Yeah a problem for the princess after she loses a battle to us
-
For all readers and writers
After much ado, our new tagging system is here and being rolled out to the userbase. Read more here!
Trails of Tera Steel (Kiseki-inspired Pokemon Academy Quest)
- Thread starter ArvisPresley
- Start date
- Location
- England
...That's something I definitely skimmed over. And I find the implications here... concerning.
The noise broke Renne's control over the Well. The Well being the incredible psychic power that all Espurr have to contain to avoid blasting everything in a three hundred foot radius.
She didn't lose access, she lost control. So whatever was done to her didn't just make her weak and easy to capture. It made her a devastating maelstrom of destructive psychic force. Quite possibly around her family.
I do hope she still has family alive, and if she has slightly less of it than she remembers, I hope the rest don't blame her.
Well, Pokémon speech avoids language barriers. So I've always felt it was more interpretational? They convey the meaning, and what Renne reads Roland's dialogue as is simply the way she would phrase the meaning he conveyed.
'Listen up, meanie. Best friend is gonna distract meanie ghost while you run away. Or not. You're too dumb to make it without her anyhow.' -> "Dreep dreep" -> [Listen, insult-name, Mariana, distract Mismagius, you run or don't, you won't make it] -> "Espurr Purr" -> 'Rejoice, ungrateful one. My human has decided to allow you to attempt an escape. She will distract the Sorrowful Jubilee as best she can. Leave or stay. I care not which, though I doubt you'll make it.'
Or something along those vague lines is always how I imagine Poké to Poké communication functioning. Though that's probably not Roland's personality at all.
Last edited:
KnownParadox
Not a sphere
- Location
- Canada
I hope there's a Tournemant or something going around at some point, our training method of practicing alone or punching up means we won't get many opportunities to fight equals or weaker opponents outside of the round robins with our class. Mariana deserves to bully some weaker trainers for prize money at some point, as a treat.Yeah a problem for the princess after she loses a battle to us
Doing tournaments would also mean publicity for us, and potential sponsors and their sponsorship money.
- Location
- England
Not sure if Mesagoza Academy would be a big fan of us getting outside sponsors. Only room for one logo on our uniform, and it certainly isn't Silph Co's.
Nor would companies that want to advertise to your typical trainer want to sponsor someone who your typical trainer has a poor opinion of thanks to that whole divide between Mesagoza Students and regular trainers.
- Pronouns
- He/They/She
Mm, Paldea's definitely less Professional Sports than Galar is (was? The biggest sponsor just got nationalized) but there's definitely room for outside support beyond the Academy and the implicit support of trainer families you see with Doña de Medali and Señorita Mendoza. One of the background options was about getting legitimate sponsorship on the expectation of performance in League battles, after all.
- Location
- England
This one?
Because this doesn't read like a corporate sponsorship to me. This isn't an "Attach our name to yours so when your name gets out, ours does to" deal. This looks like "I see potential in you, and I want that potential realized for some reason" (Expectation that we'd repay the favour when we can kick untold quantities of ass, or some more complex reason, or maybe they just hate to see potential squandered).
Especially considering "they sometimes drop genuinely good advice and nuggets of what you think might be government secrets." is in there. That's not typical corpo stuff.
This isn't just a business, but someone Genuinely Important™. Considering the political situation, I'd imagine either upper nobility or Elite Four. The people who have real sway.
This just feels like the Gaius option. At least, when combined with Andosin Highlands. Gaius made it to Thors because Zechs Vander recommended him. I could see a higher up in the Andosin Confederation doing a Politics™ to either undercut or support Eri or maybe Mary making a good impression on Hassel? Those both feel much more like what that option describes than a company backing us from before we ever even got a Pokémon.
Last edited:
- Pronouns
- He/They/She
Hm. By process of elimination that probably actually is the Elite Four or some other proxy of the Geeta faction, since Stranger of Paradise was the illegal conspiracy option and nobles had two backgrounds of their own. I could definitely see Rika or Hassel doing it. Or Larry since everyone makes him do their work anyway.
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Isn't this Erika's background, and was revealed that the Sponsor in her case was Rika?
Ok that's definitely not damning information, but the implication that Rika knows Erika enough that she could give Leaf a heads up on Erika's "foot-in-mouth syndrome" made me think that Rika was Erika's sponsor here.
- Pronouns
- He/They/She
Yeah, actually, that was previous conjecture I'd lost track of (partially exacerbated by the ambiguity of the name "Rika"). So...corporate sponsorships maybe not, but we do have probable instances of the League higher-ups themselves giving a hand up for reasons we don't know yet.
KnownParadox
Not a sphere
- Location
- Canada
While the latter is an issue, I don't think the school uniform thing is a big of an issue as it appears. Because mainly we don't have to wear our uniform 24/7? If it isn't school business we can just put on other clothes, such as branded wear for a big company who'd like a talented trainer to advertise for them at highly televised events like tournaments or something. As well as just generally doing ads on a set.
Would it be something Mariana would like to do? I dunno actually.
I think Mariana would accept a sponsorship as long as the terms were fair and they don't force her to say the brand name every 3 hours ot something equally goofy lol. Besides her new buddies would be able to parse whether a contract was good or not I would assume
KnownParadox
Not a sphere
- Location
- Canada
The main pro/con I feel would be the major anxiety she'd feel about representing something much larger than herself and the need to perform well and act right or face consequences.
Which, y'know, does seem to be the thing we go for, if it's funny.
Ah true didn't think about that. Maybe by the time we get an offer we'd have built Marianna's confidence up with a couple of badges and a hefty K/D ratio in trainer battles 🤞
- Pronouns
- He/They/She
Alright I've done the ritual twice now, so one more invoke-update from me before I go to bed for the night: Miniboss Music
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qnpg9Zc3_iE
Possibly my favorite music Trails has for the particular slot of mini-boss/chest monster/fixed encounter, although I do have to shout out the equivalent from Sky FC just for its over-the-top intro. Featuring Eliot going ham on the violin, presumably.
