick glance at his map shows that he can't circumvent entering the tunnel either, as one of the flags appears to be somewhere in there.
Which is unfortunate, but there's still a lot of distance to cover before reaching that point. A distance that includes the first pair of flags, which he spots hanging off the side of the valley that separates the third and fourth 'spine', counted from where he's standing. There, the flags hang easily ten feet beneath the ledge along which the hiking path runs. The path winds upwards towards that point however, with a series of large bends ensuring that anybody running along the path will easily spot the flags long before reaching them.
As for Doro, she's not rounded the massive cliff which Ran scaled yet, confirming that he's got a nice lead for now. That's no reason to rest on his laurels however, as he does still have a lot of distance to cover and there's little doubt in his mind that Doro will win an endurance race against him, if he doesn't keep looking for shortcuts.
Which is why, as he looks out over the path ahead, he can't help but get stuck on the simple fact that the flags he needs to reach are at a lower elevation than his current position. So to his mind, there's an obvious opportunity that at the very least has to be tried out right now.
"I'm going to try something, Aria. Thanks for the help, but you can take a break, alright?" He tells the Long Leg Pokémon by his side, waiting for her assenting chirp before he taps both the Level Ball and Friend Ball at his belt.
Aria dissolves in red energy even as Golbat appears on his other side. Rather than spend time on explaining what they're doing, which he knows Aria likely appreciated, with Golbat, Ran just gets straight to the point.
"Do you think you can carry me to that ledge above those flags over there?" He asks immediately, gesturing towards the point he's aiming for. Assuming Golbat gets him that far, he'll skip five 'loops' of the path, putting him an enormous distance ahead of the still unseen Doro. Though that part of the path is only some twenty feet below his own current position, so it will only work if Golbat manages to slow their descent significantly.
Golbat's gaze sharpens for a moment, before he spreads his wings and takes off, flying up to hang just above Ran's head, offering his feet in a clear unspoken signal. Considering the even more daunting fall involved should this not work out, Ran is somewhat hesitant to grab on. When he does so, he doesn't do so without giving out a warning.
"Just try and lift me up first for a few seconds, alright? Just to make sure you can-"
And then Golbat has lifted him up and is flying forwards doggedly. Which goes smoothly for about five seconds, at which point the weight clearly starts to become a major issue, as they rapidly start losing height.
"Aim for the nearest ledge!" Ran cries out frantically even as they descend at a worrying speed, but Golbat ignores him, merely redoubling his efforts as his wings beat frantically whilst they cross over the first two chasms.
Distantly, he's aware of an awed shout, but Ran can pay no mind to who exactly is shouting, his attention fully on the distant goal Golbat's clearly aiming for. At first, they seem doomed, descending far faster than they're advancing even as the path itself rises up to meet them with each consecutive loop.
Then, however, their descent slows down, Golbat no longer laboring silently but letting out frustrated shrieks as he puts his all into a heroic effort to keep them airborne. Incredibly enough, he's successful too, as when they still have some thirty feet to cover before reaching the ledge with the flags, Ran's feet dip below the ledge's level for just a moment. It's as if Golbat has a third person view of things, as from that moment on, they don't drop another inch, the Bat Pokémon simply refusing to give in to the laws of gravity.
As they reach the ledge, Ran has to lift his feet just slightly to make sure he doesn't clip the hard stone edge, before he's landing on solid ground. Immediately, he lets go of Golbat, who almost shoots directly upwards as he continues to put the same amount of force into his wingbeats for a few more seconds. He reigns himself in easily enough however, at which point Ran doesn't even need to give a command for Golbat to fly down over the path's edge, flying back up a few seconds later with a flag in his large mouth.
"Perfect!" Ran cheers happily, accepting his prize from Golbat, before recalling him with a quick thank you.
A hurried look back at the large part of the path they just skipped over shows Doro's jogging form only just having become visible. She's all the way back at the foot of the cliff Aria had carried him up, as she's only just finished rounding it. She was likely responsible for the awed shout, then. Even as she seems to meet his gaze across the significant distance between them, Doro keeps up a jog that is significantly faster than any pace Ran can keep up for more than a few minutes.
And that's without mentioning the figure that's loping along easily by her side. He can't tell whether she used the Hitmonlee that's jogging alongside her against Chuck's Gym trainers, whether she encountered some obstacle or another or whether she just felt like giving the fighting-type a work-out. Her reasoning doesn't really matter, in the grand scheme of things. What matters is that she has a Hitmonlee, which is useful information he duly files away.
Even as Ran watches, Doro clearly picks up her pace further from what appears to have been a, for her, comfortable jog, now loping up the path at a speed only just shy of a full sprint. The way her eyes are locked on him leaves zero doubt about the fact that she's dead set on catching back up to him.
Ran suppresses the worried gulp he wants to let out at the sight of an angry fighting-type specialist chasing after him, instead turning around and looking towards the remaining path. There's no chasm in front of him, the ledge simply running up to the next cliffside, at which point it raises up perhaps some twenty feet. If there were enough handholds, he'd feel comfortable about trying to climb it himself rather than taking the long way around by running along the slowly ascending path.
Fortunately, when encountering a lack of handholds, he has a convenient solution available. Soon enough, he's once more on Aria's back, as she lifts him up another cliffside. He badly wants to look back to see Doro's reaction to his particular method for climbing the steep cliffs, but even if he's willing to rely on Aria as they ascend, he still isn't comfortable enough to do anything but cling tightly against her and tuck his head in as he focuses on not panicking before they've crested yet another climb.
Aria meets the challenge wonderfully however, gratefully accepting his choice to recall her yet again as he finally breaks into his own first proper run of the challenge, as he heads into the tunnel. With the first flag rolled up in his backpack and a multiple minute lead over Doro, he's feeling great about his chances of winning the day.
Author's Note: It's a race! Though clearly not one Ran intends to run 'normally'. Doro and he take very different approaches, though let's emphasize that both are equally 'legal' within the constraints of the challenge. Describing the geography I had in mind in an adequate way proved a real challenge, but I think the way I pictured it ultimately comes across well enough. Of course, to the valid question of: How did the landscape even come to look like that, I simply say: Ancient pokémon battle.
If you want to read ahead or feel like supporting my writing, please go and have a look at my Patreon or Ko-fi . Patreon for member benefits like 2 weeks of Early Access whereas Ko-fi is for one-off donations that go towards artwork. It's no exaggeration to say that this story and it's current upload schedule are only possible thanks to Patreon, so if you have anything to spare and want this story to continue, please go and have a look, every little bit helps.
With the sun little more than a suggestion at this hour, artificial lighting and moonlight are the means by which the city is visible down below, whilst their own path up the cliffs was lit by flashlights. As he fully realizes just how high up they are, Ran can only warily wonder just what challenge Chuck has in mind for them.
Because when neither Doro nor Ran himself had backed down, Chuck had declared that he'd test them, to see which one of them was worthier of training a Croagunk. Something Ran had initially been more than happy to hear, as he figured any battle between Doro and himself would favor him in a big way, considering their relative type-specialties. But then Chuck had rather summarily dashed those hopes by declaring that he wasn't interested in watching them battle.
Instead, he sent them away for the day, with instructions to report back at the Gym at an absolutely unreasonable hour. Ran had balked slightly at that, but when Doro hadn't even blinked, he'd been left with no option but to accept as well.
Upon reporting to the Gym, Chuck had taken them on a demanding hike up the cliff sides, until eventually, after almost two hours of walking, pausing on the crest they were currently standing on. It leaves them standing on one of the highest ridges of the first of a series of mountainous spines that ring Cianwood City. There's a great variety between the different spines as well, as even at a glance deeper into the mountainous landscape, Ran spots signs of different plateaus, peaks and valleys.
He hadn't explained what exactly the challenge would be yet, but considering the long hike and the rather demanding pace Chuck set during it, Ran was growing increasingly worried that the advantage might not rest with him after all.
A slight distance behind him, Doro is stretching enthusiastically, her training jacket already tied around her hips. Compared to himself, his thick purple jacket still snug on his shoulders and his breath only just now leveling out after a few minutes' rest, it's a rather intimidating sight.
Chuck takes things to another level entirely of course, the man apparently not just going shirtless in his Gym, but constantly. It's as Ran looks in the Gym leader's direction, that the man responsible for the safety of Cianwood City and its surroundings finally breaks the silence that has been hanging over their group for the past two hours.
"Alright! That'll do for a warmup, time to give you the challenge!" He proclaims enthusiastically.
"Any second now, you'll be getting three locations close to the main hiking path sent to you through your pokégear. At each of these locations, there's a pair of flags present. Whichever one of you first gets me a flag from each of the three locations, wins the right to choose one of my Croagunk!" Chuck declares boldly, Ran's pokégear vibrating accordingly as he receives the locations.
"A few rules before you both get started and set out," Chuck continues, one finger raising in warning just as Doro tries to burst into motion and Ran starts to raise his pokégear, leaving both trainers to falter as they focus back on the Gym leader, "You can't do anything to the flags your opponent is supposed to be gathering, you can't mess with the main hiking path the flags are placed along and you can't directly attack each other. Otherwise, I'd have just let you two battle it out from the start, but that's not what I'm looking for here."
Ran and Doro both nod in agreement, though Ran can't help but wonder if those are really the only restrictions Chuck will be imposing. Because although the racing aspect of things will at the least ensure that there is a challenge, it feels somewhat underwhelming thus far, not to mention that as long as they stick to the hiking path, all that will be tested is their speed and endurance.
"Finally, there is no set order in which you need to gather the flags, nor do you have to stick to the main path, as far as I'm concerned. You're young and healthy and you've got pokémon besides, so use 'em! I'll be waiting for you both in my Gym. Oh, one final thing, I have a few Gym trainers out here on training sessions of their own, they're under orders to make things difficult for you. Good luck!" Chuck declares, before jogging towards the cliff's edge Ran is standing near and casually starting to scale down it.
Both Doro and Ran watch in disbelief as the man casually risks his life without a harness of any kind and whilst descending along a worryingly smooth surface. Chuck doesn't pay either of them any mind whatsoever however, merely whistling merrily as he descends at an impressive speed.
Ran glances towards Doro, the two of them both clearly caught equally off guard by Chuck's sudden departure. Then his expression hardens, as he hurriedly breaks eye contact and looks at his pokégear to determine where he needs to go to find the flags. In front of him, he hears the pounding of feet as Doro breaks into a run down the path immediately.
Which he can only assume means that she's just going to race along the main hiking path as fast as she can and assume that the flags are positioned visibly enough to be easily noticed. It's a valid plan and one she undoubtedly has the advantage in, as there's no doubt in his mind that she's got him beat in both stamina and speed. Still, it seems highly doubtful that just following the main hiking path, which by virtue of needing to be walkable is likely needlessly circuitous, is the only way to go about this particular flag hunt.
Even a quick glance at the map feature on his pokégear is enough to confirm as much, as the main hiking path winds back and forth amongst the cliffs as it descends to the valley separating the spine they're currently on, before ascending up the next one, only for the path to end up easily four times as long as the remarkably straight line that forms when he simply connects the three dots on the map as the bird flies.
As Ran examines things in more detail however, it also becomes apparent just why that's how the path runs. It's the only point where the slope isn't too steep to be feasible as a walking path. If someone wanted to make the straightest path possible through the mountain from the first flag to the second to the third, that would involve either extreme amounts of climbing and descending, or the use of explosives or drills to burrow through the rockface where it ascends far too steeply to be traversable.
Still, Ran at least wants to have a look at the shortest possible path, only for even a cursory glance in that direction to leave him looking directly at the steep ravine that runs between the mountainous spine he's on and the next one. Even worse, on the other side of the ravine there's only a slim ledge before the rock wall rises up at least another twenty feet. So simply traveling in the straightest imaginable line isn't humanly possible.
But that's the point. He isn't forced to rely only on what's humanly possible.
A single tap to the center of the Level Ball on his belt is enough for Aria to gain her freedom, as she materializes next to him. In the distance, Doro has long since turned the first corner, ensuring she doesn't see just what Ran has planned, rather than trying to race along the main path like his opponent.
"Aria," He asks, gesturing towards the chasm and the rockface rising behind it, "Can you make a rope across the gap?"
She chitters enthusiastically in response, mandibles moving apart slightly in clear preparation. Before she can act however, Ran hurriedly asks another question.
"Can you crawl up that cliff wall once you're on the other side?" He asks next, earning a moment's pause from his bug-poison-type, before she chitters in agreement once more. This time however, she doesn't move to act, instead turning those large purple eyes of hers towards him as she clearly waits to see if he's about to ask any other questions.
"Can you do so with me on your back?" He asks next, watching with mild amusement as Aria's pupils widen in surprise as she processes the question.
This time, she doesn't offer an immediate response, instead skittering over towards the edge and examining just how much of a distance there is to cover. Rather than pay her trainer any mind, Aria spits out a first massive strand of concentrated webbing, which plasters itself against the rock face on the other side of the chasm, a few feet above the ledge they're aiming for.
Ran watches quietly and whilst doing his best to seem patient, even as he warily tries to figure out just how much distance Doro is covering whilst he's still at the starting point. He's still got other options, ranging from Aria simply providing him with ropes he can use to scale down ledges, to grabbing on to Golbat's feet and finding out just how long the massive Bat Pokémon can carry so much dead weight. Not to mention the option of having Aria stick him to Caesar's back and letting his massive serpentine body go to work.
But the day promises to be a tiring one, so the more options he has and the better he can divide the load, the better. Which is why it's a good thing that Aria chooses that moment to fire off a second strand of webbing, parallel to her first one. She tests both strands for tension for a moment, hopping on to her makeshift bridge, before turning her head in his direction inquiringly.
He doesn't need any further prodding, as Ran hurriedly jogs over and delicately looks for a position on Aria's back. The position he settles on is uncomfortable and cramped, as he hooks his arms under the foremost of her limbs whilst forcing his legs to fold around the front of the vestigial limbs on her back. Considering the size disparity between them, it leaves him folded up uncomfortably, his knees and elbows only slightly over a foot apart.
Still, he sits securely, only momentarily feeling an immense urge to call the whole thing off when Aria first bursts into motion.
Her moves aren't tentative or hesitant in the least, as she opts for speed over caution, racing across the large chasm in mere seconds. Ran for his part instinctively squeezes down tightly on the joints he's wrapped himself around, only for a chiding hiss from Aria to have him ease up apologetically.
She pays him no further mind however, as even as Ran is still processing just how far there is to fall if things go wrong on their makeshift bridge, Aria's attention is already firmly on the second part of their challenge. Without hesitation, she moves directly from their makeshift bridge to the stone cliff, confidently starting to climb in spite of the dead weight hanging off of her back.
Ran does his best to make things easier for her, trying to keep his own center of mass as low and as close to the middle of Aria's body as he can. There's still a few moments where, due to the cliff bulging or receding oddly, it feels like they're unbalanced and there's a risk of them plummeting backwards, but Aria's attached tightly to the stone and Ran in turn clings closely to her. In the end, from the moment he took his seat to the moment Aria crests the top, only about thirty seconds pass.
Going by the racing of his heart, it might as well have been five minutes.
Still, he releases Aria hurriedly and stands up to take in the sight in front of them. A long plateau, before the ground drops away once more, the rest of the cliffs hidden out of sight below. Grinning confidently, Ran jogs forwards, Aria keeping pace by his side as he catches her up on just what they're doing. As he does so, he isn't blind to the clear signs of exertion his companion shows, making it clear that though she can serve as a temporary mount, it asks a lot of her.