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qnpg9Zc3_iE
Possibly my favorite music Trails has for the particular slot of mini-boss/chest monster/fixed encounter, although I do have to shout out the equivalent from Sky FC just for its over-the-top intro. Featuring Eliot going ham on the violin, presumably.
Toaster cult
I Am An Imaginary Living Body
- Location
- Tokyo
- Pronouns
- She/Her
letting my party member hit low health just to feel something
StattStatt
Supplier of suspenders for your disbelief
- Location
- On one of your shoulders
- Pronouns
- He/Him
- Pronouns
- He/They/She
The low HP music is always good too, but I posted that as a bit during our first Nemona fight
Field Exercise I: Tuesday End "vs. Auxiliary Drilbur"
New
- Location
- Makati Prefecture, Luzon SSR, RK Philipinnes
[X] Drilbur
Drilbur felt the humans before she saw them, the thump thump thumping of their feet on the ground. From how the thumping sounded (she remembers how Mama taught her) there's four of them and one is a small human. She peeks up from her hole, a small gap just for her eyes, to see the humans walking along the path.
There were four of them, which means she remembered her Mama's lessons well. One of them was a small human with a weird white arm-looking Pokemon next to them. Floating behind the humans was the target, one of the weird light-thingies the Pawniards and Arons like to eat.
Flying above was a spooky ghost which she's never seen before, she can tell it was a ghost from how they smelled. They were flying-fighting next to a Murkrow, she wonders what they're doing out during the morning. The rest of the Pokemon she doesn't know, which is not fun, she does smell fire on the fluffy looking one with the stick. Hopefully Commander Blue is okay with that, so she can get her reward.
Drilbur burrows back to the camp around the broken light-thingy, thinking about gnawing on one of the Naclis all the while.
"You are certain your report is accurate, Auxiliary Drilbur?" She nods to the questions from Commander Blue, she calls him that cause unlike the other Pawniards he's blue. The other Pawniards say that he got it from his Papa, a Bisharp, the boss of all the Pawniards around her home. Mama is right, others say the neatest things if they think you're not listening.
The camp was near where the light-thingy was built and thus the road the humans go through. The sheer size of the battalion, dozens of Pawniard strong, not even including the Arons and Naclis or herself. Near the path was a small little forest that leads to the cave entrances of her home.
The camp itself consisted of rocks and stone that the Pawniards use for tables and chairs. She's spent a week here now alongside the battalion, her job consists of seeing any approaching humans and saying if they're too strong to fight. Most of the humans prior to this group were pretty weak with only one or two Pokemon.
"My liege, the presence of a Fire type and a strong enough Psychic to carry one of the lights might suggest that this force is beyond us—not that I doubt your skill of course." One of the Pawniards says to Commander Blue. It's the really smart one that can read the human words like Mama can. He always sends her on the best missions!
"Enough, you sycophant! This is the entire reason we've camped here! These humans would be a fitting test to my rise above my squabbling siblings. I alone am the only one fitting to take Father's mantle." Drilbur nods in support, all the other Blue Pawniards are meanies. The other Pawniards say they got way worse after the boss Bisharp went missing. Commander Blue is the only one nice to her, he even lets her gnaw on the Naclis!
"Ready the force for battle, we will prepare an ambush!" The other Pawniards look unsure, the mention of a Fire type putting doubt in them. That's no good!
"We can do this! I wanna know what a brand new light-thingy tastes like!" Her encouragement motivates some and the mention of potential spoils motivates the others. Drilbur sees Commander Blue give her a grateful look.
The Pawniards head to their positions in the bushes and trees in the nearby forest, picking up the Naclis and riding on the Arons on their way. She spots Tinkatink with her helmet, she still has no idea why the other Pawniards don't notice her. She helped sharpen her claws, though, so she's alright despite being so grumpy.
"Auxiliary Drilbur, you may feast yourself upon one of the Nacli before the battle begins, as reward for your excellent work." Yes! She thanks Commander Blue before waddling off to get one of the Naclis. Most of the other Pokemon in the battalion are only allowed to lick, even the Arons; only she's allowed to gnaw.
It takes some time before the humans arrive, the ambush mostly set up. From how they react to the unoccupied light-thingy, they immediately suspect an ambush. A pink barrier goes up just in time to prevent the humans from getting hit with rocks and mud from her and the Arons.
"CHARGE! BREAK THAT BARRIER!" Commander Blue orders a frontal assault, a dozen Pawniards (and Tinkatink) emerging from the bushes to attack the humans behind their shield. Of them, half were riding Arons led by Commander Blue, the other half led by Tinkatink were running towards where the humans were.
For their part, all the humans are now facing in the old light-thingy's direction in a 'U formation'. The new light thingy dropped to the ground in the middle of the humans.
Emerging from the barrier were the humans' Pokemon, the ghost and Murkrow attacking from above, not getting close to the advancing Pawniards. The floating arm flies over to the middle of the Pawniards with a star-like Pokemon that has a tasty looking gem backing them up. The arm Pokemon slams down onto the ground and even from afar you could feel the earth shake. The star Pokemon behind them shooting jets of water at the Aron and knocking the Pawniards off of them. That's no good!
Drilbur stabs her claws into the ground and wills away the energies the iron arm Pokemon was using. Then she shoots a short stream of mud at the iron arm Pokemon to knock them back—and the star Pokemon retaliates by shooting water. She dodges out of their way, and the Pokemon's stream of water hits the trees behind her. She doesn't like baths, she likes being dirty, thank you very much!
The attack is facing its second obstacle. Fire. Fireballs and jets of flame from the fluffy stick wielder are taking out Pawniards who do manage to approach the shield. With their Pawniard riders knocked out, the Arons scatter away. It's while looking at that burning field that she realizes—
The battalion is done for.
Commander Blue is fighting a human wielding a ghost-smelling sword. Tinkatink is fighting and losing against the arm and star Pokemon. The Nacli you like gnawing on is being carried away by the Murkrow. The Pawniard that always whispers to Commander Blue is leaving, taking some Pawniards away with him.
That's…not fair! She just joined the battalion a whole moon ago! How is she gonna show her face to Mama showing how she's a big girl now if she has to go back already!? What is she gonna do?!
The light-thingy! She can destroy it and make it even. Like Commander Blue says, it's better if no one wins than to lose.
She starts digging down, burrowing towards where the light-thingy is. Hopefully the shield doesn't go into the ground. The muffled sounds of battle go on above her, she just has to guess where to emerge. She's not that good at digging, actually; not enough practice, Mama says.
This feels like a good place.
Drilbur bursts out of the ground, sending dirt and rock flying all around her.
Well she didn't hit metal so she must've missed the light-thingy. Looking around, Drilbur gets a good look at the humans. They're all wearing the same clothes, even the small human, so they might be a human version of a battalion. In front of her, wearing a shocked face was a human with long red hair holding a little furry Pokemon in her arms.
"Hello!" Drilbur greets them while waving her claw. "I'm gonna break the light-thingy you humans have, m'kay?"
The little furry Pokemon blinks once. "Roland, someones trying to attack your trainer."
No, she's trying to attack the light-thingy, completely different. Aw, it's floating again, and the furry Pokemon's eyes are glowing. Are they a Psychic Pokemon?
"WHAT!?" Drilbur hears a screech from above and barely dodges by jumping out of her hole from something hitting where she just was. Oh hey, it's that ghostie from earlier that was floating. Dribur waves and says hello to the ghostie who snarls in response.
"Do you require assistance, wyrm?" Drilbur turns around to see the fluffy Pokemon with the stick looking at the both of them. Roland scoffs before responding.
"I can bring them down myself, neither of you witches get involved." A play fight!? Drilbur hasn't play-fought in a while! The other Pokemon in the battalion were always too grumpy to say yes 'cause they were sore losers. Even Commander Blue didn't wanna play because he was scared of losing!
"How can someone as gracious as Mariana have you for a Pokemon, I do not know." The stick-wielder spits in response. A hurt look crosses Roland's face as she says it.
"You wanna fight, Mister Roland, just the two of us?!" She yells, eyes glittering with excitement. Her claws glow a metallic sheen. No one should be sad during a play-fight!
"Yes, we shall do glorious battle—gaah!" Drilbur leaps and slashes right at Roland, who dodges out of the way of the second slash. Roland glows blurry, zipping across the small arena that the humans have cleared for the two of them. The human holding onto the small furry Pokemon, shouting words at Roland.
"You're only using Agility now!?" The small furry Pokemon asks.
"It was beneath me against such weaklings!" Roland yells back at Renne. The human yells something that causes Roland to dive right into the dirt, vanishing from sight.
"Wait, can you dig, too? I thought we were in a play-fight—" Whatever Drilbur was about to say was interrupted by Roland erupting from her shadow, wrapping his tail around her snout, lifting her up and slamming her back down. Ooh, tricky!
Roland's grip around her snout was pretty tight, but he's not expecting this! She rubs both her claws together, to make that tingling feeling. Electricity is wrapped around her claws and Roland lets her go before she could grab him with them.
With her snout freed, Drilbur pushes herself back up to face Roland who's backed off, giving her some distance.
"That was a really good hit, Roland!" She yells at the ghost, who blinks at her compliment.
"O-of course! It is expected of—enough! You will pay for daring to attack my human!" The human orders Roland to dive right in, jaw wide open. Drilbur is readying herself to take the attack, claws still rubbing together to gather more static.
Roland crunches down onto her arm as she unleashes the spark of electricity she'd been gathering. He eventually lets her go, before he's hurt badly by the electricity, but the damage has been done to her. Another good hit like that and she's out. This Roland is really strong!
Before she could attack again, Roland dives into her shadow. "Get out of there! That's my shadow!" Drilbur stabs onto the ground where her shadow is, how do ghost and shadows work again—
She's knocked out by a tail hitting her in the back of the head.
Drilbur is woken by the smell of salt on her snout. Did they win?
Opening her eyes she sees herself and all the other Pawniards being tended to by Commander Blue and his personal healing Nacli. Behind him was the mean fluffy stick Pokemon, orbs of fire surrounding her ready to hit at any time.
"Did we win, Commander Blue?" Drilbur asks, but she already feels like she knows the answer.
"Nay, that is not my name and we were defeated badly. The humans are merely gracious enough to let us heal ourselves rather than leaving us behind to be carrion for other Pokemon."
"What do we do now, Commander Blue?" This is the first time they've lost. Defeated battalions don't last long. Other battalions attack them while they're down, not even considering how demoralizing it is to the Pawniards.
"It is over for us, the deserters have likely already made it to my siblings. They will pick up the scraps of our territory and the members that have escaped. I have no excuse, I crumbled before the first truly strong humans we encountered. One of my sisters killed a human that wandered into her battalion's territory. I cannot compare. So much for finding Father." Commander Blue answers despondently.
Drilbur looks around. Very few of the Arons have stayed, only two of them and they were busy eating the old light-thingy while two of the humans were putting the new one in its place. Of the Pawniards, only five, including Blue, are still here. At least Tinkatink was still here, even if she was helping the Arons tear up the old light-thingy.
"Why do you surrender your goals so readily?" The meanie with the stick asks Commander Blue.
"What do you know of goals, witch?" Blue snaps at the meanie, who only smiles in return.