When they reach the other side of the plateau, Ran looks down to take in their surroundings, the cliffside they've ascended up proving to conveniently be one of the tallest in the entire range.
There's more of what they've already faced, with deep valleys and steep walls alternating for at least a mile as the mountainous spines continue to run nearly parallel to each other, only to intersect randomly in places. Then, however, there's an entrance into the mountainside, as the path turns into a tunnel. A quick glance at his map shows that he can't circumvent entering the tunnel either, as one of the flags appears to be somewhere in there.
Which is unfortunate, but there's still a lot of distance to cover before reaching that point. A distance that includes the first pair of flags, which he spots hanging off the side of the valley that separates the third and fourth 'spine', counted from where he's standing. There, the flags hang easily ten feet beneath the ledge along which the hiking path runs. The path winds upwards towards that point however, with a series of large bends ensuring that anybody running along the path will easily spot the flags long before reaching them.
As for Doro, she's not rounded the massive cliff which Ran scaled yet, confirming that he's got a nice lead for now. That's no reason to rest on his laurels however, as he does still have a lot of distance to cover and there's little doubt in his mind that Doro will win an endurance race against him, if he doesn't keep looking for shortcuts.
Which is why, as he looks out over the path ahead, he can't help but get stuck on the simple fact that the flags he needs to reach are at a lower elevation than his current position. So to his mind, there's an obvious opportunity that at the very least has to be tried out right now.
"I'm going to try something, Aria. Thanks for the help, but you can take a break, alright?" He tells the Long Leg Pokémon by his side, waiting for her assenting chirp before he taps both the Level Ball and Friend Ball at his belt.
Aria dissolves in red energy even as Golbat appears on his other side. Rather than spend time on explaining what they're doing, which he knows Aria likely appreciated, with Golbat, Ran just gets straight to the point.
"Do you think you can carry me to that ledge above those flags over there?" He asks immediately, gesturing towards the point he's aiming for. Assuming Golbat gets him that far, he'll skip five 'loops' of the path, putting him an enormous distance ahead of the still unseen Doro. Though that part of the path is only some twenty feet below his own current position, so it will only work if Golbat manages to slow their descent significantly.
Golbat's gaze sharpens for a moment, before he spreads his wings and takes off, flying up to hang just above Ran's head, offering his feet in a clear unspoken signal. Considering the even more daunting fall involved should this not work out, Ran is somewhat hesitant to grab on. When he does so, he doesn't do so without giving out a warning.
"Just try and lift me up first for a few seconds, alright? Just to make sure you can-"
And then Golbat has lifted him up and is flying forwards doggedly. Which goes smoothly for about five seconds, at which point the weight clearly starts to become a major issue, as they rapidly start losing height.
"Aim for the nearest ledge!" Ran cries out frantically even as they descend at a worrying speed, but Golbat ignores him, merely redoubling his efforts as his wings beat frantically whilst they cross over the first two chasms.
Distantly, he's aware of an awed shout, but Ran can pay no mind to who exactly is shouting, his attention fully on the distant goal Golbat's clearly aiming for. At first, they seem doomed, descending far faster than they're advancing even as the path itself rises up to meet them with each consecutive loop.
Then, however, their descent slows down, Golbat no longer laboring silently but letting out frustrated shrieks as he puts his all into a heroic effort to keep them airborne. Incredibly enough, he's successful too, as when they still have some thirty feet to cover before reaching the ledge with the flags, Ran's feet dip below the ledge's level for just a moment. It's as if Golbat has a third person view of things, as from that moment on, they don't drop another inch, the Bat Pokémon simply refusing to give in to the laws of gravity.
As they reach the ledge, Ran has to lift his feet just slightly to make sure he doesn't clip the hard stone edge, before he's landing on solid ground. Immediately, he lets go of Golbat, who almost shoots directly upwards as he continues to put the same amount of force into his wingbeats for a few more seconds. He reigns himself in easily enough however, at which point Ran doesn't even need to give a command for Golbat to fly down over the path's edge, flying back up a few seconds later with a flag in his large mouth.
"Perfect!" Ran cheers happily, accepting his prize from Golbat, before recalling him with a quick thank you.
A hurried look back at the large part of the path they just skipped over shows Doro's jogging form only just having become visible. She's all the way back at the foot of the cliff Aria had carried him up, as she's only just finished rounding it. She was likely responsible for the awed shout, then. Even as she seems to meet his gaze across the significant distance between them, Doro keeps up a jog that is significantly faster than any pace Ran can keep up for more than a few minutes.
And that's without mentioning the figure that's loping along easily by her side. He can't tell whether she used the Hitmonlee that's jogging alongside her against Chuck's Gym trainers, whether she encountered some obstacle or another or whether she just felt like giving the fighting-type a work-out. Her reasoning doesn't really matter, in the grand scheme of things. What matters is that she has a Hitmonlee, which is useful information he duly files away.
Even as Ran watches, Doro clearly picks up her pace further from what appears to have been a, for her, comfortable jog, now loping up the path at a speed only just shy of a full sprint. The way her eyes are locked on him leaves zero doubt about the fact that she's dead set on catching back up to him.
Ran suppresses the worried gulp he wants to let out at the sight of an angry fighting-type specialist chasing after him, instead turning around and looking towards the remaining path. There's no chasm in front of him, the ledge simply running up to the next cliffside, at which point it raises up perhaps some twenty feet. If there were enough handholds, he'd feel comfortable about trying to climb it himself rather than taking the long way around by running along the slowly ascending path.
Fortunately, when encountering a lack of handholds, he has a convenient solution available. Soon enough, he's once more on Aria's back, as she lifts him up another cliffside. He badly wants to look back to see Doro's reaction to his particular method for climbing the steep cliffs, but even if he's willing to rely on Aria as they ascend, he still isn't comfortable enough to do anything but cling tightly against her and tuck his head in as he focuses on not panicking before they've crested yet another climb.
Aria meets the challenge wonderfully however, gratefully accepting his choice to recall her yet again as he finally breaks into his own first proper run of the challenge, as he heads into the tunnel. With the first flag rolled up in his backpack and a multiple minute lead over Doro, he's feeling great about his chances of winning the day.
Author's Note: It's a race! Though clearly not one Ran intends to run 'normally'. Doro and he take very different approaches, though let's emphasize that both are equally 'legal' within the constraints of the challenge. Describing the geography I had in mind in an adequate way proved a real challenge, but I think the way I pictured it ultimately comes across well enough. Of course, to the valid question of: How did the landscape even come to look like that, I simply say: Ancient pokémon battle.
If you want to read ahead or feel like supporting my writing, please go and have a look at my Patreon or Ko-fi . Patreon for member benefits like 2 weeks of Early Access whereas Ko-fi is for one-off donations that go towards artwork. It's no exaggeration to say that this story and it's current upload schedule are only possible thanks to Patreon, so if you have anything to spare and want this story to continue, please go and have a look, every little bit helps.
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Chapter 21, part 2
- Location
- Belgium
Rushing into the tunnel, Ran is caught off guard by just how dark it is on the inside for a moment. Hurriedly, he fishes out his flashlight to illuminate the way.
The passage is wide enough for two people to walk side by side, but no wider. The floor is decently level from left to right, though it noticeably slopes downwards, which is a frustrating thing to realize after the effort he had to put into getting this high up in the mountains in the first place. The path itself is straight as an arrow, leaving Ran confident that it's manmade. Which isn't particularly important, if it weren't for the logical consequence that comes with the tunnel not having any bends.
That being his clear view of the tunnel's exit and the backlit shape of a distinctly human form standing in it.
As he continues to jog onwards, his flashlight's beam gradually creeps closer to the waiting figure, until details start to become apparent.
It's very clearly one of Chuck's Gym trainers, the gi the other guy is wearing making that readily apparent. He looks to be a few years older than Ran and, upon closer inspection, clearly has three pokéballs hanging off of his belt. As Ran gets closer, the trainer speaks up when he's still a comfortable distance away, his words reason enough for Ran to draw to a temporary halt.
"That's far enough!" The Gym trainer calls out as one of his hands drifts to his belt, "The Tunnel exit's closed to you lot!"
"What lot?" Ran asks in feigned surprise, even as he slowly continues to walk forwards, his hands raised apologetically as he does so, as if genuinely unsure of what he's wandered into.
He doesn't consider himself the most gifted actor by any means, but he appears to have more of a gift for it than he thought, as the Gym trainer seems genuinely puzzled by Ran's response.
"Are you not one of the trainers that's doing Gym leader Chuck's challenge?" He asks in evident surprise, hand moving off of his pokéball as his stance relaxes.
"What challenge?" Ran wonders curiously, moving into a light jog once more as he closes the final distance between them, "My boat only came in yesterday and I'm just exploring the area!"
"Oh alright, my bad," The Gym trainer replies apologetically as he steps to the side, leaving enough room for Ran to jog right on by him, "There's supposed to be two trainers racing through here for a Gym challenge. You might want to look out for that, as there's a few of us around and I don't know if the others will ask questions first, like I did!"
The final part of the Gym trainer's message is shouted, as Ran by that point is already past him and running down the path once more.
"Thanks for the warning!" He yells back innocently, hardly daring to believe his own luck, as he pours on the speed for a moment, to make sure that he's definitely long gone by the time Doro arrives. She didn't seem the type to ask questions, so with some luck she'll just get into a battle with the guy immediately, winning Ran an even bigger lead.
He hurries on for a few minutes more, before his chest starts to ache from the exertion, at which point he slows down to a walk once more. Continuing along the slowly descending, meandering main path slowly, even as he brings up his pokégear for another look.
He immediately pauses in surprise, because according to his map, he's supposed to be very close to the second flag indeed. Hurriedly looking around to see if he's overlooked anything obvious, Ran winces in displeasure when he finds the next pair of flags.
They're almost directly upwards of his current position, hanging from the same mountainside which the path he's following runs alongside. The rock surface isn't completely sheer at least, with ridges and protrusions offering handholds aplenty.
Still, it's an imposing climb to say the least, one he genuinely doesn't want to undertake. Fortunately, he doesn't have to. With just a quick tap of Aria's ball, she's back by his side once more.
"Hey girl, can you get me one of those flags?" He asks, to Aria's evident delight. Which, given that he isn't asking to ride along with her, he can understand.
However, just as Aria starts her climb, the sudden appearance of another Gym Trainer throws a wrench in his plans. Because he's on top of the rock face Aria is ascending and unlike the one that preceded him, this one catches Ran in the act, voiding any chances of avoiding a confrontation.
"Not so fast, kid!" The Gym Trainer shouts in what has to be his best movie villain voice, rather than his actual normal one, "You may want to get out of the way of this one! Machoke, use Rock Slide!"
Ran's eyes widen in sudden fear, realization setting in as an imposing Machoke leans over the edge for a moment, clearly getting a look at its targets.
Hurriedly, Ran rushes back down the path a way, even as he taps Aria's ball to recall her in the nick of time, as a series of large boulders come crashing down the vertical rock wall. She disappears only moments before the first boulder goes slamming right through the space she was occupying moments before, leaving Ran to breathe out a relieved sigh even as he takes in the situation.
The flags are roughly sixty feet up the rock wall, with a Machoke standing a few feet above them with the clear goal of protecting the flags. Any attempt to head directly for the flag is going to run into the major issue that is a Machoke with plenty of ammunition.
So either he needs to take care of the Machoke entirely, at which point Doro might have an easier time catching up, or he needs to distract it for long enough to enable a capture of the flag. If the flag weren't so high up, he could just have Aria snag it down with a strand of webbing, but considering the directly vertical trajectory of her shot and the winds at those heights, she'd need to make it at least halfway up there before standing any chance at success.
A distraction, then.
For the first time that day, he actually takes a pokéball off of his belt, throwing it upwards and outwards with a shout, "Get up there and knock that Machoke out, Golbat!"
His only team member capable of contesting Machoke on equal footing, given the advantage its position gives it, materializes with a powerful screech. He can easily see both the Gym Trainer and his Machoke immediately locking their attention on Golbat, Ran himself temporarily forgotten as they focus on the rapidly ascending threat.
"Get up there and use Air Cutter! Knock them back!" He shouts at Golbat, before his own attention shifts temporarily to the fallout of the Rock Slide the Gym trainer so callously sent screaming down the cliff.
The main hiking path, which neither he nor Doro were allowed to mess with, has been damaged, its width reduced by a few feet where the Rock Slide impacted and dragged part of the path along with it. What remains is covered in rubble both large and small, effectively forcing anyone who wants to pass into a risky climb.
Above him, the sound of battle breaks out as Golbat engages Machoke in a fight Ran is fully confident can only end one way. Any other rock-type attacks from Machoke might cause some trouble, but Air Cutter is faster and more accurate besides, not to mention Golbat's own innate agility. Instead, his own attention remains on the problem facing him.
Aria, only so briefly recalled into her ball, gets sent out yet again, appearing directly in front of him on the path. When she spots the landslide they only barely escaped, her agitation is obvious, her attention immediately shifting to the top of the cliff with narrowed pupils that promise vengeance. There's nobody for her to see there, however, as Golbat has decisively pushed both Machoke and its trainer back out of view.
Not wanting to waste any time or risk the Gym trainer sending out another pokémon, Ran's instructions are swift.
"Aria, get up there and get the flag. While you're up there, attach a strand of webbing and drop it to me so I've got something to help me climb across this rubble, alright?" He orders swiftly, waiting only for her assenting chirp before he turns his attention back the way he came when the distant sounds of Golbat battling Machoke are joined by the unmistakable sounds of another pokémon battle.
There's an instinctive worry that Golbat has stumbled into a two-on-one, but then he realizes that the second fight isn't above, but behind him. Worried, Ran glances back, just barely able to see the mouth of the tunnel he exited some minutes ago, only to see two battling pairs of figures exiting it in quick succession.
First to come out of the tunnel are two Hitmonchan in what can only be described as a pure boxing match, with neither using any named moves or receiving instruction from their trainers. The one retreating out of the tunnel is clearly on the losing end, taking far more hits than the aggressor who continues to push him back. Yet, as they exit the relatively narrow tunnel and gain a bit more room to maneuver, the fight seems to equalize to a degree.
Second to come out, only a few seconds behind the first pair, are the Gym trainer Ran had tricked and Doro, engaged in a spar of their own in what seems to be an odd meeting of styles, as Chuck's employee seems to rely on karate only to get forced back by Doro. She's using some odd style he doesn't know the name of, involving a lot of short open palm thrusts and forearm blocks, but he can at least speak to its apparent effectiveness.
Both Doro and what he assumes to be her Hitmonchan are winning their fights and somehow they've closed the gap to be only a few minutes behind. Considering how much faster Doro was running before than Ran himself, she might be able to close the gap even faster than that.
Worried, he looks up, only for his worries to be assuaged to a degree, as Aria reaches the flags, shooting him a line of webbing which she attaches against the rock wall before snagging a flag between her mandibles and moving to skitter down the rock wall on the other side of the large obstruction caused by Machoke's earlier actions.
Ran grabs hold of the webbing, hands sticking to it unpleasantly, before starting to lever himself up against the side of the canyon directly. Rather than risk the unstable rubble, he uses the rope to lever himself upwards until he's at a height with the top of the obstruction. Then, he simply shuffles horizontally along the wall until he's past the rubble, before hurriedly descending once more. Overhead, he hears a cry of triumph, as Golbat uses that moment to return to his view, clearly having beaten Machoke.
The Machoke's trainer's head reappears over the ledge overhead, only for him to swear when he realizes that Ran has made it past him.
"Cheat!" He cries out angrily, glaring at Ran in evident frustration.