"My mistress has an offer for you, Commander Blue." Blue gives Drilbur a small glare, who can only sheepishly smile in response.
"Fine, but you will not call me by that name. Auxiliary Drilbur, you are relieved of duty. Go do…whatever it is you want to do." Former Commander Blue waves you off as the meanie with the stick brings him to speak with one of the humans.
What does Drilbur wanna do?
Well, she wants to play with that ghostie again.
She spots him talking with his human who just finished helping another human put down the light-thingy. It's already starting to annoy her just looking at it. She doesn't know why humans love putting them down in their roads.
"Roland! I wanna play again!" She waddles up to the ghostie challenging him.
"Didn't you lose?" Roland says in a smug tone. Looking over from where his human was fussing over him.
"Yea, but I wanna do it again! A race this time!" She yells, she hasn't raced anyone in a long while. Mama's too old to race and all the other Pokemon in the battalion were too slow.
"And if I say no?" Roland taunts her, like a sore winner.
"Well you suck and—" Drilbur puts up her claws and blows a raspberry at him.
"Why you little—"
There's something odd seeing the Drilbur from earlier taunt Roland and your Dreepy taking the bait. As the two Pokemon chase one another, even going as far as to go into one of the holes the Drilbur's dug, you can't help but like that this situation seems familiar to you.
'Ugh, they're both children.' Renne says to you telepathically, causally ignoring how she loves watching children's cartoons.
The chase lasts for almost an hour, wherein the remaining wild Pokemon go off and scatter back to the Heights. Pawniards like that will likely end in a new battalion sooner or later. Though the mystery of why they had a Tinkatink wearing a Pawniard helmet among them will have to remain unanswered.
The only Pokemon that remained in the area where the orbal light was located, was the Drilbur playing with Roland and Theodora's brand new Pawniard. It's blue coloring marking them as unique amongst their kind.
Eventually the play session came to an end and an exhausted Roland floated his way over to you. Drilbur, however, seemed still as energetic as they were hours ago.
"Sorry, but Roland's tired and we'll have to leave soon." You explained to the Pokemon, hoping that Renne would translate for you.
The Drilbur looked up at you with wide eyes and squeaked something in response that caused Roland to hiss and Renne to giggle.
'She says she wants to join you, so she can keep playing with Roland. I'm okay with it, by the way. The faces and sounds he makes are hilarious.' You blink. That's a pretty big decision to be decided entirely on something like that.
"Are you sure about that?" You go on your knees to try and get as close to eye level with the Drilbur. She nods enthusiastically at you.
"How about you, Roland, is that okay with you?" Roland looks like he just ate something sour. But reluctantly he agreed to Drilbur joining your team.
"Well then, Drilbur, welcome to the team."
With your optional task done for the day, your third Pokemon in hand, you and your group head back to Pirotin Inn to rest. Still having some time before the sun sets, you and Elise decide to head to register for a battle at the Gym. Theodora wants to spend some time getting acquainted with her new Pokemon while Ostia was all tuckered out from the day's excitement and wanted to rest in the Inn.
"Are you sure you don't need anything else?" You ask Ostia as they settle onto their bed, Argy and Poly by their side. They shake their head before grabbing the remote and turning on the room's TV. It's an older model of an orbal flatscreen. There's a weird juxtaposition between the deliberate older aesthetic of the room's furniture, from beautifully carved wooden chairs and nightstands, to the modern orbal air conditioning and TVs right next to them.
"I wanna see you battle at the Gym, Ms. Mary. You can do it, I know you can!" The heartachingly sincere smile eases your worries and fills you with a little confidence in what you're getting yourself into. Ostia's attention is distracted by their channel flipping seemingly ending up on a show about a young gadget-using girl and her adventures with her partner Tyrantrum.
You say goodbye to Ostia who's eyes were glued to watching their show, and they idly wave at you while giggling at the show's antics.
"Is she gone, Argy? We have a few hours before they get back. We should check the forest first…"
"So how'd your talk with Theodora go?" you ask Elise on the way to the Gym, the two of them had discussed something for a bit while you were checking on Ostia.
"Well I don't think she's gonna go out and try to catch that Lokix anymore so that's at least something." She sighs as her hand goes to touch Rin's hilt, the Honedge sheathed and attached to her belt. You think it might be a calming ritual of hers. Said Honedge remains as taciturn and stoic as always.
You two make idle talk as you near the Gym, or more specifically the Gym Offices. Adjacent to Cortondo Gym proper, the place where the Gym's Trainers and Pokemon operate from and battle in, is a modern office complex around three stories tall. The Pokemon League is a vast bureaucratic apparatus, it doesn't surprise you that a Gym, even for a settlement as relatively small as Cortondo, needs its own dedicated space for day-to-day operations outside of battling.
Thankfully the afternoon wait for the Gym registry isn't as long as yesterday—it's still pretty sizable, mind you—but it's no longer large enough that people are waiting outside. The two of you were currently anticipating your turn, sitting down inside the reception area. All around the lobby were large tv screens either airing Gym Challenges and fights that were ongoing right now or showing the available time slots to book for appointments.
The entire next week and the next were entirely booked. There were however a few time slots, mostly in the afternoon or night that were labeled RESERVED with the Mesagoza School logo next to them.
It's while you're waiting in the line that Elise got a message from Jacinto.
"Huh, apparently Nemona and Atticus are having Gym Trainer battles right now. Jacinto wants to know if we wanna hang out after we register at the Gym." You ask Elise how'd he know you two were at the Gym. "Oh, I've been messaging him, asking him how Group 2's first day went. From how they described it, they went through as much excitement as we did."
"Oh, that's…" Understatement aside, why didn't you think to call Erika to check up on her? Well, you know why. You didn't wanna bother or distract Erika while she's out trying to catch a Scyther and you really don't know anyone in Group 2 aside from her and Nemona.
You're not really great at this Class President thing.
Before you could say anything, Elise looks at you, her turquoise eyes making you feel like she's staring right through you. The moment passes and she looks away.
"What's wrong, Mariana?" Did Elise notice your brooding? You school your expression as best you can before responding.
"Oh nothing, just thinking that maybe we should set up a proper group chat for Class VII. Though having Jacinto and Manuel argue online as well as offline doesn't really sound great." You slap a little joke at the end hoping that your idea can salvage you being derelict in your duties.
"It's not a bad idea, Manuel doesn't really strike me as a person that's online a lot. We could set it up later if you want, I can give the socials of all our classmates." You nod at Elise's offer, grateful for her help in this.
Soon enough it was your turn to register at the front desk of the Gym. Helping you was a receptionist at the desk who looked positively exhausted, yet he still had a smile plastered on his face.
"Welcome! Would you like to register for a Gym Battle?" The line was rehearsed and the man was basically operating on autopilot. You nod, handing them your Trainer Card, which he takes and inserts into a machine.
"I take it you'll be availing of the Academies' Gym Program?" There's an undercurrent of disdain in his voice, cutting through the professional guise. You keep your gaze steady and confirm, asking him what time slots are available.
"Well, miss, we can have you booked with a customary Gym Trainer battle tomorrow at 5:00 PM since it'll be your first badge. If you win, you'll be able to move forward and challenge Katie at a similar time on Thursday." That works for you, hopefully nothing happens during the last few days of your Field Exercise that could disrupt that.
"Please answer the questionnaire honestly, lying would be grounds for disqualification for this year's Circuit." He hands you a pen and a piece of paper. On it were questions that tried to gauge a challenger's experience and skill level. Asking if this is your first time in a Trainer's Circuit and if you've had any experience as a trainer in another region. Asking about if you've had any battling experience prior to challenging the gym. And—huh?
At the bottom, is a question asking if the challenger would consent to have their gym challenge be broadcasted or publicly accessible once recorded. While the battle will be recorded by the League for recordkeeping purposes, they would be prevented from releasing it for public viewing. Your face would also be blurred out in case of a Gym Test. The League will however be unable to prevent an audience from watching your battle live.
You tentatively answer yes, you're okay with your gym challenges being public. You'll be able to rewatch them at your leisure and it'll be easier for your family and any future employers to check your battle record. You'll just…try not to let the pressure get to you.
With the questionnaire done, you turn it over to the receptionist who double checks it before returning your Trainer Card to you alongside a slip of paper with a time and date printed alongside the Gym logo.
"Printed on there is your schedule, we would appreciate it if you were present around 30 minutes before your battle. Miss the appointment and you will have to wait another two weeks before being allowed to challenge the Cortondo Gym again. Do not lose the ticket or we will consider your appointment missed. Have a nice day!" With that done, you go back to the lobby to wait for Elise to finish her registration before the two of you head to meet up with Jacinto and the other members of Group 2.
"...was it really that quick?" You can barely hear Jacinto asking Nemona who was drinking a fruit smoothie.
The two of them were seated on a pretty big table in an open food court near the Gym's parking lot. Aside from the typical food selections you've come to expect of Cortondo, there were a couple of fast food joints you recognized from passing by them in Mesagoza.
"Yup, didn't have to send out Sunny at all. I think it's more of a way to make sure people who'd absolutely lose to the Gym Leader don't—Oh hey! Mariana! Elise! Over here!" Nemona waves to the two of you. Already you can see you're not the only one who's caught another Pokemon for their team.
Floating next to Jacinto was a Magnemite who seemed to be engrossed in a conversation with Nemona's Wattrel. On top of Nemona's head meanwhile was a Cutiefly, the small white and yellow Pokemon having fallen asleep on top of their trainer's head. And right next to Nemona, sitting on a chair, holding a smoothie of his own was Sunny.
You and Elise greet the two members of Group 2. Wanting to get Drilbur used to your classmate's Pokemon, you release her and Roland, giving the Dreepy specific instructions to keep an eye on her. From how Drilbur immediately runs off to play, you doubt Roland's gonna have an easy time of it.
"So how was your end of the Field Exercise?" Jacinto asks Elise, who takes a seat next to him. You meanwhile sit down next to Sunny, waving to the Monferno as a greeting which he returns.
"Well it was definitely an…exciting day…" Elise mostly focuses on explaining how your first mandatory task went. She does give some detail of how you and Theodora caught new Pokemon during the optional task.
"The Pokemon are agitated out east as well, so Erika was right then…" Jacinto whispers something to himself.
"What's this about Erika?" You ask, having heard her name being mentioned. Hopefully she hasn't gotten herself into trouble.
"Oh, she just mentioned something earlier about how the Pokemon were too aggressive. And it was kinda weird, if something like that happened near Cabo Poco, the local garrison would've already been all up at arms about." Nemona explains, waking up the Cutiefly asleep on her head. The small Bee Fly Pokemon flew down on her hand to be pet by Nemona's finger.
"Wait, what happened on your end then?" Nemona explained how they had to help relocate a small nest of Ribombee and Cutiefly away from Marida Forest.
"Erika said that the Ribombee lost a big turf war to the local Butterfree and had to get out for their good. This little cutie right here helped us and even decided to stick around with little ol' me. Who's a little cutie–ow!" Nemona pulled her finger away having accidentally poked herself on her new Pokemon's proboscis.
"Okay that definitely feels like something the Rangers—er—Trainer Association should handle." Elise had a mildly concerned look on her face, as if she hadn't just described getting attacked by a group of Bug Pokemon earlier. She's right, though, Pokemon migration and relocation is something typically handled by Rangers in the Highlands.