"What? You lost fair and square!" Ran calls back in disbelief, even as he recalls both of his partners once more and starts to rush back down the path once more.
"You used two pokémon at once!" The trainer shouts in outrage, clearly forgetting that they weren't in an official battle, something Ran is more than happy to remind him of.
"And you threw a Rock Slide at us without any warning! That wasn't an official match, so everything went!" He yells back, having to raise his voice as much as possible as he rushes out of the other trainer's hearing range.
Now he just has to hope that the guy isn't a sore loser, because if he decides not to put up as much of a delay against Doro, he might be in some real danger of getting caught from behind. At that moment, however, his prayers are answered, as he turns the next corner in the path only to find a slow, looping descent in front of him. The path winds left for a few hundred feet on a slow incline, then makes a sharp hairpin turn to the right and goes the other way for the same distance, the loop repeating at least four times, as far as he can see.
He feels genuinely apologetic when he has to send out Aria once more.
Something only reinforced when she turns to face him in evident disbelief at being brought out of her ball yet again, and so shortly after the last time at that. He can only shrug apologetically, before gesturing towards the challenge in front of him.
"Sorry Aria. Can you carry me down a ledge, or would you rather give me a climbing line?" He asks apologetically, drawing an affronted hiss from his companion.
When she turns and waggles her abdomen in clear invitation, he realizes that the affront is over him doubting her ability to carry him, so he hurriedly gets on once more. The position is no more comfortable now than on the previous rides, but Aria at least has clearly become more confident in her ability to handle the extra weight, as she races towards the ledge before sharply tilting down, as they start their descent down the first cliff wall.
It is an extremely disconcerting experience, as Ran can feel gravity's call far more strongly than he did when they were climbing. The way he clings on to Aria's back could almost be called scared, if there were anyone present to watch them in action.
Upon reaching the next part of the path, Aria doesn't even hesitate to race directly across it, almost attacking the second ledge in her eagerness to descend. The third ledge is attacked just as enthusiastically, though part way down that climb, she noticeably starts to lose control, speed picking up dangerously as she skids downwards part of the way, a sign that the exertion is clearly starting to get to her.
"Let's stop on the next ledge, Aria," Ran tells her with some faint worry, as his ride starts to tremble from exhaustion even as she descends the final few feet down the third ledge, "You've earned a proper break."
She doesn't even fight him on it, merely getting them onto the next part of the path, before sagging in place, her long legs falling out from under her as she lays down to catch her breath. Hurriedly, Ran gets off of her, taking just a moment to offer some words of comfort and gratitude before recalling Aria.
Looking down, there's two more ledges to beat. Looking up at the corner he himself crossed only a minute ago, there's no Doro in sight just yet and the distance he's efficiently crossed is significant. Suddenly, his odds of winning look great once more.
Not wanting to burn out Golbat like he's done to Aria, he breaks into a jog once more, his own stamina sufficiently recovered to keep him going for a while. As he runs, he thinks ahead. Because there's not just a third flag to retrieve, there's also a return journey to Chuck's Gym to make. Which might well be the hardest part of all, as all the tricks he's used to cut off sections and to gain distance on Doro won't work once they're out of the mountainous terrain surrounding Cianwood City.
Maybe he could wrap his arms around Caesar's thick neck, just under his hood, and try and let the large Cobra Pokémon serve as a mount for a while? There's no doubt that between the two of them, Caesar is comfortably faster, not to mention his greater endurance. But it'll be an uncomfortable and uncertain ride he might not be able to hold on to for all that long. The reactions when he comes riding into town on the back of an Arbok would be a sight to see though…
It's an option, but not one he wants to rely on for the entire ride, because he doubts whether he'll be able to maintain his seat for that long. Hopefully he won't need to either, as surely Doro must be flagging after the sheer exertion she's put herself through thus far, considering how much distance she managed to make up before, not to mention her energetic spar against the Gym trainer. Still, he does his best to keep up his own pace as he's not inclined to risk his chances by betting on her being unable to keep up the level of effort she's been putting in.
Really, considering how much she managed to catch up on the parts where he wasn't using his team to take shortcuts, he has to wonder just how much of a lead he's really got…
So is there anything else he can do to pull ahead?
Yes there is. Golbat's already proven that he can carry Ran's weight for a distance at least. So what if, rather than taking the actual path down to the city, he just cuts the straightest line possible from the third flag to Cianwood, until the point where the mountain range ends? Golbat can parachute him down and, with the sheer amount of distance they'll cut off compared to the normal route any sane - looking at you, Chuck - human has to take without assistance, surely there's no way Doro can catch up to him at that point.
As he rounds the final bend of his current descent, from the corner of his eye, up above, he watches as Doro appears at the bottom of the climb already, Hitmonlee once more having taken Hitmonchan's place and loping alongside her. She really is a lot faster than him.
Then, in an extremely worrying development, he watches as she jumps onto Hitmonlee's back, only for the fighting-type with the terrifyingly powerful legs to leap down the first ledge in a single bound, landing heavily on both feet. Hitmonlee's legs bend majorly upon landing, but after just a moment's hesitance, it easily straightens and advances towards the next ledge down.
Ran can only do his best to ignore the spectacle and focus on his own race. Whether Doro has only been relying on her pokémon after watching his example, or whether she's been pulling stuff like this all along, he doesn't know, but with the sheer speed with which she cuts off the same parts of the track that Ran himself did, he can almost feel his lead evaporating.
Hurriedly, he rushes onwards and properly around the foot of the cliff he's been working himself down towards for the past ten minutes, causing Doro to disappear from his view once more.
He easily forgets about Doro's looming threat the next second, when he ends up on a small plateau halfway between the top of the nearby mountains and the valleys that run between them. There, smack dab in the middle of it, sit two flags. Unfortunately, actively training right in front of those flags, are an old Gym trainer, who is sitting with his legs crossed, and his Heracross and Poliwrath who are sparring in front of him.
Instinctively, Ran glances around for anything that might hide him before he's spotted, but they're standing on top of a rocky plateau, guaranteeing that no such recourse might be found. Thus, before he can figure out some way to stealthily acquire the flag, with the first plan that comes to mind being Golbat circling way around and snagging a flag on the way back, the Gym trainer catches sight of him.
Ran suppresses a curse when the man immediately raises his hand, his two sparring fighting-types immediately pausing their spar and padding over to stand on either side of their trainer, where they assume resting stances. As for the Gym trainer, a guy that looks to be older than Chuck himself thanks to his long silvery-gray hair which is kept in a topknot, his long Fu Manchu mustache and the equally long goatee that originates from his chin, he looks at Ran in a clear assessment for a moment, before speaking.
"You are the poison-type specialist." He declares with a confident, yet reedy voice.
"I am," Ran accepts, even as he starts to approach once more, the elder trainer not appearing to object to his choice to do so, "I've collected the two other flags, so I just need one of the pair behind you and then I'll get out of your way, so you can go back to your training."
"Oh?" The trainer asks, one hand combing through his long goatee as he seems to consider Ran's words, "That's mighty generous of you."
Ran doesn't immediately respond, merely continuing to walk closer, waiting for the other shoe to drop. Which it of course does after a few more steps.
"Unfortunately, I cannot accept your kindness. My son was very clear. I am supposed to make things difficult for you." The man speaks up, both of his pokémon taking an ominously synchronized step forward as he does so.
It's enough for Ran to draw to a halt once more, as he considers the situation in front of him. Just sending out his full team and attempting to rush the man and his pokémon is a tempting proposition, but something tells him that the man has more than just the pair of pokémon in front of him. So he hesitates.
There's the option of challenging the man to a battle, but that'll take precious time no matter the outcome. Plus, both of his strong fighting-types seem just a bit too eager for Ran to be entirely comfortable about the idea. If the man really is Chuck's father, then the odds of him being an easy opponent to defeat feel slim at best.
Yet the longer he hesitates, the more time Doro will be able to make up on him. So how to approach this? The man hasn't immediately attacked, so maybe there's a way here to avoid a confrontation? In fact, if it's just about making things difficult for him, he has an idea or two the old man might just be willing to go for.
"Alright," Ran starts slowly, opting to test the waters and the man's patience, "Did he also mention how you're supposed to do that? Because I'm not great at talking to strangers, so this is already plenty difficult for me."
"I don't believe he'd consider that sufficient," The man responds with a chuckle, clearly amused by his attempt, "That hardly impacts your ability to race, after all."
"Yeah, but so does forcing me to battle. That'll just delay me, rather than actually make the race itself difficult." Ran points out, receiving a thoughtful hum in turn.
"That is a good point." Chuck's father nods in agreement, head cocking slightly to the side as he ponders things.
Ran doesn't have the time to waste however, which is why he makes the first offer that comes to mind, "Take my shoes!"
"What?" The old man responds in surprise, clearly doubting whether he's heard him correctly.
"Take my shoes," Ran offers again, "I'll carry on barefoot. That'll make things a lot more difficult for me, won't it?"
The man grasps for the ends of his mustache and goatee, gathering them all in one fist as he pulls on them pensively for a few seconds, before his expression clears up.
"That is acceptable. You may even learn something. After all, those that study at the Cianwood City Gym never wear shoes. Take off both your shoes and your socks, hand them to Gloves, my Poliwrath, and you may retrieve a flag and carry on with your race." The old man informs him, formally extending the deal.
Ran swiftly accepts, only throwing a single dubious glance at the rocky ground beneath him. As long as he watches his step and doesn't accidentally plant himself on one of the few sharp edges remaining on the weathered stone, he should be fine. The Gym itself is on the beach, that too, he should be able to withstand.
He scampers over, hurriedly pushing his footwear into the waiting Poliwrath's hands, before turning his attention to the flags. He grabs one and hurriedly stuffs it away inside his backpack, before turning his attention to his pokégear to figure out just how he's going to get back to Chuck's Gym.
Author's Note: The race continues, with Ran and Doro showing completely different approaches and Ran clinging on to his early lead. He's rapidly exhausting his options however and a perilous return to the Gym still awaits!
If you want to read ahead or feel like supporting my writing, please go and have a look at my Patreon or Ko-fi . Patreon for member benefits like 2 weeks of Early Access whereas Ko-fi is for one-off donations that go towards artwork. It's no exaggeration to say that this story and its current upload schedule are only possible thanks to Patreon, so if you have anything to spare and want this story to continue, please go and have a look, every little bit helps.
The passage is wide enough for two people to walk side by side, but no wider. The floor is decently level from left to right, though it noticeably slopes downwards, which is a frustrating thing to realize after the effort he had to put into getting this high up in the mountains in the first place. The path itself is straight as an arrow, leaving Ran confident that it's manmade. Which isn't particularly important, if it weren't for the logical consequence that comes with the tunnel not having any bends.
That being his clear view of the tunnel's exit and the backlit shape of a distinctly human form standing in it.
As he continues to jog onwards, his flashlight's beam gradually creeps closer to the waiting figure, until details start to become apparent.
It's very clearly one of Chuck's Gym trainers, the gi the other guy is wearing making that readily apparent. He looks to be a few years older than Ran and, upon closer inspection, clearly has three pokéballs hanging off of his belt. As Ran gets closer, the trainer speaks up when he's still a comfortable distance away, his words reason enough for Ran to draw to a temporary halt.
"That's far enough!" The Gym trainer calls out as one of his hands drifts to his belt, "The Tunnel exit's closed to you lot!"
"What lot?" Ran asks in feigned surprise, even as he slowly continues to walk forwards, his hands raised apologetically as he does so, as if genuinely unsure of what he's wandered into.
He doesn't consider himself the most gifted actor by any means, but he appears to have more of a gift for it than he thought, as the Gym trainer seems genuinely puzzled by Ran's response.
"Are you not one of the trainers that's doing Gym leader Chuck's challenge?" He asks in evident surprise, hand moving off of his pokéball as his stance relaxes.
"What challenge?" Ran wonders curiously, moving into a light jog once more as he closes the final distance between them, "My boat only came in yesterday and I'm just exploring the area!"
"Oh alright, my bad," The Gym trainer replies apologetically as he steps to the side, leaving enough room for Ran to jog right on by him, "There's supposed to be two trainers racing through here for a Gym challenge. You might want to look out for that, as there's a few of us around and I don't know if the others will ask questions first, like I did!"
The final part of the Gym trainer's message is shouted, as Ran by that point is already past him and running down the path once more.
"Thanks for the warning!" He yells back innocently, hardly daring to believe his own luck, as he pours on the speed for a moment, to make sure that he's definitely long gone by the time Doro arrives. She didn't seem the type to ask questions, so with some luck she'll just get into a battle with the guy immediately, winning Ran an even bigger lead.
He hurries on for a few minutes more, before his chest starts to ache from the exertion, at which point he slows down to a walk once more. Continuing along the slowly descending, meandering main path slowly, even as he brings up his pokégear for another look.
He immediately pauses in surprise, because according to his map, he's supposed to be very close to the second flag indeed. Hurriedly looking around to see if he's overlooked anything obvious, Ran winces in displeasure when he finds the next pair of flags.
They're almost directly upwards of his current position, hanging from the same mountainside which the path he's following runs alongside. The rock surface isn't completely sheer at least, with ridges and protrusions offering handholds aplenty.
Still, it's an imposing climb to say the least, one he genuinely doesn't want to undertake. Fortunately, he doesn't have to. With just a quick tap of Aria's ball, she's back by his side once more.
"Hey girl, can you get me one of those flags?" He asks, to Aria's evident delight. Which, given that he isn't asking to ride along with her, he can understand.
However, just as Aria starts her climb, the sudden appearance of another Gym Trainer throws a wrench in his plans. Because he's on top of the rock face Aria is ascending and unlike the one that preceded him, this one catches Ran in the act, voiding any chances of avoiding a confrontation.
"Not so fast, kid!" The Gym Trainer shouts in what has to be his best movie villain voice, rather than his actual normal one, "You may want to get out of the way of this one! Machoke, use Rock Slide!"
Ran's eyes widen in sudden fear, realization setting in as an imposing Machoke leans over the edge for a moment, clearly getting a look at its targets.
Hurriedly, Ran rushes back down the path a way, even as he taps Aria's ball to recall her in the nick of time, as a series of large boulders come crashing down the vertical rock wall. She disappears only moments before the first boulder goes slamming right through the space she was occupying moments before, leaving Ran to breathe out a relieved sigh even as he takes in the situation.
The flags are roughly sixty feet up the rock wall, with a Machoke standing a few feet above them with the clear goal of protecting the flags. Any attempt to head directly for the flag is going to run into the major issue that is a Machoke with plenty of ammunition.
So either he needs to take care of the Machoke entirely, at which point Doro might have an easier time catching up, or he needs to distract it for long enough to enable a capture of the flag. If the flag weren't so high up, he could just have Aria snag it down with a strand of webbing, but considering the directly vertical trajectory of her shot and the winds at those heights, she'd need to make it at least halfway up there before standing any chance at success.
A distraction, then.
For the first time that day, he actually takes a pokéball off of his belt, throwing it upwards and outwards with a shout, "Get up there and knock that Machoke out, Golbat!"
His only team member capable of contesting Machoke on equal footing, given the advantage its position gives it, materializes with a powerful screech. He can easily see both the Gym Trainer and his Machoke immediately locking their attention on Golbat, Ran himself temporarily forgotten as they focus on the rapidly ascending threat.
"Get up there and use Air Cutter! Knock them back!" He shouts at Golbat, before his own attention shifts temporarily to the fallout of the Rock Slide the Gym trainer so callously sent screaming down the cliff.