"I mean we did have an Associate guide, but he was—"
"Bad. Pretty sure Jacinto could beat him. Might've been an intern." Nemona interrupts Jacinto, before explaining how the Trainer Associate panicked under pressure getting both his Pokemon knocked out by rampaging Butterfrees and himself hurt earlier in the day. "Manuel and Atticus took his Pokemon to a center and took him to the infirmary."
You look over to Jacinto to gauge his reaction to what Nemona said and aside from the telltale signs of gritted teeth, it could be worse. He clears his throat and brings everyone's attention back to him.
"Well, I had the pleasure of briefly speaking to him and he apparently was a new hire. Word is that the Cortondo Trainer Association is stretched thin. Hiring people who haven't even gotten badges yet." Everyone's eyes widened at that.
Elise leans back on her chair, sighing. "Well, this promises to be an interesting Field Exercise. How'd Miss Leaf react to what happened?"
"She took one look at our guide and stormed off, leaving her Ditto to keep an eye on us." That definitely doesn't sound great.
"Ditzy is real fun, though! It's the first time I've seen a Ditto up close, I wonder how Miss Leaf has them fight in battle? There's not really that many big trainers that use Ditto aside from this guy in Kalos but he didn't get that far in the last…" Your class essentially lets Nemona take the reins of the conversation as you use the opportunity to wind down and relax. Making small talk and discussing plans for the coming days.
According to the two members of Group 2, Erika and Manuel are out looking for a second Pokemon, with Atticus promising to help them after he finishes up his Gym Trainer Battle.
Nemona herself is resting and going to sleep early tonight since it'll be her first Gym Battle tomorrow. According to her, she's spent some time researching what kinds of Pokemon the Gym Leader uses at the 1st and 2nd Badge level.
"Where'd you meet your new Magnemite?" You ask Jacinto about their new Pokemon. The Magnemite has mostly been silent during the whole conversation.
"Found them wandering up north while I was looking for a Pokemon. Normally Magnemites are rarely found alone. Even before they evolve, Magnemites travel in groups. But Storm here, it's what I called them, was all alone. Basically just started following me."
That is odd. Even in the highlands, Magnemites are only really found in places where a lot of electricity has been built up. Large numbers of them congregate to feed on static electricity. The conversation then turns to Jacinto's new Pokemon and how he plans on raising them.
As afternoon turns to night, your group splits and says goodbye to one another, heading back to your respective Inns.
It was when you came back that you found Theodora drinking tea next to her new Pawniard, the Pokemon's blue and black exterior now much shinier compared to his earlier dirty and rugged appearance. Serving both of them was Sharon who's telekinetically lifting a kettle of tea.
"Why hello there, darlings, you've found us at an opportune time. Leo and I have reached an accord as to our new partnership." The Pawniard has a contemplative look on his face, only reacting to the outside world by nodding at Sharon refilling his cup of tea.
"Mariana, darling, can I have a word with Elise? Ostia should still be upstairs." You nod and wave to the two girls as Elise sits down across from where Theodora was sitting.
You make your way upstairs, you hear the sound of a Pokeball recalling mechanism as you approach the door. Right where you left them was Ostia, though they only had Argy out. Meaning they must've recalled Poly for the night.
"You're back, Miss Mary!" Ostia exclaims from their bed, turning their eyes away from the TV.
You chat and spend some time with Ostia, letting your own Pokemon out. Argy remains silent, not even talking or responding to you or any of the other Pokemon. They did get beaten pretty humiliatingly earlier, so they must still be embarrassed about that.
You spend the rest of the night with Group 1 and your Pokemon, getting ready for the next day.
FIELD EXERCISE 1
WEDNESDAY VOTE
AVAILABLE AP: 2
Pokedollars: 22,000 on your Person
League Points: 6,000 on your Trainer Card
Vote will be by Plan Voting
[X] Day Two Mandatory Tasks: From the edges of the Breadbasket to the peripheries between Cortondo and old Badajoz. Sightsee and Experience the tension brewing in the province
- Herding Wooloo: Yesterday's attack has caused some local Skiddo and Wooloo to flee from their pastures. Track them down and bring them back before they get hurt or eaten by the local Wild Pokemon. All of Group 1 will do a 1d20+PROW Roll. DC 18. Lowered due to Prior Actions. Failing Roll will give Wound to one of your Pokemon
- Not so Abandoned: Reports from trainers passing by suggest that the Badajoz ruins aren't as abandoned as previously thought. Do some light investigative work, it's probably nothing but better safe than sorry. All of Group 1 will do a 1d20+KNOW Roll. DC 18. Lowered due to Prior Actions
- Rewards: 8,000 Pokedollars, 3 Pokemon Materials, 200 Poke and STAT XP
[] Day Two Optional Task: Herbal Horticulture: Historically berries have been used as makeshift medicine for Pokemon and even sometimes humans. While modern medicinal technology has long surpassed such practices, certain parts of Paldea still regularly use such medicines to heal sickly Pokemon. However what would normally be a routine harvest of berries and herbs has been complicated by the recent agitation and hostility of Wild Pokemon. -1 AP
- All of Group 1 will do a 1d20+SKLL Roll. DC 20. Lowered due to Prior Actions. Failing Roll will not apply Wound and will still accomplish Task but no Berry Juice item will be received
- Group 1 will battle multiple Pokemon that have set up near the Route Lamp.
- Rewards: 12,000 Pokedollars, 4 Pokemon Materials, 400 Poke XP, Gain 2 Berry Juice (Heal 1 Wound below 3 Wounds and Status Ailment)
- Is mutually exclusive with: The Lost Woods
[] Day Two Optional Task: The Lost Woods: Last Monday night, Trainer Associate Watterson was seen stumbling drunkenly out of a bar on the edge of Cortondo. He had accidentally left his Pokeballs in the bar's men's washroom. While his location is relatively known, they've confirmed that he still hasn't emerged from the forest.
Do find him and return him to the Local Trainer Association so his superior can give him the dressing down of his life. -1 AP
- All of Group 1 will do a 1d20+PROW Roll. DC 26. Lowered due to Prior Actions. Failing Roll still accomplish Task but give lower rewards (50% less)
- Group 1 will look for a Missing Person
- Rewards: 18,000 Cash, 2 Pokemon Materials, 200 Poke XP and 400 STAT XP
- Is mutually exclusive with: Herbal Horticulture
[X] Yo! Champ in the Makin': One of the big draws and privileges of Academy Students over regular trainers (aside from the connections and resources made available to them), is essentially getting to cut in line for Gyms during Field Exercises. And what a line it is. With Gyms opening up in August, trainers have begun to flock towards the nearest Gyms to register early and get the chance to fight the Gym Leader. (2/3) -1 AP
- As a Mesagoza Student, your application to fight a gym will be fast tracked.
- Increase Bond with Nemona and Atticus
- (2/3) Since this is your first Gym, you will fight a Gym Trainer to gauge your competence. And while you're already at the Gym, might as well use that opportunity to watch Nemona's and Atticus' Gym battles. 1d20+SKLL Roll. DC 14. Pokemon used in Gym Battles witnessed by Mariana will not be used against her during her Gym Battle.
- (3/3) The winner of the 2018 Paldean League Conference: she managed to beat Rika and Old Man Tenma, Poppy's predecessor, and lost to Elite Four member Larry Laureano. She's the second-youngest currently reigning Gym Leader, and a proud supporter of La Primera's reformist agenda. A Bug/Normal dual Type Trainer: Katie Aracelli would like to battle. vs. GYM LEADER KATIE ARACELI. MAJOR BATTLE 3V3. Depending on Outcome, Pokemon may gain Wounds. Greatly Increase Bond with Roland and Drilbur
[] ...Do as the Rimeans do: There's still probably some nooks and crannies of the settlement you haven't seen yet. You find that you enjoy exploring places, especially if it's with friends. -1 AP
- Lowers DC of all Mandatory and Optional Tasks for Thursday and Friday by 2
- Increases Bond with Elise and Ostia
[] Cortondo Cart: While you've already most of what you expect you'll need for Field Exercise, it won't hurt to go out and buy some extra. You never know when you'll need it.
- Current Pokedollars: 22,000
- Allows the purchase of healing items as well as some Simple and Advanced TMs
- Healing Item Cost Range: 3,000 - 10,000
- Simple and Advanced TM Cost Range 15,000 - 40,000
[] Dig Deep: With a new member on your team, it seems like a good idea to spend a couple of hours getting to know them. Drilbur is a hyperactive little Pokemon, surpassing even Roland during your first week with him. From how she reacts to everything, she's not used to being on the surface most of the time. Spend some time just the two of you getting used to each others tells and expressions
- Increase Bond with Drilbur
- Gain 300 Poke XP (Roll 1d20+SKLL. DC 16)
[] Song of Roland: Even with your new capture, Roland is going to be the star of the show during your Gym battle. Beyond just getting him trained and prepared for Thursday, you should spend some time with him to show just how much you appreciate and care for him. Nothing too extraneous though, he'll need a full day of rest for the Gym Battle.
- Increase Bond with Roland
- Mutually Exclusive with Dig Deep and Crystalline Cat
[] Crystalline Cat: You're pretty sure you've yet to spend time alone with Renne, Roland was always with you during your sessions with her. Time to fix that, see the sights of Cortondo with her, taste the locales, feel the grass beneath your feet. Hopefully your arms don't get tired from carrying her all day.
- Increase Bond with Renne
- Can become a Greatly Increase under a Hard CHRM Roll (DC 26)
- Mutually Exclusive with Song of Roland
[] Knowing is Half the Battle: Good preparation and intel is key to any successful operation. Or at least your more military minded teachers tell you. The 1st and 2nd Badge recordings of the Cortondo Gym should be publicly available on their website. Spend some hours watching a few of the videos, learning the likely roster of Pokemon you're going to fight and find out how Katie Aracelli introduces rookies to the world of Pokemon.
- +2 to Effect Rolls during Gym Battle
- Find out roster of potential Gym Battle Pokemon
- Increase Bond with Elise
[] The Other Half of the Battle: You'll be performing in front of a live audience, while you won't be able to hear them, the pressure will still be there nonetheless. With a new member on your team, it'll be prudent to get them used in battling in the relatively safe environment of official League battles. Maybe even get some last minute training in for Roland.
- Gain 200 Poke XP and 1 MXP for both Roland and Drilbur
- Increase Bond with Drilbur, Theodora and Erika
Pokemon Materials Gained:
Tarountula Web, Nymble Legs, Nincada Shells, Aron Armor, Pawniard Blades, Nacli Salt, Tinkatink Hair
Cash and STAT Gains this turn
18000 Pokedollars, 600 Poke XP, 200 SKLL, CHRM and PROW XP
I'll post the Battle report for Roland vs. Drilbur but yea it was a stomp
Moratorium for 14 Hours
Thanks to Nemastrea for proofreading this update
Last edited:
*Looks at all the different activities*
Oh, dear theres gonna be a blood bath in here soon, also we caught the mole and apperently Theodora got a shiny Pawniard/ future Kingambit (well damn). Also huh... the previous mission is here and its also mutually exclusive with a new mission *looks at the mission herbal horticulture, sees in the lost woods mission that its mutually exclusive with the Mission Hetbal medicine...*
I have 0 idea what to pick here, id would take lost woods if it wanst exclusive (again) with the herbal mission and since we only have 2 AP.... hmm sorry Renne cant bond with ya today, and i suppose bomding with drilbur is am option and also is scouting with Knowing is half the battle (may be able to avoid some curveballs later). But ill wait till people give better ideas because if this was me i would take both side mission just because im a quest goblin in rpgs.