The main hiking path, which neither he nor Doro were allowed to mess with, has been damaged, its width reduced by a few feet where the Rock Slide impacted and dragged part of the path along with it. What remains is covered in rubble both large and small, effectively forcing anyone who wants to pass into a risky climb.
Above him, the sound of battle breaks out as Golbat engages Machoke in a fight Ran is fully confident can only end one way. Any other rock-type attacks from Machoke might cause some trouble, but Air Cutter is faster and more accurate besides, not to mention Golbat's own innate agility. Instead, his own attention remains on the problem facing him.
Aria, only so briefly recalled into her ball, gets sent out yet again, appearing directly in front of him on the path. When she spots the landslide they only barely escaped, her agitation is obvious, her attention immediately shifting to the top of the cliff with narrowed pupils that promise vengeance. There's nobody for her to see there, however, as Golbat has decisively pushed both Machoke and its trainer back out of view.
Not wanting to waste any time or risk the Gym trainer sending out another pokémon, Ran's instructions are swift.
"Aria, get up there and get the flag. While you're up there, attach a strand of webbing and drop it to me so I've got something to help me climb across this rubble, alright?" He orders swiftly, waiting only for her assenting chirp before he turns his attention back the way he came when the distant sounds of Golbat battling Machoke are joined by the unmistakable sounds of another pokémon battle.
There's an instinctive worry that Golbat has stumbled into a two-on-one, but then he realizes that the second fight isn't above, but behind him. Worried, Ran glances back, just barely able to see the mouth of the tunnel he exited some minutes ago, only to see two battling pairs of figures exiting it in quick succession.
First to come out of the tunnel are two Hitmonchan in what can only be described as a pure boxing match, with neither using any named moves or receiving instruction from their trainers. The one retreating out of the tunnel is clearly on the losing end, taking far more hits than the aggressor who continues to push him back. Yet, as they exit the relatively narrow tunnel and gain a bit more room to maneuver, the fight seems to equalize to a degree.
Second to come out, only a few seconds behind the first pair, are the Gym trainer Ran had tricked and Doro, engaged in a spar of their own in what seems to be an odd meeting of styles, as Chuck's employee seems to rely on karate only to get forced back by Doro. She's using some odd style he doesn't know the name of, involving a lot of short open palm thrusts and forearm blocks, but he can at least speak to its apparent effectiveness.
Both Doro and what he assumes to be her Hitmonchan are winning their fights and somehow they've closed the gap to be only a few minutes behind. Considering how much faster Doro was running before than Ran himself, she might be able to close the gap even faster than that.
Worried, he looks up, only for his worries to be assuaged to a degree, as Aria reaches the flags, shooting him a line of webbing which she attaches against the rock wall before snagging a flag between her mandibles and moving to skitter down the rock wall on the other side of the large obstruction caused by Machoke's earlier actions.
Ran grabs hold of the webbing, hands sticking to it unpleasantly, before starting to lever himself up against the side of the canyon directly. Rather than risk the unstable rubble, he uses the rope to lever himself upwards until he's at a height with the top of the obstruction. Then, he simply shuffles horizontally along the wall until he's past the rubble, before hurriedly descending once more. Overhead, he hears a cry of triumph, as Golbat uses that moment to return to his view, clearly having beaten Machoke.
The Machoke's trainer's head reappears over the ledge overhead, only for him to swear when he realizes that Ran has made it past him.
"Cheat!" He cries out angrily, glaring at Ran in evident frustration.
"What? You lost fair and square!" Ran calls back in disbelief, even as he recalls both of his partners once more and starts to rush back down the path once more.
"You used two pokémon at once!" The trainer shouts in outrage, clearly forgetting that they weren't in an official battle, something Ran is more than happy to remind him of.
"And you threw a Rock Slide at us without any warning! That wasn't an official match, so everything went!" He yells back, having to raise his voice as much as possible as he rushes out of the other trainer's hearing range.
Now he just has to hope that the guy isn't a sore loser, because if he decides not to put up as much of a delay against Doro, he might be in some real danger of getting caught from behind. At that moment, however, his prayers are answered, as he turns the next corner in the path only to find a slow, looping descent in front of him. The path winds left for a few hundred feet on a slow incline, then makes a sharp hairpin turn to the right and goes the other way for the same distance, the loop repeating at least four times, as far as he can see.
He feels genuinely apologetic when he has to send out Aria once more.
Something only reinforced when she turns to face him in evident disbelief at being brought out of her ball yet again, and so shortly after the last time at that. He can only shrug apologetically, before gesturing towards the challenge in front of him.
"Sorry Aria. Can you carry me down a ledge, or would you rather give me a climbing line?" He asks apologetically, drawing an affronted hiss from his companion.
When she turns and waggles her abdomen in clear invitation, he realizes that the affront is over him doubting her ability to carry him, so he hurriedly gets on once more. The position is no more comfortable now than on the previous rides, but Aria at least has clearly become more confident in her ability to handle the extra weight, as she races towards the ledge before sharply tilting down, as they start their descent down the first cliff wall.
It is an extremely disconcerting experience, as Ran can feel gravity's call far more strongly than he did when they were climbing. The way he clings on to Aria's back could almost be called scared, if there were anyone present to watch them in action.
Upon reaching the next part of the path, Aria doesn't even hesitate to race directly across it, almost attacking the second ledge in her eagerness to descend. The third ledge is attacked just as enthusiastically, though part way down that climb, she noticeably starts to lose control, speed picking up dangerously as she skids downwards part of the way, a sign that the exertion is clearly starting to get to her.
"Let's stop on the next ledge, Aria," Ran tells her with some faint worry, as his ride starts to tremble from exhaustion even as she descends the final few feet down the third ledge, "You've earned a proper break."
She doesn't even fight him on it, merely getting them onto the next part of the path, before sagging in place, her long legs falling out from under her as she lays down to catch her breath. Hurriedly, Ran gets off of her, taking just a moment to offer some words of comfort and gratitude before recalling Aria.
Looking down, there's two more ledges to beat. Looking up at the corner he himself crossed only a minute ago, there's no Doro in sight just yet and the distance he's efficiently crossed is significant. Suddenly, his odds of winning look great once more.
Not wanting to burn out Golbat like he's done to Aria, he breaks into a jog once more, his own stamina sufficiently recovered to keep him going for a while. As he runs, he thinks ahead. Because there's not just a third flag to retrieve, there's also a return journey to Chuck's Gym to make. Which might well be the hardest part of all, as all the tricks he's used to cut off sections and to gain distance on Doro won't work once they're out of the mountainous terrain surrounding Cianwood City.
Maybe he could wrap his arms around Caesar's thick neck, just under his hood, and try and let the large Cobra Pokémon serve as a mount for a while? There's no doubt that between the two of them, Caesar is comfortably faster, not to mention his greater endurance. But it'll be an uncomfortable and uncertain ride he might not be able to hold on to for all that long. The reactions when he comes riding into town on the back of an Arbok would be a sight to see though…
It's an option, but not one he wants to rely on for the entire ride, because he doubts whether he'll be able to maintain his seat for that long. Hopefully he won't need to either, as surely Doro must be flagging after the sheer exertion she's put herself through thus far, considering how much distance she managed to make up before, not to mention her energetic spar against the Gym trainer. Still, he does his best to keep up his own pace as he's not inclined to risk his chances by betting on her being unable to keep up the level of effort she's been putting in.
Really, considering how much she managed to catch up on the parts where he wasn't using his team to take shortcuts, he has to wonder just how much of a lead he's really got…
So is there anything else he can do to pull ahead?
Yes there is. Golbat's already proven that he can carry Ran's weight for a distance at least. So what if, rather than taking the actual path down to the city, he just cuts the straightest line possible from the third flag to Cianwood, until the point where the mountain range ends? Golbat can parachute him down and, with the sheer amount of distance they'll cut off compared to the normal route any sane - looking at you, Chuck - human has to take without assistance, surely there's no way Doro can catch up to him at that point.
As he rounds the final bend of his current descent, from the corner of his eye, up above, he watches as Doro appears at the bottom of the climb already, Hitmonlee once more having taken Hitmonchan's place and loping alongside her. She really is a lot faster than him.
Then, in an extremely worrying development, he watches as she jumps onto Hitmonlee's back, only for the fighting-type with the terrifyingly powerful legs to leap down the first ledge in a single bound, landing heavily on both feet. Hitmonlee's legs bend majorly upon landing, but after just a moment's hesitance, it easily straightens and advances towards the next ledge down.
Ran can only do his best to ignore the spectacle and focus on his own race. Whether Doro has only been relying on her pokémon after watching his example, or whether she's been pulling stuff like this all along, he doesn't know, but with the sheer speed with which she cuts off the same parts of the track that Ran himself did, he can almost feel his lead evaporating.
Hurriedly, he rushes onwards and properly around the foot of the cliff he's been working himself down towards for the past ten minutes, causing Doro to disappear from his view once more.
He easily forgets about Doro's looming threat the next second, when he ends up on a small plateau halfway between the top of the nearby mountains and the valleys that run between them. There, smack dab in the middle of it, sit two flags. Unfortunately, actively training right in front of those flags, are an old Gym trainer, who is sitting with his legs crossed, and his Heracross and Poliwrath who are sparring in front of him.
Instinctively, Ran glances around for anything that might hide him before he's spotted, but they're standing on top of a rocky plateau, guaranteeing that no such recourse might be found. Thus, before he can figure out some way to stealthily acquire the flag, with the first plan that comes to mind being Golbat circling way around and snagging a flag on the way back, the Gym trainer catches sight of him.
Ran suppresses a curse when the man immediately raises his hand, his two sparring fighting-types immediately pausing their spar and padding over to stand on either side of their trainer, where they assume resting stances. As for the Gym trainer, a guy that looks to be older than Chuck himself thanks to his long silvery-gray hair which is kept in a topknot, his long Fu Manchu mustache and the equally long goatee that originates from his chin, he looks at Ran in a clear assessment for a moment, before speaking.
"You are the poison-type specialist." He declares with a confident, yet reedy voice.
"I am," Ran accepts, even as he starts to approach once more, the elder trainer not appearing to object to his choice to do so, "I've collected the two other flags, so I just need one of the pair behind you and then I'll get out of your way, so you can go back to your training."
"Oh?" The trainer asks, one hand combing through his long goatee as he seems to consider Ran's words, "That's mighty generous of you."
Ran doesn't immediately respond, merely continuing to walk closer, waiting for the other shoe to drop. Which it of course does after a few more steps.
"Unfortunately, I cannot accept your kindness. My son was very clear. I am supposed to make things difficult for you." The man speaks up, both of his pokémon taking an ominously synchronized step forward as he does so.
It's enough for Ran to draw to a halt once more, as he considers the situation in front of him. Just sending out his full team and attempting to rush the man and his pokémon is a tempting proposition, but something tells him that the man has more than just the pair of pokémon in front of him. So he hesitates.
There's the option of challenging the man to a battle, but that'll take precious time no matter the outcome. Plus, both of his strong fighting-types seem just a bit too eager for Ran to be entirely comfortable about the idea. If the man really is Chuck's father, then the odds of him being an easy opponent to defeat feel slim at best.
Yet the longer he hesitates, the more time Doro will be able to make up on him. So how to approach this? The man hasn't immediately attacked, so maybe there's a way here to avoid a confrontation? In fact, if it's just about making things difficult for him, he has an idea or two the old man might just be willing to go for.
"Alright," Ran starts slowly, opting to test the waters and the man's patience, "Did he also mention how you're supposed to do that? Because I'm not great at talking to strangers, so this is already plenty difficult for me."
"I don't believe he'd consider that sufficient," The man responds with a chuckle, clearly amused by his attempt, "That hardly impacts your ability to race, after all."
"Yeah, but so does forcing me to battle. That'll just delay me, rather than actually make the race itself difficult." Ran points out, receiving a thoughtful hum in turn.
"That is a good point." Chuck's father nods in agreement, head cocking slightly to the side as he ponders things.
Ran doesn't have the time to waste however, which is why he makes the first offer that comes to mind, "Take my shoes!"
"What?" The old man responds in surprise, clearly doubting whether he's heard him correctly.
"Take my shoes," Ran offers again, "I'll carry on barefoot. That'll make things a lot more difficult for me, won't it?"
The man grasps for the ends of his mustache and goatee, gathering them all in one fist as he pulls on them pensively for a few seconds, before his expression clears up.
"That is acceptable. You may even learn something. After all, those that study at the Cianwood City Gym never wear shoes. Take off both your shoes and your socks, hand them to Gloves, my Poliwrath, and you may retrieve a flag and carry on with your race." The old man informs him, formally extending the deal.
Ran swiftly accepts, only throwing a single dubious glance at the rocky ground beneath him. As long as he watches his step and doesn't accidentally plant himself on one of the few sharp edges remaining on the weathered stone, he should be fine. The Gym itself is on the beach, that too, he should be able to withstand.
He scampers over, hurriedly pushing his footwear into the waiting Poliwrath's hands, before turning his attention to the flags. He grabs one and hurriedly stuffs it away inside his backpack, before turning his attention to his pokégear to figure out just how he's going to get back to Chuck's Gym.
Author's Note: The race continues, with Ran and Doro showing completely different approaches and Ran clinging on to his early lead. He's rapidly exhausting his options however and a perilous return to the Gym still awaits!
If you want to read ahead or feel like supporting my writing, please go and have a look at my Patreon or Ko-fi . Patreon for member benefits like 2 weeks of Early Access whereas Ko-fi is for one-off donations that go towards artwork. It's no exaggeration to say that this story and its current upload schedule are only possible thanks to Patreon, so if you have anything to spare and want this story to continue, please go and have a look, every little bit helps.
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- Location
- Belgium
Shoes felt like a fun twist on things.
Out of curiosity, is that feeling based on anything in particular?
TimEd
Meteor maker
Mostly because of how well both of them are doing and how different their methodologies are. It'd take an actual rule breaking or something for one option to be disqualified in my eyes.
...I can't remember. Did he mention there being two Croagunk?
- Location
- Omniverse #1345
Yes, he said he wanted to train one himself.
But frankly if you want a comparison to be useful giving it to two mostly-equal trainers that specialize in the two different types seems like a better comparison than him training one vs the first random trainer to meet the criteria to take the offer.
It might be his true plan? But he'd just want to take both their measures?
Chapter 21, part 3
- Location
- Belgium
Starting from the Gym, Chuck took them on a roughly southwestern course. The three flags have all been positioned roughly to the north of each other. A quick glance at the map his pokégear displays is enough to confirm that he's roughly drawn level with the Gym once more, meaning that a directly eastern course would be the swiftest way for him to make it back to the Gym.
Unfortunately, a look in that direction isn't all that encouraging. The plateau he's on drops away sharply at its eastern edge, not offering any real path down as it turns directly into the deep and steep valley separating this mountain spine from the next one. On the other side of the valley, there does appear to be enough of a ledge to run along and that does run east in between two cliffs promising progress in the right direction at least. But the ledge is at least a hundred feet away and only a few feet lower than his own position.
It's an impossible shot for Aria, which leaves Golbat as the only one that could reasonably make it. Considering the distance involved and how he struggled earlier, when he could descend a lot more between point A and point B compared to the current situation, Ran is hesitant about his flying-type's ability to carry the load. He can probably do it, but at that point he'll genuinely have to retire Golbat for the rest of the day. So he'll just have to continue along the hiking path which runs roughly northeast until a better option presents itself.
Just as he comes to that conclusion, however, the decision is made for him, as Doro appears on the plateau, her arrival announced by pounding feet and loud, labored breaths. Ran can't help but glance in her direction, to take stock of his rival for the day. The sight isn't encouraging in the least, as Doro's own expression lights up when she spots him.
Her eyes catch on his bare feet, then shift to the Poliwrath that's still holding on to his shoes and then to the patiently waiting elder. Immediately, she moves to untie her shoes.
Well that's his decision made for him, then.
"Come on out, Golbat!" He orders hurriedly, even as he takes a few steps back from the ledge to enable a running start.
Golbat materializes and only needs a few moments to catch on to just what's happening, his proud screech only the slightest bit hesitant.
"Right, let me grab onto your feet and then we'll pick up speed together all the way to the ledge, alright? I'll jump to give you another foot or two of height and then you just give it your all, alright?" Ran instructs hurriedly, glancing worriedly at the center of the plateau, where Doro is already approaching the remaining flag.
Golbat screeches in confirmation, at which point Ran grabs on to his feet once more. He breaks into a run, propelled forwards by Golbat who flies above and slightly in front of him, the pair of pokémon and trainer picking up speed as they race towards the edge.
When his foot hits the edge of the cliff, he puts everything he can into propelling himself upwards and outwards, attempting the best long jump he's capable of. For just a moment, it feels like he's soaring weightlessly through the sky. Then gravity reasserts itself and he starts to fall, only for said fall to be abruptly interrupted as Golbat screams out his frustration and effort, large wings beating frantically as he carries his trainer further.
The distance to the ledge shrinks rapidly, but so too does the height they have to spare. In fact, after just a few seconds, it becomes readily apparent that Golbat won't be able to keep them above the ledge. Ran's eyes widen in fright when his ankles sink below the level of the ledge. Hurriedly, he pulls his legs up in preparation as they cross the halfway mark.
But they continue to go down too fast even with that adjustment. Golbat is clearly giving it his all, but the physical demands of what Ran is putting him through are audibly and visibly taking their toll, as despite frantic screeches and violent wingbeats, they continue to descend. When they've only got twenty or so feet left to cover, the ledge has risen up above his hips.
At ten feet, his head is below the ledge. He lets Golbat's feet go with one hand, preparing himself to grab for a handhold of some description even as his eyes frantically scan the cliff for any divots, bulges or cracks he might put his feet up against. It's only then, as he hurriedly decides where he'll attempt to grab hold of the cliff, that he realizes just how much the impact is going to hurt, considering Golbat's speed.
Golbat pours on a last heaving effort, winning them a few inches of height. Immediately, Ran lets go, falling the last foot or so towards the cliff and bleeding off some crucial speed even as Golbat shoots upwards, rather than also slamming his feet into the hard rock.
He collides harshly and painfully with the hard, weathered stone, feet and hands frantically scrabbling for any steady hand- and footholds before he can fall down the nearly completely vertical surface. His right foot catches on a thin uneven line, perhaps half-an-inch thick. Immediately, he turns his foot outwards so that he's resting on it from big toe to heel. With how thin the ledge is, only a tiny portion of the width of his foot is supported, digging painfully into the bare skin.
But it's enough of a rest for him to find stability for a precious second. His left hand just about manages to grab onto the ledge itself, which is fortunately not slick with any recent rain, actually giving him a stable enough position to try and lever himself upwards, if he really has to. But he doesn't have to. Instead, with his free hand, he cautiously brings out Caesar's pokéball, throwing it up on the ledge overhead, even as an exhausted Golbat comes to peek over the edge to cheek on his trainer.
"I'm alright Golbat, just get Caesar to lower his tail and have him wrap it around me, so that he can help pull me up!" Ran explains, even as Caesar audibly materializes on the ledge, just out of his sight.
It only takes a moment for some hurried screeching and gesticulating from Golbat to get the job done, as Caesar's head only pops into view for a moment, before his eyes widen in obvious distress. Immediately, he turns around, the final quarter of his tail coming down and wrapping under and around Ran's shoulders, before Caesar starts to slither forwards, dragging his trainer up against the cliffs. It's nowhere near as painless as his earlier efforts with Aria, but with her exhausted and given the precariousness of his position, it's perfectly sufficient.
"Thanks buddy," Ran gratefully acknowledges Caesar's efforts, once there's solid ground beneath his bare feet once more, "Sorry for the scare."
Caesar clearly isn't content to leave it at that, continuing to glare at his trainer in a clear rebuke for long seconds, before his expression finally softens, tongue coming out to taste the air for a moment as his gaze drifts to the collection of new bruises and scuffs Ran just earned himself. Glancing down to take in the damage, Ran lets out an apologetic wince.
"That'll hurt a lot when showering later today, but for now, we're in a race and even with that stunt, we're not guaranteed to win just yet." He admits, before turning his team's attention back to what really matters.
Glancing back towards the plateau for a moment, he's mildly disappointed to realize that he can't see what's happening up there, but every reasonable assumption indicates that Doro has already won her flag and is once more racing down the main path. So there's really no time left to waste. Considering his lack of shoes and the rough surface he'd be running on, he opts to immediately move on to his next gambit.
A quick moment of thanks to Golbat is all that can be spared under the circumstances, though he can tell that the exhausted Bat Pokémon is alright with it, before he's turning his attention to Caesar once more, with urgency in his voice.
"Right, we need to get back to Cianwood City Gym fast. Doro can run a lot faster and a lot longer than me, so I need you to help me out. I'm going to try and wrap my arms and legs around you and then you're going to race us out from between these cliffs and onto the beach, alright?" Ran instructs, receiving a doubtful look in turn, though at least Caesar is willing to let him try, as his starter obligingly turns to offer his trainer his back.
The position Ran settles on is wrapping his legs around Caesar's body, just under the hood, whilst Ran's arms reach up and over the top of the hood before coming down on either side of Caesar's head.
It's an even more uncomfortable position than when he was riding Aria, as where he had to make himself unpleasantly small there, here he has to put far too much power into both his leg muscles, to ensure that he doesn't start to slip down, as well as his arms, to keep them firmly planted in position. It's immediately demanding, but it's the only trick he's got left up his sleeve and so he simply orders Caesar to get going.
His impromptu mount does so without hesitation, immediately slithering forwards at a pace that's easily greater than any jog Ran can keep up for more than five minutes.
"Just follow the ledges and keep heading towards the sounds and smell of the sea, Caesar!" Ran instructs, himself unable to see where they're headed as, whilst his arms are raised up above his head to grab on to Caesar's hood, his own view is firmly blocked by that same hood.
It makes the ride even more monotonous and unpleasant, as he can only look directly to the sides, to see either the rockside they're racing alongside to his right, or the chasm between their cliff and the next one to his left. The speed at which both things are flying past is at least an indicator of just how fast Caesar is going, which is a comfort, but it leaves him with nothing to distract him from the strain he's putting his own body under.
Still, they make good time and so he does his best to tune out his body's complaints as best he can. Until, suddenly, Caesar comes to an abrupt stop.
"What's up, buddy?" Ran asks, more than happy to let go for a minute, sliding down his starter's back until his feet touch solid ground once more.
Stepping out from behind Caesar's obscuring hood, it becomes readily apparent just what the issue was.
Overhead, the sun has broken through the morning's clouds, bathing the now visible Cianwood City in golden light. Ran and Caesar stand at the end of the ledge they'd been traveling along, the cliffs abruptly dropping off down towards the beach, some twenty or thirty feet beneath them. If Caesar had continued on without pause, they'd have plummeted downwards to an extremely unpleasant landing.
"Alright, excellent work buddy," Ran tells his starter gratefully, "I'll recall you for now, we should be far enough ahead for things to be alright at this point. Be ready to race if I bring you out of your ball again in a bit, alright?"
Receiving an accepting hiss from Caesar, Ran releases him before yet again allowing Aria to appear by his side. She's still faintly trembling from exhaustion, a clear indicator that she's been put through enough for today. Fortunately, Ran has no plans whatsoever of using her as a mount.
"Aria, can you attach a strand of webbing here and then climb down this cliffside? I just need a rope to climb down with and I'll handle things from there, I promise." He asks, hoping that she can deliver him one final piece of help.
Rather than her earlier eagerness, Aria actually walks forwards somewhat hesitantly, taking a good look at what he's asking of her, before finally chirping her assent. She produces a thick gooey wad of webbing, which gets splattered confidently against the rockface to Ran's right, before, web still attached to her abdomen by a thick thread, she starts to climb head-first down the cliff.
There's little of her earlier speed and exuberance remaining, a clear sign of just how drained she is, but Aria doesn't hesitate and continues onwards nevertheless. It's a long, tense minute before she reaches the bottom, at which point she snaps off the thread from her abdomen and looks up curiously, clearly waiting for him to get a move on.
Ran obliges without hesitation, grasping a firm hold of the silky rope, before starting to descend. He's battered and bruised and his feet don't enjoy the occasional sharp crest or crack they meet in the least, but still he doesn't rush. Because his team may be tired, but so is he and to take unnecessary risks now out of exhaustion would just be stupid.
Now that the adrenaline has gone down a bit, with Doro out of sight and comfortably behind, he can admit that his final Golbat-ride was an outright stupid thing to do. One they really shouldn't repeat again. Even if the idea of training Golbat by making him fly with heavy weights has merit, there's no reason for Ran to function as those weights. Especially not at those kinds of heights.
But those are considerations for further down the line, when he's won this race and had an opportunity to eat, shower and relax. For now, as his feet finally touch Cianwood City's sand once more, he's still got a race to win.
He turns towards the Gym, its distinct shape visible in the distance, before breaking into his final jog of the day. As he does so, he glances warily towards the exit of the hiking path in the distance. Assuming Doro didn't manage any shortcuts of her own, that's where she'll exit the cliffs.
It's on the other side of the Gym, almost equidistant to it from where he himself left the cliffs. But where Ran cut a nearly-straight line out of the cliffs from the third flag onwards, sticking to the hiking path from that point on must have added at least another full mile of distance to Doro's race, compared to his own.
With every second that passes in which her distant shape doesn't appear there, he grows increasingly confident. There's no reasonable way for her to have covered that kind of distance faster than him, leaving him confident that he's the first to have made it back to the beach. If she'd appeared on the beach shortly after him, he might have needed to ride Caesar once more to ensure that he'd make it to the Gym first. But even as he continues to get closer to the Gym, there's no sign of Doro.
Just as he's about to hit what looks to be about the halfway point, which is the point he's mentally tagged as 'no Doro, win guaranteed', she appears in the distance, stumbling out of the hiking path at a pace that's significantly reduced by the exertion she's surely put herself through to get to this point. Notably, she doesn't have her Hitmonlee running by her side any longer, instead stumbling directly towards the Gym on her lonesome.
She's no longer easily faster than him, but it still feels like anyone's race, considering how hard it is to estimate just which one of them is going to make it to the Gym first. Which means that even though he assumes that he's only got roughly half as far left to go as her, he isn't confident about his win yet. It's with a heated swear that he sends out Caesar, his starter immediately lowering the top of his body to allow Ran to leap on to him.
The landing is uncomfortable and once more assuming the same uncomfortable riding position is almost torturous, as his exhausted muscles cry out in agony. But he clings on nevertheless as Caesar bursts forwards, throwing up a few sprays of sand as he rapidly builds up speed, until they're racing forwards once more.
In the distance, Doro clearly notices them as well, but there is no further burst of speed from her, even as Caesar becomes visible. She's clearly pushed herself as hard as she possibly could. But then she seemingly takes inspiration from him again, as just before Caesar's hood fully obscures Ran's view of her, he catches a glimpse of her sending out her Hitmonchan again, which immediately kneels in a clear sign that Doro is about to get on its back.
Hitmonchan is by no means as fast as an Arbok, or so Ran assumes at least, but it still feels like it's going to be an uncomfortably close call, especially with his view of his opponent once more obstructed by Caesar's hood. Surely though, in a race between an Arbok and a Hitmonchan, there's no real way for him to lose? Or so he hopes, at least.
Caesar rushes onwards, at one point drawing a terrified scream from an older woman who chooses that moment to exit her home only to turn around and see an enormous purple snake rushing by mere feet in front of her. Ran shouts an apology, but then they're already past her, as they continue onwards to their goal.
There's a few more close calls, as despite Cianwood City's unorthodox position on the beach and its generally relaxed holiday atmosphere, it's still a city. Which, considering it's sometime around noon by this point, means a lot of people. Fortunately, Caesar shows remarkable restraint, successfully avoiding any collisions. It's following their third close call, which is the first time that the near-victim turns around and throws a string of swears at them, that Ran finally remembers that technically, you're not exactly supposed, or for that matter even allowed, to use pokémon as mounts in cities.
He can't spare that detail any thought however, as Caesar comes to a sharp halt, almost throwing his trainer off and towards the Gym doors.
Ran obliges hurriedly, forcing his objecting legs into movement as he stumbles into the Gym. He doesn't know how much of a lead Caesar managed to retain over Doro, but Chuck's words were 'waiting in my Gym', so until he has verbal confirmation that he's won from the man himself, he's not willing to risk anything.
So, when he bursts into the reception, he completely ignores the surprised trainer who was clearly in the middle of speaking to the receptionist.
"Where's Chuck?" Ran asks, almost shouting as he gets directly to the point, the adrenaline still racing through him making him forgo all manners.
The receptionist has clearly been briefed however, as she merely gestures towards the stairs, "In the same room as where you received your briefing."
Ran immediately stumbles in that direction, pained legs refusing function for just a moment before moving jerkily once more. As he ascends the stairs, behind him, the door slams open once more. He doesn't need to look back to know who's hot on his heels, but as he reaches the top of the stairs, he finally allows himself to relax, even as an amused receptionist, this time not even needing any prodding, repeats the instruction she just offered him for the benefit of Ran's chaser.
She's too late however, as he turns the corner and stumbles into the peculiar conference room, where Chuck sits at the head of the table. As the Gym leader takes him in, his eyebrows rise in evident surprise as he takes in Ran's hobbling walk and what are likely more than a few visible signs of bruising and light bleeding.
Ran doesn't let Chuck's evident surprise distract him however, instead hobbling forwards even as he faintly hears pounding feet on stairs rapidly approaching, instead swinging his backpack in front of him and frantically digging out three flags, "I'm here! Here's the flags!"
He thrusts them in Chuck's direction, one of the three fluttering out of his grip as he didn't grab it securely enough, only for his second hand to catch it before it can hit the floor. Behind him, Doro enters the room, but she's undeniably second to arrive.
"Congratulations, you are the winner of my challenge," Chuck says to him, offering an approving nod, before gesturing towards the chairs around the table, "Please, have a seat, both of you. I'll have lunch served in a minute. You both look like you could do with something hearty and healthy after all of that. Besides, I'm eager to hear you both tell your tales."
Author's Note: Race over, we have our winner! Everybody but Skorupi got to contribute, both for practical reasons and as a showcase of Ran just being a lot more familiar with his original trio and their abilities.
If you want to read ahead or feel like supporting my writing, please go and have a look at my Patreon or Ko-fi . Patreon for member benefits like 2 weeks of Early Access whereas Ko-fi is for one-off donations that go towards artwork. It's no exaggeration to say that this story and its current upload schedule are only possible thanks to Patreon, so if you have anything to spare and want this story to continue, please go and have a look, every little bit helps.
Unfortunately, a look in that direction isn't all that encouraging. The plateau he's on drops away sharply at its eastern edge, not offering any real path down as it turns directly into the deep and steep valley separating this mountain spine from the next one. On the other side of the valley, there does appear to be enough of a ledge to run along and that does run east in between two cliffs promising progress in the right direction at least. But the ledge is at least a hundred feet away and only a few feet lower than his own position.
It's an impossible shot for Aria, which leaves Golbat as the only one that could reasonably make it. Considering the distance involved and how he struggled earlier, when he could descend a lot more between point A and point B compared to the current situation, Ran is hesitant about his flying-type's ability to carry the load. He can probably do it, but at that point he'll genuinely have to retire Golbat for the rest of the day. So he'll just have to continue along the hiking path which runs roughly northeast until a better option presents itself.
Just as he comes to that conclusion, however, the decision is made for him, as Doro appears on the plateau, her arrival announced by pounding feet and loud, labored breaths. Ran can't help but glance in her direction, to take stock of his rival for the day. The sight isn't encouraging in the least, as Doro's own expression lights up when she spots him.
Her eyes catch on his bare feet, then shift to the Poliwrath that's still holding on to his shoes and then to the patiently waiting elder. Immediately, she moves to untie her shoes.
Well that's his decision made for him, then.
"Come on out, Golbat!" He orders hurriedly, even as he takes a few steps back from the ledge to enable a running start.
Golbat materializes and only needs a few moments to catch on to just what's happening, his proud screech only the slightest bit hesitant.
"Right, let me grab onto your feet and then we'll pick up speed together all the way to the ledge, alright? I'll jump to give you another foot or two of height and then you just give it your all, alright?" Ran instructs hurriedly, glancing worriedly at the center of the plateau, where Doro is already approaching the remaining flag.
Golbat screeches in confirmation, at which point Ran grabs on to his feet once more. He breaks into a run, propelled forwards by Golbat who flies above and slightly in front of him, the pair of pokémon and trainer picking up speed as they race towards the edge.
When his foot hits the edge of the cliff, he puts everything he can into propelling himself upwards and outwards, attempting the best long jump he's capable of. For just a moment, it feels like he's soaring weightlessly through the sky. Then gravity reasserts itself and he starts to fall, only for said fall to be abruptly interrupted as Golbat screams out his frustration and effort, large wings beating frantically as he carries his trainer further.
The distance to the ledge shrinks rapidly, but so too does the height they have to spare. In fact, after just a few seconds, it becomes readily apparent that Golbat won't be able to keep them above the ledge. Ran's eyes widen in fright when his ankles sink below the level of the ledge. Hurriedly, he pulls his legs up in preparation as they cross the halfway mark.
But they continue to go down too fast even with that adjustment. Golbat is clearly giving it his all, but the physical demands of what Ran is putting him through are audibly and visibly taking their toll, as despite frantic screeches and violent wingbeats, they continue to descend. When they've only got twenty or so feet left to cover, the ledge has risen up above his hips.
At ten feet, his head is below the ledge. He lets Golbat's feet go with one hand, preparing himself to grab for a handhold of some description even as his eyes frantically scan the cliff for any divots, bulges or cracks he might put his feet up against. It's only then, as he hurriedly decides where he'll attempt to grab hold of the cliff, that he realizes just how much the impact is going to hurt, considering Golbat's speed.
Golbat pours on a last heaving effort, winning them a few inches of height. Immediately, Ran lets go, falling the last foot or so towards the cliff and bleeding off some crucial speed even as Golbat shoots upwards, rather than also slamming his feet into the hard rock.
He collides harshly and painfully with the hard, weathered stone, feet and hands frantically scrabbling for any steady hand- and footholds before he can fall down the nearly completely vertical surface. His right foot catches on a thin uneven line, perhaps half-an-inch thick. Immediately, he turns his foot outwards so that he's resting on it from big toe to heel. With how thin the ledge is, only a tiny portion of the width of his foot is supported, digging painfully into the bare skin.
But it's enough of a rest for him to find stability for a precious second. His left hand just about manages to grab onto the ledge itself, which is fortunately not slick with any recent rain, actually giving him a stable enough position to try and lever himself upwards, if he really has to. But he doesn't have to. Instead, with his free hand, he cautiously brings out Caesar's pokéball, throwing it up on the ledge overhead, even as an exhausted Golbat comes to peek over the edge to cheek on his trainer.
"I'm alright Golbat, just get Caesar to lower his tail and have him wrap it around me, so that he can help pull me up!" Ran explains, even as Caesar audibly materializes on the ledge, just out of his sight.
It only takes a moment for some hurried screeching and gesticulating from Golbat to get the job done, as Caesar's head only pops into view for a moment, before his eyes widen in obvious distress. Immediately, he turns around, the final quarter of his tail coming down and wrapping under and around Ran's shoulders, before Caesar starts to slither forwards, dragging his trainer up against the cliffs. It's nowhere near as painless as his earlier efforts with Aria, but with her exhausted and given the precariousness of his position, it's perfectly sufficient.
"Thanks buddy," Ran gratefully acknowledges Caesar's efforts, once there's solid ground beneath his bare feet once more, "Sorry for the scare."
Caesar clearly isn't content to leave it at that, continuing to glare at his trainer in a clear rebuke for long seconds, before his expression finally softens, tongue coming out to taste the air for a moment as his gaze drifts to the collection of new bruises and scuffs Ran just earned himself. Glancing down to take in the damage, Ran lets out an apologetic wince.
"That'll hurt a lot when showering later today, but for now, we're in a race and even with that stunt, we're not guaranteed to win just yet." He admits, before turning his team's attention back to what really matters.
Glancing back towards the plateau for a moment, he's mildly disappointed to realize that he can't see what's happening up there, but every reasonable assumption indicates that Doro has already won her flag and is once more racing down the main path. So there's really no time left to waste. Considering his lack of shoes and the rough surface he'd be running on, he opts to immediately move on to his next gambit.
A quick moment of thanks to Golbat is all that can be spared under the circumstances, though he can tell that the exhausted Bat Pokémon is alright with it, before he's turning his attention to Caesar once more, with urgency in his voice.
"Right, we need to get back to Cianwood City Gym fast. Doro can run a lot faster and a lot longer than me, so I need you to help me out. I'm going to try and wrap my arms and legs around you and then you're going to race us out from between these cliffs and onto the beach, alright?" Ran instructs, receiving a doubtful look in turn, though at least Caesar is willing to let him try, as his starter obligingly turns to offer his trainer his back.
The position Ran settles on is wrapping his legs around Caesar's body, just under the hood, whilst Ran's arms reach up and over the top of the hood before coming down on either side of Caesar's head.
It's an even more uncomfortable position than when he was riding Aria, as where he had to make himself unpleasantly small there, here he has to put far too much power into both his leg muscles, to ensure that he doesn't start to slip down, as well as his arms, to keep them firmly planted in position. It's immediately demanding, but it's the only trick he's got left up his sleeve and so he simply orders Caesar to get going.
His impromptu mount does so without hesitation, immediately slithering forwards at a pace that's easily greater than any jog Ran can keep up for more than five minutes.
"Just follow the ledges and keep heading towards the sounds and smell of the sea, Caesar!" Ran instructs, himself unable to see where they're headed as, whilst his arms are raised up above his head to grab on to Caesar's hood, his own view is firmly blocked by that same hood.
It makes the ride even more monotonous and unpleasant, as he can only look directly to the sides, to see either the rockside they're racing alongside to his right, or the chasm between their cliff and the next one to his left. The speed at which both things are flying past is at least an indicator of just how fast Caesar is going, which is a comfort, but it leaves him with nothing to distract him from the strain he's putting his own body under.
Still, they make good time and so he does his best to tune out his body's complaints as best he can. Until, suddenly, Caesar comes to an abrupt stop.
"What's up, buddy?" Ran asks, more than happy to let go for a minute, sliding down his starter's back until his feet touch solid ground once more.
Stepping out from behind Caesar's obscuring hood, it becomes readily apparent just what the issue was.
Overhead, the sun has broken through the morning's clouds, bathing the now visible Cianwood City in golden light. Ran and Caesar stand at the end of the ledge they'd been traveling along, the cliffs abruptly dropping off down towards the beach, some twenty or thirty feet beneath them. If Caesar had continued on without pause, they'd have plummeted downwards to an extremely unpleasant landing.
"Alright, excellent work buddy," Ran tells his starter gratefully, "I'll recall you for now, we should be far enough ahead for things to be alright at this point. Be ready to race if I bring you out of your ball again in a bit, alright?"
Receiving an accepting hiss from Caesar, Ran releases him before yet again allowing Aria to appear by his side. She's still faintly trembling from exhaustion, a clear indicator that she's been put through enough for today. Fortunately, Ran has no plans whatsoever of using her as a mount.
"Aria, can you attach a strand of webbing here and then climb down this cliffside? I just need a rope to climb down with and I'll handle things from there, I promise." He asks, hoping that she can deliver him one final piece of help.
Rather than her earlier eagerness, Aria actually walks forwards somewhat hesitantly, taking a good look at what he's asking of her, before finally chirping her assent. She produces a thick gooey wad of webbing, which gets splattered confidently against the rockface to Ran's right, before, web still attached to her abdomen by a thick thread, she starts to climb head-first down the cliff.
There's little of her earlier speed and exuberance remaining, a clear sign of just how drained she is, but Aria doesn't hesitate and continues onwards nevertheless. It's a long, tense minute before she reaches the bottom, at which point she snaps off the thread from her abdomen and looks up curiously, clearly waiting for him to get a move on.
Ran obliges without hesitation, grasping a firm hold of the silky rope, before starting to descend. He's battered and bruised and his feet don't enjoy the occasional sharp crest or crack they meet in the least, but still he doesn't rush. Because his team may be tired, but so is he and to take unnecessary risks now out of exhaustion would just be stupid.
Now that the adrenaline has gone down a bit, with Doro out of sight and comfortably behind, he can admit that his final Golbat-ride was an outright stupid thing to do. One they really shouldn't repeat again. Even if the idea of training Golbat by making him fly with heavy weights has merit, there's no reason for Ran to function as those weights. Especially not at those kinds of heights.
But those are considerations for further down the line, when he's won this race and had an opportunity to eat, shower and relax. For now, as his feet finally touch Cianwood City's sand once more, he's still got a race to win.
He turns towards the Gym, its distinct shape visible in the distance, before breaking into his final jog of the day. As he does so, he glances warily towards the exit of the hiking path in the distance. Assuming Doro didn't manage any shortcuts of her own, that's where she'll exit the cliffs.
It's on the other side of the Gym, almost equidistant to it from where he himself left the cliffs. But where Ran cut a nearly-straight line out of the cliffs from the third flag onwards, sticking to the hiking path from that point on must have added at least another full mile of distance to Doro's race, compared to his own.
With every second that passes in which her distant shape doesn't appear there, he grows increasingly confident. There's no reasonable way for her to have covered that kind of distance faster than him, leaving him confident that he's the first to have made it back to the beach. If she'd appeared on the beach shortly after him, he might have needed to ride Caesar once more to ensure that he'd make it to the Gym first. But even as he continues to get closer to the Gym, there's no sign of Doro.
Just as he's about to hit what looks to be about the halfway point, which is the point he's mentally tagged as 'no Doro, win guaranteed', she appears in the distance, stumbling out of the hiking path at a pace that's significantly reduced by the exertion she's surely put herself through to get to this point. Notably, she doesn't have her Hitmonlee running by her side any longer, instead stumbling directly towards the Gym on her lonesome.
She's no longer easily faster than him, but it still feels like anyone's race, considering how hard it is to estimate just which one of them is going to make it to the Gym first. Which means that even though he assumes that he's only got roughly half as far left to go as her, he isn't confident about his win yet. It's with a heated swear that he sends out Caesar, his starter immediately lowering the top of his body to allow Ran to leap on to him.
The landing is uncomfortable and once more assuming the same uncomfortable riding position is almost torturous, as his exhausted muscles cry out in agony. But he clings on nevertheless as Caesar bursts forwards, throwing up a few sprays of sand as he rapidly builds up speed, until they're racing forwards once more.
In the distance, Doro clearly notices them as well, but there is no further burst of speed from her, even as Caesar becomes visible. She's clearly pushed herself as hard as she possibly could. But then she seemingly takes inspiration from him again, as just before Caesar's hood fully obscures Ran's view of her, he catches a glimpse of her sending out her Hitmonchan again, which immediately kneels in a clear sign that Doro is about to get on its back.
Hitmonchan is by no means as fast as an Arbok, or so Ran assumes at least, but it still feels like it's going to be an uncomfortably close call, especially with his view of his opponent once more obstructed by Caesar's hood. Surely though, in a race between an Arbok and a Hitmonchan, there's no real way for him to lose? Or so he hopes, at least.
Caesar rushes onwards, at one point drawing a terrified scream from an older woman who chooses that moment to exit her home only to turn around and see an enormous purple snake rushing by mere feet in front of her. Ran shouts an apology, but then they're already past her, as they continue onwards to their goal.
There's a few more close calls, as despite Cianwood City's unorthodox position on the beach and its generally relaxed holiday atmosphere, it's still a city. Which, considering it's sometime around noon by this point, means a lot of people. Fortunately, Caesar shows remarkable restraint, successfully avoiding any collisions. It's following their third close call, which is the first time that the near-victim turns around and throws a string of swears at them, that Ran finally remembers that technically, you're not exactly supposed, or for that matter even allowed, to use pokémon as mounts in cities.
He can't spare that detail any thought however, as Caesar comes to a sharp halt, almost throwing his trainer off and towards the Gym doors.
Ran obliges hurriedly, forcing his objecting legs into movement as he stumbles into the Gym. He doesn't know how much of a lead Caesar managed to retain over Doro, but Chuck's words were 'waiting in my Gym', so until he has verbal confirmation that he's won from the man himself, he's not willing to risk anything.
So, when he bursts into the reception, he completely ignores the surprised trainer who was clearly in the middle of speaking to the receptionist.
"Where's Chuck?" Ran asks, almost shouting as he gets directly to the point, the adrenaline still racing through him making him forgo all manners.
The receptionist has clearly been briefed however, as she merely gestures towards the stairs, "In the same room as where you received your briefing."
Ran immediately stumbles in that direction, pained legs refusing function for just a moment before moving jerkily once more. As he ascends the stairs, behind him, the door slams open once more. He doesn't need to look back to know who's hot on his heels, but as he reaches the top of the stairs, he finally allows himself to relax, even as an amused receptionist, this time not even needing any prodding, repeats the instruction she just offered him for the benefit of Ran's chaser.
She's too late however, as he turns the corner and stumbles into the peculiar conference room, where Chuck sits at the head of the table. As the Gym leader takes him in, his eyebrows rise in evident surprise as he takes in Ran's hobbling walk and what are likely more than a few visible signs of bruising and light bleeding.
Ran doesn't let Chuck's evident surprise distract him however, instead hobbling forwards even as he faintly hears pounding feet on stairs rapidly approaching, instead swinging his backpack in front of him and frantically digging out three flags, "I'm here! Here's the flags!"
He thrusts them in Chuck's direction, one of the three fluttering out of his grip as he didn't grab it securely enough, only for his second hand to catch it before it can hit the floor. Behind him, Doro enters the room, but she's undeniably second to arrive.
"Congratulations, you are the winner of my challenge," Chuck says to him, offering an approving nod, before gesturing towards the chairs around the table, "Please, have a seat, both of you. I'll have lunch served in a minute. You both look like you could do with something hearty and healthy after all of that. Besides, I'm eager to hear you both tell your tales."
Author's Note: Race over, we have our winner! Everybody but Skorupi got to contribute, both for practical reasons and as a showcase of Ran just being a lot more familiar with his original trio and their abilities.
If you want to read ahead or feel like supporting my writing, please go and have a look at my Patreon or Ko-fi . Patreon for member benefits like 2 weeks of Early Access whereas Ko-fi is for one-off donations that go towards artwork. It's no exaggeration to say that this story and its current upload schedule are only possible thanks to Patreon, so if you have anything to spare and want this story to continue, please go and have a look, every little bit helps.
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Chapter 22, part 1
- Location
- Belgium
"At which point Caesar carried me the rest of the way and I made it here just ahead of Doro." Ran finishes his tale, drawing a final approving nod from Chuck. He's received more than one throughout his tale, with Chuck having been particularly impressed by his unorthodox deal with the Gym leader's father. On the other hand, the way Ran managed to fool the first Gym trainer he ran into merely drew a disappointed groan from the experienced fighter. As for his arguably rather dangerous exploits with Golbat, those were enough to make the Gym leader turn quite pale for a few minutes.
Doro clearly isn't as impressed or affected by Ran's efforts, though she does appear to be outright indignant when Ran mentions outright lying his way past the first Gym trainer. Still, she's well-mannered enough not to openly disparage him for his decisions, allowing him to complete his story in a single go. In turn, when Chuck then finally turns his attention to her, Ran listens with a mixture of disbelief and awe as she confirms that she didn't initially intend to take a single shortcut.
Instead, she started by relying purely on her own physical ability and her team's ability to match the Gym trainers' fighting-types, set on taking the long way around. Only when she realized just how much time Ran was gaining with his approach, did she do her best to copy him, relying on her team's power and technique to overcome the challenges she encountered and ultimately coming impressively close to making up the major gap Ran opened up early on. It's mind blowing to him to hear her tell the tale, as although she's clearly pushed herself and her team to their limits, between the two of them, Doro has come out merely tired, where Ran has picked up legitimate injuries just to beat her by little more than a hair.
The end result is the same however, with him as the winner and the rightful owner of a Croagunk, and her as the loser.
With their lunch - a filling rice dish with plenty of greens and seafood mixed in - finished and their respective tales retold, Chuck finally speaks up properly once more, easily drawing both Ran and Doro's attention to him.
"It sounds like quite the spectacle. One that perfectly illustrates some of the things I'm hoping to see reflected in these Croagunk. Completely different approaches to a shared problem. In the case of your race, the result was quite close to equal, but I'm curious to see how things turn out in a dual-type pokémon." Chuck declares enthusiastically, before bringing out two pokéballs.
Twin red beams of light arc out into the room, the pair of Croagunk soon appearing in the room. Ran is immediately captivated as he examines the pair closely. The first thing that stands out is that they're of similar height, with neither having an immediate noticeable advantage in that regard. Upon closer inspection however, some differences do become apparent.
The Croagunk on his left is slightly bulkier, with its musculature noticeably more pronounced compared to the one on the right. The white bands both have running across their torso sit slightly higher on the left Croagunk as well, whilst the blue and orange colors are more vibrant on the right Croagunk compared to its fellow. Combined, it does ensure that upon anything more than a cursory examination, the differences between both pokémon are clear enough.
"Now then," Chuck lets out with a chuckle after a few seconds, finally pulling Ran's attention back to him with a good-natured smile, "Take a few minutes to make your choice, if you've got any questions, feel free to ask them. Doro, please stay around for a minute, I'd like to speak to you afterwards."
Ran nods, ignoring the other trainer in the room as he stands up and walks over to the pair of Croagunk. They reach up to roughly halfway between his knee and his hip, both Croagunk looking up at him as he approaches them.
The Croagunk on the left, the more muscular one, glares at him, stance strong and combative, as if daring him not to choose it. Considering its seemingly superior physique, he can't blame it. Still, with just how confrontational it seems, he isn't too enthusiastic about the first impression it makes on him.
So he looks to the Croagunk on the right, whose cheek sacs inflate for a moment as itraises a hand in a lazy wave, a ribbit that sounds suspiciously close to 'hello' coming out.
Caught off guard, Ran can't help an instinctive snort of laughter. Which just gets the Croagunk to mimic him, which only further increases Ran's mood.
Ultimately, it's an easy decision.
"This one, please." Ran says, one hand gesturing towards the Croagunk on the right, who waves merrily at Chuck in affirmation, even as the other Croagunk crosses its arms and glares at them both mulishly.
"Very well, here you go," Chuck announces, throwing Ran the corresponding pokéball, "He's a male and he knows Mud-Slap, Astonish, Poison Sting, Taunt, Venoshock, Sucker Punch, Low Kick and Brick Break."
Ran catches the ball with a grin, offering his new team member an enthusiastic smile, which is met with another wave from Croagunk, before he recalls him for now.
Before he can get around to thanking Chuck, however, the old Gym leader speaks up once more.
"Now that you've made your selection, Doro, I'd like to offer you the remaining Croagunk." Chuck announces, attention shifting from Ran to the other trainer still lingering in the room.
In a matter of seconds, Ran's good mood evaporates.
"I don't understand." Doro replies in evident surprise, giving a polite and highly-censored voice to the thoughts running through Ran's own mind.
"Ha," Chuck barks out a laugh, before sobering, "Fair enough. Simply put, I told a bit of a lie when I told you that only the winner would be getting a Croagunk. I wanted to see both of you go all out, to get a real idea of your respective characters and what you can do. In truth, any study between these two Croagunk would be completely worthless if one of them is trained by me, an experienced and full-time Gym Leader, and the other is trained by an unsponsored rookie."
Chuck continues easily, once more on a roll as he continues to explain, "So, assuming you both performed well in my challenge, which you did, I always intended to offer the winner first pick, whilst offering the loser the remaining Croagunk. The condition of a short weekly report remains of course, as I do genuinely want to be able to compare both Croagunk's respective progress."
He falls silent then, leaving Ran to stare at him in disbelief, even as Doro nods pensively for a few moments, before looking up to meet Chuck's eyes.
"I understand and I accept." She declares, her attention only remaining on Chuck long enough for her to catch the pokéball he throws her, before her attention turns to the remaining Croagunk, who appears no less standoffish than she did when Ran approached her.
Ran would like to pay attention to the first meeting between trainer and pokémon, but sound and focus fade away as instead the pounding of his own blood in his ears overpowers everything. He stands completely motionless as he furiously processes just what Chuck just told them.
His explanation sounds believable enough, all things considered. But it isn't fair! He put everything he had into that race, risking his health, even his life, to ensure that he'd win! All to hear that in the end they both get a Croagunk?
No, he doesn't buy it.
This is all a ploy by Chuck to give the fighting-type trainer, whom he obviously favors over Ran because of their respective specialties, a Croagunk too. If things had ended up the other way around, with Doro winning and Ran coming second, he definitely wouldn't have gotten the unchosen Croagunk. This whole story about testing their characters and comparing the Croagunk between equal trainers is a fabrication made up on the fly to cover for the fact that he's being cheated!
He stews over those thoughts, anger roiling in his gut, for multiple minutes. It explains the lunch as well, as Chuck must have thought of it on the fly in order to play for time as he had to come up with a believable excuse for why he'd give away both Croagunk rather than just hanging on to one of them.
Before he can ponder the matter any further, he's brought out of his thoughts by Doro suddenly stepping towards him, her hand extended for a shake, "Congratulations on your win. Though your approach was very different to my own, you proved that it was effective. I look forward to competing against you. Considering how close our race was, I am sure that we will both learn a lot from the experience."
For a moment, his lingering anger tells him to slap her hand away and storm out.
He doesn't, however. The genuine look in her eyes and the respect in her voice are enough to keep him calm. And, when he actually thinks on it, he begrudgingly has to admit that he can't blame Doro for accepting Chuck's offer, as she'd have been a fool not to accept. He'd have done the same thing if their roles were reversed.
So he grasps her hand with his own and, in a great effort, manages to ignore the acrid burning taste at the back of his throat as he acknowledges her words politely, "Thanks. You really pushed us to our limits, I look forward to our next contest."
"Good!" Doro declares decisively, "Tomorrow, we shall battle!"
Her confidence catches him off guard for a moment, but the prospect of a good battle is just what he needs to take his mind off of the lingering resentment towards Chuck, who still remains in the room, waiting to draw their attention back to himself once more.
"Sure, that sounds fun." Ran agrees easily, "Are you staying at the pokécenter, or do you want to exchange numbers?"
Before Doro can reply, Chuck clears his throat, drawing their attention back to him. Immediately, the lingering anger Ran still feels flashes hot once more, but he manages to keep his expression neutral as the Gym leader speaks.
"I'll have my staff send you a message with an instruction manual for your weekly reports. You both did impressive work today, I honestly didn't expect either of you to make it back in time for a proper lunch. I wish you both good luck in your journeys and look forward to your challenges. For now, however, I still have two challenges scheduled for this afternoon, so I'll have to ask you both to head downstairs now." He informs them, gesturing towards the door to further reinforce his message.
There's little they can say to that, so Ran merely nods tightly before heading directly for the door, only barely remembering his manners and pausing to allow Doro to leave the room ahead of him. Which is a decision he immediately gets a reward for, as he receives a visual reminder of the benefits of leggings.
Any slight flushing of the face he might or might not experience as he descends the stairs back down to the Gym's lobby can surely still be excused by the physical exertion from the race. Or at least that's what he tells himself, as Doro turns to face him once more when they've both moved out of the way slightly to ensure that they're not blocking the stairs.
She doesn't outwardly show any response to the slight heat he feels in his cheeks, saving his dignity as she instead brings up her pokégear. When she speaks, it's to the point, but not unfriendly, "If you give me your number, I'll message you later. I'm going for a cooldown run on the beach before returning to the pokécenter, so I believe this is the easiest way to handle things."
"Sure thing." Ran accepts, before rattling off his number swiftly.
Once Doro has entered it into her pokégear and repeated it back to him, they say their goodbyes, before going their separate ways. Because while Doro might want to get a run in, Ran needs to get himself somewhere private and in front of a mirror, to finally get a proper look at just what he did to himself in his rather risky approach to the race.
So he returns to the pokécenter, where he's pleasantly surprised to find his shoes and stinky socks waiting for him, as apparently Chuck's father stopped by to hand them in at the reception desk. It's a pleasant find, but one that doesn't delay his decision to turn both Aria and Golbat in for a check-up, considering the strain he put them through, before heading directly for his room. The following half hour isn't pleasant.
In short order, he gets rid of his dirty clothes before ducking into the shower. The hot water agitates the many small cuts and abrasions he picked up as they painfully make their presence known. Once he's been properly soaked and lathered up with soap to the point that he doesn't smell like sweat any more, the next step after drying off is actually taking proper stock of just what he inflicted on himself.
Ultimately, he doesn't think the damage report is too bad. Sure, his torso is a motley array of blues and purples as bruises of varying sizes compete for real estate, but with the shower having washed away the already dried blood from the relatively few cuts and abrasions he picked up, it really doesn't look too bad. Admittedly, bending down to dry his lower legs and feet is a rather painful experience, but in a few days, they'll be old injuries. So long as he doesn't touch them, they probably won't even bother him by tomorrow.
Just to be safe, he still rubs some ointment on some of the worst bruises, settling down on his bed to let them soak into the skin for a while before redressing. He's tempted to let out Croagunk for a proper first meeting, but with two of his team members absent for the moment, he decides to hold off. Instead, he just releases Caesar and Skorupi for now.
Skorupi immediately rushes towards him eagerly, clearly looking to latch on, before pausing as he gets a good look at his trainer. For a few seconds, he actually appears hesitant and doubtful, but once Ran offers him a reassuring smile, he simply switches targets. Instead of continuing on towards Ran's torso, he instead climbs on to his trainer's legs, enthusiastically latching on there before turning to face Ran once more, staring at his battered upper body unblinkingly.
Caesar is less eager in his greeting, merely examining his trainer from head to toe before settling down on the large pokémon bed with a stern look and a warning hiss. Ran waves him off however, not needing the reprimand. Sure, he got roughed up a bit, but in the end, he did make it through as the winner and the reward is an exotic pokémon who'll make a fine fifth member to his team.
Admittedly, he probably shouldn't try to let Golbat carry him anywhere for a while, but today was a proof of concept at the very least. Golbat still has a lot of room for growth left, not to mention the evolution he's still capable of, somewhere down the line. Though Ran doesn't plan to hang on to the flying-type with his hands for significant distances, they were still successful enough for him to want to explore the thought of flying with Golbat further… Perhaps they could practice above a soft landing surface to start, rather than risking heights and deep chasms again any time soon.
Drawn out of his thoughts by an inquisitive hiss from Caesar, Ran spends a few minutes fully catching up both of his present pokémon, before sagging back against his bed once more. It's been a demanding day and they've still got training to get to later on, but for the moment, he can't muster the will to get up from his bed. Instead, he opens up his pokégear to occupy himself with for a while.
He's curious about both of his former companions, but messaging either of them is not an option. Spencer because, frankly, Ran doesn't have anything to say to that ass. Josie… There's actually a lot he'd like to say to her at the moment, but her wishes were clear and he'd be a poor friend if he didn't respect them. So both of those options are out.
Of course he can and does send an update to his dad, but he already knows that the reply, when it comes later that evening when the man's done working, will just boil down to a variation of 'proud of you, keep it up!'.
So once that's done, he really doesn't have too many options left. In truth, there's really only one. Thus, he opens up his chat with Grady, hesitating for a few seconds as he figures out a good opener and then starts typing.
Ran: Yo Grady, how's things on your end?
He spends two minutes regretting his chosen words, only able to keep looking at them and keep finding them more cringeworthy with every new read. But then, his pokégear vibrates with an incoming message and, upon reading Grady's eager reply, his self doubt evaporates.
Grady: Hey! Super great! I beat Whitney yesterday! She got me a Thunder Stone so now my Eevee's a Jolteon!!!
Ran: Congrats, that's huge, on both counts. If you've got the time, I'd be happy to read the recap! First, though, are you still in Goldenrod or are you back on the road? Coming to Cianwood by any chance?
Grady: I'm still in Goldenrod for the day because my family is throwing a party for me winning my third badge! Tomorrow, I'm actually setting out for Ecruteak instead of Cianwood, sorry! How are you doing over there?
Ran: I'm doing well. I got a bit banged up in a race against another rookie trainer, which was organized by Gym Leader Chuck. But I beat her and I've added a fifth team member as a result, because that was the reward Chuck had on offer.
Grady: Whoa really?! That's totally super awesome!
Grady: What kind of pokémon??
Grady: I thought you were specializing in poison-types???
As Ran's pokégear starts vibrating increasingly incessantly again as Grady gets worked up, he starts typing another brief message to remind the other boy to mind the spam. Before he can even get halfway through typing it up however, Grady's next message comes in.
Grady: Sorry about the spam! I got excited. I'll calm down now.
Ran: Thanks. It's a Croagunk, which is from Sinnoh and it's a poison-fighting dual-type.
Ran: But I only won it an hour ago and I haven't even introduced the rest of my team to it, so a proper update will have to wait. How about you tell me about your match against Whitney first?
Grady: Sure thing! It was epic!
Ran leans back with an amused smile against his bed, as he waits for the first of what promises to be a series of effusively long messages. He doesn't find himself minding however, especially not when Caesar and Skorupi are both happily dozing nearby.
Author's Note: Ran Carr the rancorous strikes again. A 'twist' that got called out by more than a few, though those that pay close attention to wording will note that Chuck didn't lie about the core premise of 'choosing' a Croagunk.
If you want to read ahead or feel like supporting my writing, please go and have a look at my Patreon or Ko-fi . Patreon for member benefits like 2 weeks of Early Access whereas Ko-fi is for one-off donations that go towards artwork. It's no exaggeration to say that this story and its current upload schedule are only possible thanks to Patreon, so if you have anything to spare and want this story to continue, please go and have a look, every little bit helps.
Doro clearly isn't as impressed or affected by Ran's efforts, though she does appear to be outright indignant when Ran mentions outright lying his way past the first Gym trainer. Still, she's well-mannered enough not to openly disparage him for his decisions, allowing him to complete his story in a single go. In turn, when Chuck then finally turns his attention to her, Ran listens with a mixture of disbelief and awe as she confirms that she didn't initially intend to take a single shortcut.
Instead, she started by relying purely on her own physical ability and her team's ability to match the Gym trainers' fighting-types, set on taking the long way around. Only when she realized just how much time Ran was gaining with his approach, did she do her best to copy him, relying on her team's power and technique to overcome the challenges she encountered and ultimately coming impressively close to making up the major gap Ran opened up early on. It's mind blowing to him to hear her tell the tale, as although she's clearly pushed herself and her team to their limits, between the two of them, Doro has come out merely tired, where Ran has picked up legitimate injuries just to beat her by little more than a hair.
The end result is the same however, with him as the winner and the rightful owner of a Croagunk, and her as the loser.
With their lunch - a filling rice dish with plenty of greens and seafood mixed in - finished and their respective tales retold, Chuck finally speaks up properly once more, easily drawing both Ran and Doro's attention to him.
"It sounds like quite the spectacle. One that perfectly illustrates some of the things I'm hoping to see reflected in these Croagunk. Completely different approaches to a shared problem. In the case of your race, the result was quite close to equal, but I'm curious to see how things turn out in a dual-type pokémon." Chuck declares enthusiastically, before bringing out two pokéballs.
Twin red beams of light arc out into the room, the pair of Croagunk soon appearing in the room. Ran is immediately captivated as he examines the pair closely. The first thing that stands out is that they're of similar height, with neither having an immediate noticeable advantage in that regard. Upon closer inspection however, some differences do become apparent.
The Croagunk on his left is slightly bulkier, with its musculature noticeably more pronounced compared to the one on the right. The white bands both have running across their torso sit slightly higher on the left Croagunk as well, whilst the blue and orange colors are more vibrant on the right Croagunk compared to its fellow. Combined, it does ensure that upon anything more than a cursory examination, the differences between both pokémon are clear enough.
"Now then," Chuck lets out with a chuckle after a few seconds, finally pulling Ran's attention back to him with a good-natured smile, "Take a few minutes to make your choice, if you've got any questions, feel free to ask them. Doro, please stay around for a minute, I'd like to speak to you afterwards."
Ran nods, ignoring the other trainer in the room as he stands up and walks over to the pair of Croagunk. They reach up to roughly halfway between his knee and his hip, both Croagunk looking up at him as he approaches them.
The Croagunk on the left, the more muscular one, glares at him, stance strong and combative, as if daring him not to choose it. Considering its seemingly superior physique, he can't blame it. Still, with just how confrontational it seems, he isn't too enthusiastic about the first impression it makes on him.
So he looks to the Croagunk on the right, whose cheek sacs inflate for a moment as itraises a hand in a lazy wave, a ribbit that sounds suspiciously close to 'hello' coming out.
Caught off guard, Ran can't help an instinctive snort of laughter. Which just gets the Croagunk to mimic him, which only further increases Ran's mood.
Ultimately, it's an easy decision.
"This one, please." Ran says, one hand gesturing towards the Croagunk on the right, who waves merrily at Chuck in affirmation, even as the other Croagunk crosses its arms and glares at them both mulishly.
"Very well, here you go," Chuck announces, throwing Ran the corresponding pokéball, "He's a male and he knows Mud-Slap, Astonish, Poison Sting, Taunt, Venoshock, Sucker Punch, Low Kick and Brick Break."
Ran catches the ball with a grin, offering his new team member an enthusiastic smile, which is met with another wave from Croagunk, before he recalls him for now.
Before he can get around to thanking Chuck, however, the old Gym leader speaks up once more.
"Now that you've made your selection, Doro, I'd like to offer you the remaining Croagunk." Chuck announces, attention shifting from Ran to the other trainer still lingering in the room.
In a matter of seconds, Ran's good mood evaporates.
"I don't understand." Doro replies in evident surprise, giving a polite and highly-censored voice to the thoughts running through Ran's own mind.
"Ha," Chuck barks out a laugh, before sobering, "Fair enough. Simply put, I told a bit of a lie when I told you that only the winner would be getting a Croagunk. I wanted to see both of you go all out, to get a real idea of your respective characters and what you can do. In truth, any study between these two Croagunk would be completely worthless if one of them is trained by me, an experienced and full-time Gym Leader, and the other is trained by an unsponsored rookie."
Chuck continues easily, once more on a roll as he continues to explain, "So, assuming you both performed well in my challenge, which you did, I always intended to offer the winner first pick, whilst offering the loser the remaining Croagunk. The condition of a short weekly report remains of course, as I do genuinely want to be able to compare both Croagunk's respective progress."
He falls silent then, leaving Ran to stare at him in disbelief, even as Doro nods pensively for a few moments, before looking up to meet Chuck's eyes.
"I understand and I accept." She declares, her attention only remaining on Chuck long enough for her to catch the pokéball he throws her, before her attention turns to the remaining Croagunk, who appears no less standoffish than she did when Ran approached her.
Ran would like to pay attention to the first meeting between trainer and pokémon, but sound and focus fade away as instead the pounding of his own blood in his ears overpowers everything. He stands completely motionless as he furiously processes just what Chuck just told them.
His explanation sounds believable enough, all things considered. But it isn't fair! He put everything he had into that race, risking his health, even his life, to ensure that he'd win! All to hear that in the end they both get a Croagunk?
No, he doesn't buy it.
This is all a ploy by Chuck to give the fighting-type trainer, whom he obviously favors over Ran because of their respective specialties, a Croagunk too. If things had ended up the other way around, with Doro winning and Ran coming second, he definitely wouldn't have gotten the unchosen Croagunk. This whole story about testing their characters and comparing the Croagunk between equal trainers is a fabrication made up on the fly to cover for the fact that he's being cheated!
He stews over those thoughts, anger roiling in his gut, for multiple minutes. It explains the lunch as well, as Chuck must have thought of it on the fly in order to play for time as he had to come up with a believable excuse for why he'd give away both Croagunk rather than just hanging on to one of them.
Before he can ponder the matter any further, he's brought out of his thoughts by Doro suddenly stepping towards him, her hand extended for a shake, "Congratulations on your win. Though your approach was very different to my own, you proved that it was effective. I look forward to competing against you. Considering how close our race was, I am sure that we will both learn a lot from the experience."
For a moment, his lingering anger tells him to slap her hand away and storm out.
He doesn't, however. The genuine look in her eyes and the respect in her voice are enough to keep him calm. And, when he actually thinks on it, he begrudgingly has to admit that he can't blame Doro for accepting Chuck's offer, as she'd have been a fool not to accept. He'd have done the same thing if their roles were reversed.
So he grasps her hand with his own and, in a great effort, manages to ignore the acrid burning taste at the back of his throat as he acknowledges her words politely, "Thanks. You really pushed us to our limits, I look forward to our next contest."
"Good!" Doro declares decisively, "Tomorrow, we shall battle!"
Her confidence catches him off guard for a moment, but the prospect of a good battle is just what he needs to take his mind off of the lingering resentment towards Chuck, who still remains in the room, waiting to draw their attention back to himself once more.
"Sure, that sounds fun." Ran agrees easily, "Are you staying at the pokécenter, or do you want to exchange numbers?"
Before Doro can reply, Chuck clears his throat, drawing their attention back to him. Immediately, the lingering anger Ran still feels flashes hot once more, but he manages to keep his expression neutral as the Gym leader speaks.
"I'll have my staff send you a message with an instruction manual for your weekly reports. You both did impressive work today, I honestly didn't expect either of you to make it back in time for a proper lunch. I wish you both good luck in your journeys and look forward to your challenges. For now, however, I still have two challenges scheduled for this afternoon, so I'll have to ask you both to head downstairs now." He informs them, gesturing towards the door to further reinforce his message.
There's little they can say to that, so Ran merely nods tightly before heading directly for the door, only barely remembering his manners and pausing to allow Doro to leave the room ahead of him. Which is a decision he immediately gets a reward for, as he receives a visual reminder of the benefits of leggings.
Any slight flushing of the face he might or might not experience as he descends the stairs back down to the Gym's lobby can surely still be excused by the physical exertion from the race. Or at least that's what he tells himself, as Doro turns to face him once more when they've both moved out of the way slightly to ensure that they're not blocking the stairs.
She doesn't outwardly show any response to the slight heat he feels in his cheeks, saving his dignity as she instead brings up her pokégear. When she speaks, it's to the point, but not unfriendly, "If you give me your number, I'll message you later. I'm going for a cooldown run on the beach before returning to the pokécenter, so I believe this is the easiest way to handle things."
"Sure thing." Ran accepts, before rattling off his number swiftly.
Once Doro has entered it into her pokégear and repeated it back to him, they say their goodbyes, before going their separate ways. Because while Doro might want to get a run in, Ran needs to get himself somewhere private and in front of a mirror, to finally get a proper look at just what he did to himself in his rather risky approach to the race.
So he returns to the pokécenter, where he's pleasantly surprised to find his shoes and stinky socks waiting for him, as apparently Chuck's father stopped by to hand them in at the reception desk. It's a pleasant find, but one that doesn't delay his decision to turn both Aria and Golbat in for a check-up, considering the strain he put them through, before heading directly for his room. The following half hour isn't pleasant.
In short order, he gets rid of his dirty clothes before ducking into the shower. The hot water agitates the many small cuts and abrasions he picked up as they painfully make their presence known. Once he's been properly soaked and lathered up with soap to the point that he doesn't smell like sweat any more, the next step after drying off is actually taking proper stock of just what he inflicted on himself.
Ultimately, he doesn't think the damage report is too bad. Sure, his torso is a motley array of blues and purples as bruises of varying sizes compete for real estate, but with the shower having washed away the already dried blood from the relatively few cuts and abrasions he picked up, it really doesn't look too bad. Admittedly, bending down to dry his lower legs and feet is a rather painful experience, but in a few days, they'll be old injuries. So long as he doesn't touch them, they probably won't even bother him by tomorrow.
Just to be safe, he still rubs some ointment on some of the worst bruises, settling down on his bed to let them soak into the skin for a while before redressing. He's tempted to let out Croagunk for a proper first meeting, but with two of his team members absent for the moment, he decides to hold off. Instead, he just releases Caesar and Skorupi for now.
Skorupi immediately rushes towards him eagerly, clearly looking to latch on, before pausing as he gets a good look at his trainer. For a few seconds, he actually appears hesitant and doubtful, but once Ran offers him a reassuring smile, he simply switches targets. Instead of continuing on towards Ran's torso, he instead climbs on to his trainer's legs, enthusiastically latching on there before turning to face Ran once more, staring at his battered upper body unblinkingly.
Caesar is less eager in his greeting, merely examining his trainer from head to toe before settling down on the large pokémon bed with a stern look and a warning hiss. Ran waves him off however, not needing the reprimand. Sure, he got roughed up a bit, but in the end, he did make it through as the winner and the reward is an exotic pokémon who'll make a fine fifth member to his team.
Admittedly, he probably shouldn't try to let Golbat carry him anywhere for a while, but today was a proof of concept at the very least. Golbat still has a lot of room for growth left, not to mention the evolution he's still capable of, somewhere down the line. Though Ran doesn't plan to hang on to the flying-type with his hands for significant distances, they were still successful enough for him to want to explore the thought of flying with Golbat further… Perhaps they could practice above a soft landing surface to start, rather than risking heights and deep chasms again any time soon.
Drawn out of his thoughts by an inquisitive hiss from Caesar, Ran spends a few minutes fully catching up both of his present pokémon, before sagging back against his bed once more. It's been a demanding day and they've still got training to get to later on, but for the moment, he can't muster the will to get up from his bed. Instead, he opens up his pokégear to occupy himself with for a while.
He's curious about both of his former companions, but messaging either of them is not an option. Spencer because, frankly, Ran doesn't have anything to say to that ass. Josie… There's actually a lot he'd like to say to her at the moment, but her wishes were clear and he'd be a poor friend if he didn't respect them. So both of those options are out.
Of course he can and does send an update to his dad, but he already knows that the reply, when it comes later that evening when the man's done working, will just boil down to a variation of 'proud of you, keep it up!'.
So once that's done, he really doesn't have too many options left. In truth, there's really only one. Thus, he opens up his chat with Grady, hesitating for a few seconds as he figures out a good opener and then starts typing.
Ran: Yo Grady, how's things on your end?
He spends two minutes regretting his chosen words, only able to keep looking at them and keep finding them more cringeworthy with every new read. But then, his pokégear vibrates with an incoming message and, upon reading Grady's eager reply, his self doubt evaporates.
Grady: Hey! Super great! I beat Whitney yesterday! She got me a Thunder Stone so now my Eevee's a Jolteon!!!
Ran: Congrats, that's huge, on both counts. If you've got the time, I'd be happy to read the recap! First, though, are you still in Goldenrod or are you back on the road? Coming to Cianwood by any chance?
Grady: I'm still in Goldenrod for the day because my family is throwing a party for me winning my third badge! Tomorrow, I'm actually setting out for Ecruteak instead of Cianwood, sorry! How are you doing over there?
Ran: I'm doing well. I got a bit banged up in a race against another rookie trainer, which was organized by Gym Leader Chuck. But I beat her and I've added a fifth team member as a result, because that was the reward Chuck had on offer.
Grady: Whoa really?! That's totally super awesome!
Grady: What kind of pokémon??
Grady: I thought you were specializing in poison-types???
As Ran's pokégear starts vibrating increasingly incessantly again as Grady gets worked up, he starts typing another brief message to remind the other boy to mind the spam. Before he can even get halfway through typing it up however, Grady's next message comes in.
Grady: Sorry about the spam! I got excited. I'll calm down now.
Ran: Thanks. It's a Croagunk, which is from Sinnoh and it's a poison-fighting dual-type.
Ran: But I only won it an hour ago and I haven't even introduced the rest of my team to it, so a proper update will have to wait. How about you tell me about your match against Whitney first?
Grady: Sure thing! It was epic!
Ran leans back with an amused smile against his bed, as he waits for the first of what promises to be a series of effusively long messages. He doesn't find himself minding however, especially not when Caesar and Skorupi are both happily dozing nearby.
Author's Note: Ran Carr the rancorous strikes again. A 'twist' that got called out by more than a few, though those that pay close attention to wording will note that Chuck didn't lie about the core premise of 'choosing' a Croagunk.
If you want to read ahead or feel like supporting my writing, please go and have a look at my Patreon or Ko-fi . Patreon for member benefits like 2 weeks of Early Access whereas Ko-fi is for one-off donations that go towards artwork. It's no exaggeration to say that this story and its current upload schedule are only possible thanks to Patreon, so if you have anything to spare and want this story to continue, please go and have a look, every little bit helps.
Last edited:
TimEd
Meteor maker
Yep. First read was correct then. I had my doubts somewhere after the pitch was given, but the race really showed me that even baring any of Chuck's original intent, this was the clearly better answer.
I'm sure Grady really appreciated Ran reaching out to him.
Here's a thought I just had. We've not really had a lot of actually named characters yet, but is Whitney's brother the only non-type specialist we've been shown?
I'm sure Grady really appreciated Ran reaching out to him.
Here's a thought I just had. We've not really had a lot of actually named characters yet, but is Whitney's brother the only non-type specialist we've been shown?