Oh, dear theres gonna be a blood bath in here soon, also we caught the mole and apperently Theodora got a shiny Pawniard/ future Kingambit (well damn). Also huh... the previous mission is here and its also mutually exclusive with a new mission *looks at the mission herbal horticulture, sees in the lost woods mission that its mutually exclusive with the Mission Hetbal medicine...*
I have 0 idea what to pick here, id would take lost woods if it wanst exclusive (again) with the herbal mission and since we only have 2 AP.... hmm sorry Renne cant bond with ya today, and i suppose bomding with drilbur is am option and also is scouting with Knowing is half the battle (may be able to avoid some curveballs later). But ill wait till people give better ideas because if this was me i would take both side mission just because im a quest goblin in rpgs.
- Pronouns
- She/Her
It's great to know Sharon likes us.
Our child is preforming their mandated Evil Team actions. We will save you from this eventually!
Im so glad that here, on day two, we're still preforming day one tasks!
(I'm making a joke, I think you got this wrong.)
This is hard though, 2 AP, I have to vote for a Side Quest option, which means a Whopping 1 AP! ...And thats showing to be a damn hard AP to spend between Explore, Study for Gym, Renne Bond (We can beat the 26 DC
) or "The Other Half"Will need others opinions clearly, I really want to do Renne Bond but I'm aware it's probably the least directly beneficial compared to the other 3 options.
Toaster cult
I Am An Imaginary Living Body
- Location
- Tokyo
- Pronouns
- She/Her
If we're doing sidequest I think the berry one is probably the best to do, more EXP and givs us the berry juice which we can ue to keep wounds down incase we get injured on the job and stay fit for the Gym. Renee and Drillbur socials are really calling to me but I think im probably gonna go ith the other half of the battle, First gym badge we should Really hunker down on even if I would like to just do everything
StattStatt
Supplier of suspenders for your disbelief
- Location
- On one of your shoulders
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Pokemon PoVs are always a total delight. Our new mole friend is also such a delight already.
Good god it must be awkward for him to hold a cup with his blade hands.
Poor Jacinto, but at least he now has something that's not a birb following him around all the time.
Hmm, as much as it pains me to say it, bonding with Renne should probably wait until we're back at school. Some last minute bonding/training with Roland and our mole-that-will-probably-have-a-name-starting-with-R, or studying for the Gym battle.
Good to know Renne knows which buttons to press to operate Roland. Hmmm, wonder who could have cuased him to develop such an extreme reaction to his trainer being in danger. The world may never know. *note sarcasm thick enough to cut and put on a slice of bread*
You know, it was either that or Loewe I would have voted for if we had caught Pawniard ourselves. That or maybe Richard. Theodora has good taste.
Good god it must be awkward for him to hold a cup with his blade hands.
Well, good to know it's not just about us Nemona obliviously throws shade at
Poor Jacinto, but at least he now has something that's not a birb following him around all the time.Hmm, as much as it pains me to say it, bonding with Renne should probably wait until we're back at school. Some last minute bonding/training with Roland and our mole-that-will-probably-have-a-name-starting-with-R, or studying for the Gym battle.
- Pronouns
- He/They/She
Aaaaand here's the AP bottleneck. We should do one of the optional tasks, although I'm undecided on which - considering the greater item drops the rewards for horticulture are arguably better, but I feel bad for Watterson and he is offering more cash.
For the remaining AP, we have:
-Make the second half of the FE easier+Bond with Elise and Ostia
-Bond with Drilbur+XP (500 XP to Badge 2 after)
-Bond with Roland+no mechanics but probably story benefit
-Bond with Renne+ 35% chance of extra Bond with Renne
-Make Gym battle easier+Bond with Elise
-XP+MXP for both Drilbur (600 XP to Badge to after) and Roland+Bond with Drilbur, Theodora, and Erika
I'm tempted to go for one of the options that gets Drilbur XP, but we do have what's probably going to be a fairly easy fight with the gym trainer to get XP from.
Also...this is entirely intuition, but I feel like hanging out with Roland could avert some potential disasters. He's a prideful little beaft, now has two antagonistic teammates, and is about to fight a boss battle on national television. Even if there's no mechanical bennies beyond the Bond point, ensuring that the little brat will listen to us during the fight might be worth the action. It kills me to pick the least mechanically optimal option but this quest isn't just about mechanics, ya know?
Also, Auxiliary Drilbur and Commander Blue. Did the rest of the catch options have ranks?
...did the Pawniards ever realize the Tinkatink wasn't one of them?
For the remaining AP, we have:
-Make the second half of the FE easier+Bond with Elise and Ostia
-Bond with Drilbur+XP (500 XP to Badge 2 after)
-Bond with Roland+no mechanics but probably story benefit
-Bond with Renne+ 35% chance of extra Bond with Renne
-Make Gym battle easier+Bond with Elise
-XP+MXP for both Drilbur (600 XP to Badge to after) and Roland+Bond with Drilbur, Theodora, and Erika
I'm tempted to go for one of the options that gets Drilbur XP, but we do have what's probably going to be a fairly easy fight with the gym trainer to get XP from.
Also...this is entirely intuition, but I feel like hanging out with Roland could avert some potential disasters. He's a prideful little beaft, now has two antagonistic teammates, and is about to fight a boss battle on national television. Even if there's no mechanical bennies beyond the Bond point, ensuring that the little brat will listen to us during the fight might be worth the action. It kills me to pick the least mechanically optimal option but this quest isn't just about mechanics, ya know?
Also, Auxiliary Drilbur and Commander Blue. Did the rest of the catch options have ranks?
...did the Pawniards ever realize the Tinkatink wasn't one of them?
Last edited: