Two years since I posted anything on this board, I now return with a project that has been on-and-off for me for two months now. I hope that I will actually make it past the third episode in this, since that would be a record. Please note that spoilers for Shadows of Almia will become apparent as the story progresses. If you have plans to play the games and you don't want to know what happens in them beforehand, then I don't recommend reading this RP. Also it is unlikely that subsequent chapters will be as huge as this one.
Welcome to the Ranger Academy: a facility of education here in the region of Almia. It is here that people, young and old, big and small, come to learn from the best. Our claim to fame however is the Ranger program; a yearlong program which teaches our students the art of becoming Pokémon Rangers, Operators, and Mechanics. Though these three fields differ vastly, they all have one goal, the protection of humans and Pokémon worldwide. All students are given their own capture styler, and engage in daily activities to learn how to operate their stylers on the field, how to direct the rangers in the HQ, how to repair equipment in the garage, and physical training to give them all the energy necessary for these professions. Most importantly however, it teaches that the secret to becoming any of these is the ability to use your surroundings to further their cause. Learn this vital skill, and anything can be accomplished.
Is this stuff necessary to be a ranger?
That question ached through Keith’s mind as Ms. April droned on about the resolves of a Pokémon ranger. Ms. April was the class teacher, a beautiful teacher in a green shirt and a white skirt, with flowing brown hair that would be the jealousy of many girls. However, she was a serious teacher, and went into great depth in her lessons. Keith’s mind however was more on the tiny rolled up piece of paper between his fingers. He was playing a game of finger football, gently flicking the tiny ball around his table. Most of the class was hanging on Ms. April’s every world, others however had dozed off a long time ago; Keith was slowly on his way to join them. The door behind them noisily slid open, as it always does.
“Ms. April, our newest recruit has come. The indestructible Team School is now larger, and closer to ruling the world.” A man in a uniform consisting of a blue waistcoat, pants, boots, and a blue cap announced. All heads turned towards him and the teenager beside him.
“Oh please Mr. Kaplan.” Ms. April replied, “You’re going to scare off my class with that silly performance.”
“Sorry, the timing was just too perfect to miss.” Mr. Kaplan answered, before gently pushing the teenager beside him into the classroom. “I think you’re going to like this one Ms. April, he passed the entrance exam with flying colors.” He said, and then quickly disappeared, leaving the young student behind to face the eyes of the class.
“Well, why don’t you come up and introduce yourself to the class.” Ms. April asked. The new student walked steadily up to the front of the room, on the right side of the line between nervousness and excitement. He stopped in front of the desk and turned back towards the class so that everyone could see him clearly. He was dressed in the school uniform, like all the other students; a blue jumpsuit under a green short-jacket, a yellow tie, and brown boots. The student had thick brown hair, azure eyes, and thin eyebrows that moved whenever his expression or his look changed.
“Hey y’all, the name’s Kale. A ranger-in-training just like everyone else here. Glad to meet’cha” He greeted; the Western accent in his voice was light but clear.
“Well we are glad to meet you too Kale, why don’t you have a seat over there, between Rhythmi and Keith.” Ms. April suggested, pointing towards the empty table in the second row. Kale strode over and collapsed in the seat. Ms. April continued the lesson almost forgetting that he hadn’t heard anything before he came in
“Now, back to the subject, a ranger must always-“ Ms. April said, and then was cut off by the ringing of a large bell. “Okay, classes for today are officially over, be sure to go to dinner and bed on time. And would someone please give Kale a tour of the school.” Ms. April asked.
“I’ll be happy to do it.” A young girl next to Kale answered.
“Thank you very much Rhythmi, I’ll be in the staff room if you need me. Bye students!” Ms. April finished, and then walked through the classroom and out the door. The rest of the class followed suit, leaving Kale, Rhythmi, and the boy on the opposite side of Kale in the room.
“What took you so long? We’ve all been here for a week already, did you take that long to capture that Pikachu?” a male about a year older than Kale asked. He had dark brown eyes and spiky red hair and a cocky smirk on his face.
“Keith! Don’t say that sort of thing!” Rhythmi, a girl the same age as Keith with curly blond hair and coal-colored eyes shouted in defense of Kale. “Just ignore him Kale, Keith’s just a no-good show-off. Just because he has the fastest capture time out of all of us.” She explained to Kale, and then extended her hand, “I’m Rhythmi, and I have dreams to become an operator, pleasure to meet you.” Kale took her hand and shook it gently.
“Great to meetcha’ too, but just relax, I can handle myself here.” Kale said, then turned towards Keith. “I’m actually late because I came from Fiore, I had to do some transfer papers and all that before I could come to Almia, I actually got here just now.” He explained,
“Well just remember who’s the top ranger around here. I’ll show you just what the kind of skill a ranger needs soon enough. See you around, um, whatever your name is.” Keith vowed, then left the room himself.
“At least make the effort to learn his name Keith!” Rhythmi shouted as Keith disappeared. “I’m so looking forward to becoming an operator, then I get to boss hotheads like him around like my servants.” Rhythmi muttered.
“Rhythmi, when about would Keith be checkin’ the capture times?” Kale asked,
“Probably right now, he’s always trying to improve his capture time, why?” Rhythmi asked,
“Well, he just ain’t going to be too happy when he sees the rankings.” Kale explained,
“Wait, you mean you beat his time? On your entrance exam?!” Rhythmi exclaimed,
“I-I didn’t think it was that big of a deal, it was just launch the disk, twirl it ‘round, and click. It was hardly any different from a pokéball.” Kale pulled out the school styler to help show what he was saying. The capture styler was a green handheld object that looked like a miniature walkie-talkie with the white spinning-top known as the capture disk fixed on the backside. And an interface screen on the front underneath a flap in the device, which had the school’s logo of a capture disk labeled on it.
“This is perfect. The boisterous Keith has met his match!” Rhythmi announced to the empty room, before calming down again, “Well, we can focus on Keith later. I better give you a tour of the school first.” She said, and then began almost right away. “This is our home classroom, all students in the ranger program are put in this classroom, where Ms. April teaches everyone about working for the Pokémon Rangers. We’ll be having most of our classes in here, so we’ll be in here often.” She explained, and then led Kale out of the classroom and on a full on tour of the school building, starting with the room on the opposite side of the hall.
“This here is Mr. Kincaid’s classroom.” Rhythmi explained, opening the door to show the room within. It was almost a perfect replica of the room they only just left, four rows of six tables with chairs pushed underneath, the teacher’s desk at the front, the only noticeable differences was, firstly, that the chair was occupied by a man in his late forties, with bleached hair that curled in one direction, attired with a cream shirt, a red waistcoat, and a purple tie. And the other: a strong smell that clogged the room, and nearly caused Kale to gag at the unfamiliar smell. Rhythmi quickly laid a hand across his mouth to prevent those events from conspiring.
“Mr. Kincaid’s extra-hold hairspray.” She explained,
“Yes, do you have anything to say about my hairspray Ms?” The man at the desk questioned, looking up from the papers he was writing.
“N-no sir, none at all.” Rhythmi stammered, obviously this teacher gave her shivers.
“And how about you, young man.” Mr. Kincaid asked, turning his question over to Kale.
“No sir,” Kale replied, his voice in better shape than Rhythmi’s. “I’m just ain’t used to the smell, we all ‘ave our unfamiliar scents. I’ll get used to it.” Kale explained.
“Well, you should. And might I if there’s anything you two require.” He continued to question,
“I’m-I’m just giving Kale here a-a tour of the school. That’s all” Rhythmi continued to stammer,
“Well make sure Kale learns our rules, especially mine-“ Mr. Kincaid instructed,
“No running in the halls, yes sir.” Rhythmi interrupted, already familiar with the teacher’s famous No.1 rule
“Excellent. Carry on with your tour then.” The two students turned to go, “but first. Kale,” he leaned in closer from his table. “I hope we get to know each other better over the course of the year. That is all.” Kincaid finished, the two students quickly left.
“He’s a creepy teacher isn’t he?’ Rhythmi asked,
“After that suggestive comment, I ‘ave to agree.” Kale admitted,
“We only have class with him only once a week thankfully.” Rhythmi informed, “Well, we better get on with our tour.” Then led Kale through the school, pointing to each of the classrooms that were for the students that were part of the main school program, the dormitories, and of course, the restricted rooms.
“That is the main school building then, in a nutshell.” Rhythmi concluded, Kale responded with a half-hearted smile, hiding how tiring that tour was. If that were her idea of a nutshell, then he wouldn’t want to get the full tour. “I better show you the school grounds, there should still be time to see some of it before dinner.” Rhythmi explained, and then dragged Kale onto what was hopefully the conclusion of the tour.
“We’re usually allowed on the school grounds in between classes, it’s a natural habitat for Pokémon, so we have opportunities to practice using our capture stylers. And there’s also the-“
“NO! Oh dear! Oh dear! Oh dear!” A voice suddenly shouted, Rhythmi and Kale looked over at the field in front of the door to see a swarm of Bidoof scatter, running off in all possible directions, a middle-aged woman was left panicking in the spot where the Bidoof were before.
“Janice! What happened?” Rhythmi shouted, running towards the woman.
“I was just feeding the Bidoof, when I accidentally trod on one of their little tails and now the entire group has gone off running! Oh they must be so agitated now, I’m worried someone could get hurt. Bidoof have strong teeth you know.” Janice explained.
“Then we all know what comes next.” A voice proclaimed, Kale turned to see Keith approach, a grin on his face and a few beads of sweat running down his face. He apparently just came from a shed on the far side of the field, which was where Kale performed his entrance exam. “You… uh whatever your name was, I say we ourselves have a capture race. The person who captures the most Bidoof wins.”
“Keith! Are you treating this like some sort of sport? And you could at least remember the name of your own classmate!” Rhythmi shouted into Keith’s face.
“It’s alright, I can handle this” Kale said, lightly pushing Rhythmi out of the way, so that Kale could see Keith eye to eye. “Sure, if you wanna a competition, then I’m game. On your Go then.” Kale accepted, both rangers-in-training pulled out their stylers and braced themselves to sprint.
“3… 2… 1… GO!” Keith counted, and then the two of them bolted in two different directions, pursuing the running Bidoof. Keith got lucky and managed to get three in one place and capture them all at once, taking him far into the lead. Kale wasn’t going to give up though, as his captures were noticeably faster than Keith’s, taking only four seconds to complete a capture, while Keith took six. After five minutes of running and capturing both of them returned to the center of the field panting, with their captured Bidoof in tow.
“Alright… I caught six, and you have… five so… victory is mine!” Keith proclaimed, jumping into the air with his styler in hand, somersaulting… and falling on his face.
“Real smooth Ranger Pose there, Keith.” Rhythmi gloated,
“Mock my pose if you will, but you must still accept that I’m still the best ranger here.” Keith proclaimed,
“Is all this competition all there is to being a ranger for you Keith!? You’re forgetting the most important thing here!” Rhythmi argued,
“Lay off Rhythmi! Keith won, so let him have his gloat.” Kale interrupted,
“Actually, no he hasn’t.” Janice cut in, this got all the heads to turn to her as she explained, “Twelve Bidoof ran off, and there are only eleven here. Where’s the last one?”
“Ms. Janice! Ms. Janice!” a voice suddenly shouted, a young boy in the main-school’s uniform, which was a green shirt and pants under a blue blazer; more or less an invert of the colors the three ranger students had on. “Some seniors are being mean to a Bidoof, over by the cliff!”
“It must be Jasper and Boris again! Can’t those two boys stop?” Janice groaned, the whole group followed the child around the Eastern side of the school, where the rolling grass ended with a rock face that led to the ocean below, a two-and-a-half-meter brick wall being the obstacle between a person and a drop into the sea. The boy led them towards a part in the wall in which a small hole existed, small enough that only a Pokémon could fit. Next to it, there was a neat pile of bricks and stones against the wall, forming a mound that a person could stand on to be able to reach the top of the wall and climb over.
“They chased it through here! I don’t know what they’ll do to it!” the child cried.
“No telling what those scoundrels could do now, no doubt they’ll hurt the poor Bidoof.” Rhythmi said, putting across that she’s familiar with the actions of the two bullies.
“Hey, don’t ‘cha worry.” Kale said, putting an arm reassuringly on the young child’s shoulder. “They won’t be harmin’ a hair on that lil’ Bidoof, or any Pokémon for that matter, while I’m around.” Then he ran towards the wall, placed his foot on the brick pile, hoisted himself up high enough to get a firm grip of the wall, and then the rest of his body followed.
“You guys better go get Ms. April and Principal Lamont, quickly. We’ll break this up before anything happens.” Keith instructed, and then followed Kale over the wall. Rhythmi was dumbfounded by what just happened.
“They… they’re almost the exact same…” she stammered, noticing the similarities between the two.
“We really should go and get the teachers now.” Janice suggested, pulling Rhythmi with her to call for help.
On the other side of the wall, there was a small field, dotted with flowers. There were four Budew here, small bud-like Pokémon with leaves curling around themselves on their heads and small yellow faces, no arms, and stump-like feet. However, they all were huddled against the wall in fear of what was transpiring on the far side of it. Two boys, in the main-school uniform were closing in on a terrified brown Pokémon with a short, fluffy tail, a round nose, and huge teeth.
“C’mon you little rat. You don’t want tha ‘ungry Hippowdon ta eat ya, do ya?” the taller of the two coaxed, a lean teenager with a bony face, long nose, piercing eyes, and a heavy accent. The other, a short and round teenager with a pudgy face was making menacing noises that were meant to sound like a Hippowdon, but barely came close. The Bidoof was still downright terrified, backing back so far that it’s back feet were only centimeters away from the edge of the cliff.
“Hey! You leave that Bidoof alone!” Keith shouted, capturing the attention of the two bullies.
“Oh no Boris!” the taller one gasped mockingly, “Tha rangers are here ta’ stop us! Whatever shall we do?” making a theatrical performance out of his words.
“Let’s send this Bidoof at them and show it how to attack nosy little people like them.” Boris suggested, making a grab for the Bidoof. The tiny mouse pokemon took a step backwards to try and avoid Boris’s thick hands. Unfortunately, the Bidoof ran out of room, and tumbled over the edge.
“NO!” Kale shouted as the Bidoof disappeared from view.
“Whoopsidaisies!” Jasper said, “looks like you’ve got nothing left ta’ rescue now.”
“Actually Jasper, it’s still there, hanging on to a little branch down there.” Boris explained, pointing down the cliff. Sure enough, the Bidoof was hanging on to a root just below by its enormous teeth.
“Bah, shut it Boris! One step atta’ time, let’s send these rangers down there ta’ ‘rescue’ tha Bidoof first.” Jasper cackled menacingly, then stepped towards Keith and Kale. Then reached into his pocket. “We were savin’ this for tha Bidoof’s second lesson. But I’m sure it won’t mind us teachin’ these intruders some lessons first.” Jasper pulled out a small red and white pokéball, then pressed the button that sat on the line that separated the two colors, the ball enlarged until it occupied the entire space of his palm.
“Alright ol’ frogger! Time ta’ get smashin’!” he shouted, tossing the pokéball at the space between him and the two ranger students. In a flash of light, a Pokémon emerged. A blue pokémon a foot tall with small feet, small arms that ended in large white gloves, two eyes that sat on the top of its head, and a swirl pattern on its belly that would appear to rotate to those that stared at it for long enough. The Poliwhirl looked just as cruel and menacing as its trainer.
“What shall we do with ‘em, Boris? Shall we beat ‘em, spray ‘em, or hypnotize ‘em to walk off tha cliff themselves?” Jasper asked. Looking away from the two rangers,
“Well, we haven’t tried hypnotizing anybody to do something that crazy, so we should give it a try!” Boris suggested,
“Atta’ boy Boris! Frogger, you know what ta do! Hyp-” Jasper said, turning back towards the two rangers, only to see what they did when his back was turned. The Budew that were once huddled against the wall were now forming a line in front of the rangers, the two rangers still having their stylers active. What happened in the small space of time that the two troublemakers had their backs turned was the two rangers capturing the Budew, knowing full well what to do with them.
“Budew! Use Absorb!” Keith shouted, the two Budew that he captured jumped at the Poliwhirl, opening their head buds as the closed in. They then clamped their buds on the amphibian skin of the tadpole Pokémon, instantly beginning to suck nutrients from its moist skin. The Poliwhirl tried to swat them off, but it wasn’t as strong as it acted, it quickly became dizzy, exhausted, and then collapsed. The two Budew released their grip as soon as the Pokémon lost consciousness.
“Budew! Use Stun Spore!” Kale shouted to his own pair of Bud Pokémon, the two pokemon slowly unraveled their head buds, to display a different effect. Both Budew ejected a thick cloud of yellow powder that billowed out and caught the wind, blowing through the two boys before they could react. The miniature spores, which although could grow into small mushrooms or play a part in the species reproduction cycle, also had a nasty side affect to those that inhaled it. The two boys instantly fell forward, falling into a small seizure before passing out. It wouldn’t have kept a Pokémon out for more than ten seconds, but humans are a different story. The duo moved past the two crooked students to lean over the cliff. The bidoof was still clinging on for dear life, but probably not for much longer.
“It’s too far down. I can’t reach it!” Keith shouted, trying desperately to grab the Bidoof in his hands.
“Keith,” Kale said, prompting the hot-headed ranger student to turn around to see the other with his hand extended, as if in a handshake. “I can count on ya’, right?”
“Um… yeah I… guess so?” Keith responded, unsure on what this person was trying to do. Kale grabbed his hand and tightened his grip.
“Then don’t let go.” Kale said, then fell sideways and went over the cliff. Keith’s knees buckled and he fell onto them. The rest of his body locked up and kept him from falling forward and over the cliff. His hand went over the edge and linked with Kale’s who was now perched by his feet on the face of the cliff. His lowest foot was now just ten centimeters short of reaching the branch the Bidoof was clinging onto. Kale waited, then moved his foot a little to catch the endangered pokémon’s attention. It looked up with terrified eyes, Kale looked back with gentle eyes, trying to convey his intentions to the Bidoof. “trust me” he mouthed, to try and convince the Bidoof to cooperate. The branch below made a creak and suddenly the Bidoof sprang into action, making a desperate leap to grab for the lifeline.
“I got ‘im!” Kale shouted, Keith quickly tugged hard and pulled the student and the pokémon back over the edge. Keith fell backwards and panted heavily. Kale laid on his back and relaxed, Keith finally looked over and saw Kale’s empty hands.
“You said you had him!” Keith almost screamed, trying to push himself back up to his feet. Kale responded by lifting his leg. It was the first time anyone would be relieved to see a thick patch of fur clinging to someone’s leg.
“So that’s what happened.” Keith finished explaining, the two were now in the staff room. Rhythmi, Ms. Janice, and an assorted group of staff including Ms. April and Mr. Kincaid were behind the two. While in front of them was a fairly short man with large spectacles, a brown suit, and thick grey hair and a matching moustache that was neatly combed. This was Principal Lamont, the head of the Ranger Academy.
“This act is not uncommon for Jasper and Boris, that pair has a reputation for taunting students as well as Pokémon in such a way. The two have already been suspended and will be taking a few months off in Pueltown until they can continue their final year of education.” He explained. “As for you two, although I admit that your cause was just, I must condemn you for your actions-”
“-They saved the Bidoof though-” Rhythmi interrupted,
“At great personal risk.” Lamont finished, and then focused his words on Kale. “That stunt you pulled was incredibly dangerous, not just did you endanger your own life, but also Keith’s. What would have happened if Keith couldn’t hold on to you like that? What if he fell forward and you both plummeted over the cliff? Did you take that into account?” Kale bowed his head, but remained silent. Ten seconds went by and nobody spoke, Keith shifted uncomfortably in his place. Lamont inhaled deeply, and then spoke again.
“Allow me to reword that, what was going through your mind when you decided to go over the cliff?” Kale inhaled slowly, collecting his thoughts, before he finally replied.
“Family… My grandpa always taught me that you got to stick up for your family, however costly it is. My parents run a ranch in Fiore, see, so I spent a lot of time looking after Pokémon, growing up with them, helping them and being helped when I needed it most. And that’s what a family does, so in a sense, Pokémon are my family. That was why I wanted to be a ranger, and endangered myself to save the Bidoof; to protect my family.”
“Family…?” Lamont repeated, then stroked his moustache gently, in deep thought. The silence made almost everyone in the room nervous. Finally, Lamont smiled to himself, then looked back up at the two students in front of him.
“You may go now, don’t allow yourselves to fall into such dangerous situations again please.” He finished. The room almost emptied out in seconds. Ms. April was the only person that remained with the Principal.
“Are you sure about letting him go, there’s no telling if it’s going to happen again?” She asked, unsure about Lamont’s decision.
“I’m sure… Kale has a young, spirited, and caring heart beating within him. We need more rangers like him in these growing times.”
Kale, Keith, and Rhythmi walked silently across the halls, it was getting late, and the corridors were emptied as all the other students have already retired to their dorms, none of them were sure what to say, whether to be proud, cheerful, or angry with each other. When they finally reached the dorms that the rangers were going to sleep in. Keith finally broke the silence.
“You know what Kale,” He said, breaking his face into a smile, “you’re going to fit in here just fine. Come on, I better introduce you to the rest of the boys in the dorm.” Kale looked over, then his face too brightened up.
“They all as competitive as you?” Kale asked,
“Nah, they know their place. You… will learn yours eventually.” Keith answered mysteriously. The two of them chuckled as they walked towards the male dorms. Rhythmi stopped behind them, just before the turning that separated the girl dorms from the boys. She looked at the two of them, joking and smiling as if they were old friends. Who would have thought it started out as what was about to become a fierce rivalry. Suddenly, her thoughts stopped at one final point. As she realized this, she started to seethe with rage.
“You knew his name the whole time, didn’t you!?” She shouted, waking just about everyone on that and the two adjacent floors.
It was going to be a long year.
Phew, going to start on the second episode now, read and comment while you wait for it
[shadow=green,left]Ranger Diaries[/shadow]
Episode 1: A New Arrival / Ranger School! Enter Kale!
Welcome to the Ranger Academy: a facility of education here in the region of Almia. It is here that people, young and old, big and small, come to learn from the best. Our claim to fame however is the Ranger program; a yearlong program which teaches our students the art of becoming Pokémon Rangers, Operators, and Mechanics. Though these three fields differ vastly, they all have one goal, the protection of humans and Pokémon worldwide. All students are given their own capture styler, and engage in daily activities to learn how to operate their stylers on the field, how to direct the rangers in the HQ, how to repair equipment in the garage, and physical training to give them all the energy necessary for these professions. Most importantly however, it teaches that the secret to becoming any of these is the ability to use your surroundings to further their cause. Learn this vital skill, and anything can be accomplished.
* * * * * *
Is this stuff necessary to be a ranger?
That question ached through Keith’s mind as Ms. April droned on about the resolves of a Pokémon ranger. Ms. April was the class teacher, a beautiful teacher in a green shirt and a white skirt, with flowing brown hair that would be the jealousy of many girls. However, she was a serious teacher, and went into great depth in her lessons. Keith’s mind however was more on the tiny rolled up piece of paper between his fingers. He was playing a game of finger football, gently flicking the tiny ball around his table. Most of the class was hanging on Ms. April’s every world, others however had dozed off a long time ago; Keith was slowly on his way to join them. The door behind them noisily slid open, as it always does.
“Ms. April, our newest recruit has come. The indestructible Team School is now larger, and closer to ruling the world.” A man in a uniform consisting of a blue waistcoat, pants, boots, and a blue cap announced. All heads turned towards him and the teenager beside him.
“Oh please Mr. Kaplan.” Ms. April replied, “You’re going to scare off my class with that silly performance.”
“Sorry, the timing was just too perfect to miss.” Mr. Kaplan answered, before gently pushing the teenager beside him into the classroom. “I think you’re going to like this one Ms. April, he passed the entrance exam with flying colors.” He said, and then quickly disappeared, leaving the young student behind to face the eyes of the class.
“Well, why don’t you come up and introduce yourself to the class.” Ms. April asked. The new student walked steadily up to the front of the room, on the right side of the line between nervousness and excitement. He stopped in front of the desk and turned back towards the class so that everyone could see him clearly. He was dressed in the school uniform, like all the other students; a blue jumpsuit under a green short-jacket, a yellow tie, and brown boots. The student had thick brown hair, azure eyes, and thin eyebrows that moved whenever his expression or his look changed.
“Hey y’all, the name’s Kale. A ranger-in-training just like everyone else here. Glad to meet’cha” He greeted; the Western accent in his voice was light but clear.
“Well we are glad to meet you too Kale, why don’t you have a seat over there, between Rhythmi and Keith.” Ms. April suggested, pointing towards the empty table in the second row. Kale strode over and collapsed in the seat. Ms. April continued the lesson almost forgetting that he hadn’t heard anything before he came in
“Now, back to the subject, a ranger must always-“ Ms. April said, and then was cut off by the ringing of a large bell. “Okay, classes for today are officially over, be sure to go to dinner and bed on time. And would someone please give Kale a tour of the school.” Ms. April asked.
“I’ll be happy to do it.” A young girl next to Kale answered.
“Thank you very much Rhythmi, I’ll be in the staff room if you need me. Bye students!” Ms. April finished, and then walked through the classroom and out the door. The rest of the class followed suit, leaving Kale, Rhythmi, and the boy on the opposite side of Kale in the room.
“What took you so long? We’ve all been here for a week already, did you take that long to capture that Pikachu?” a male about a year older than Kale asked. He had dark brown eyes and spiky red hair and a cocky smirk on his face.
“Keith! Don’t say that sort of thing!” Rhythmi, a girl the same age as Keith with curly blond hair and coal-colored eyes shouted in defense of Kale. “Just ignore him Kale, Keith’s just a no-good show-off. Just because he has the fastest capture time out of all of us.” She explained to Kale, and then extended her hand, “I’m Rhythmi, and I have dreams to become an operator, pleasure to meet you.” Kale took her hand and shook it gently.
“Great to meetcha’ too, but just relax, I can handle myself here.” Kale said, then turned towards Keith. “I’m actually late because I came from Fiore, I had to do some transfer papers and all that before I could come to Almia, I actually got here just now.” He explained,
“Well just remember who’s the top ranger around here. I’ll show you just what the kind of skill a ranger needs soon enough. See you around, um, whatever your name is.” Keith vowed, then left the room himself.
“At least make the effort to learn his name Keith!” Rhythmi shouted as Keith disappeared. “I’m so looking forward to becoming an operator, then I get to boss hotheads like him around like my servants.” Rhythmi muttered.
“Rhythmi, when about would Keith be checkin’ the capture times?” Kale asked,
“Probably right now, he’s always trying to improve his capture time, why?” Rhythmi asked,
“Well, he just ain’t going to be too happy when he sees the rankings.” Kale explained,
“Wait, you mean you beat his time? On your entrance exam?!” Rhythmi exclaimed,
“I-I didn’t think it was that big of a deal, it was just launch the disk, twirl it ‘round, and click. It was hardly any different from a pokéball.” Kale pulled out the school styler to help show what he was saying. The capture styler was a green handheld object that looked like a miniature walkie-talkie with the white spinning-top known as the capture disk fixed on the backside. And an interface screen on the front underneath a flap in the device, which had the school’s logo of a capture disk labeled on it.
“This is perfect. The boisterous Keith has met his match!” Rhythmi announced to the empty room, before calming down again, “Well, we can focus on Keith later. I better give you a tour of the school first.” She said, and then began almost right away. “This is our home classroom, all students in the ranger program are put in this classroom, where Ms. April teaches everyone about working for the Pokémon Rangers. We’ll be having most of our classes in here, so we’ll be in here often.” She explained, and then led Kale out of the classroom and on a full on tour of the school building, starting with the room on the opposite side of the hall.
“This here is Mr. Kincaid’s classroom.” Rhythmi explained, opening the door to show the room within. It was almost a perfect replica of the room they only just left, four rows of six tables with chairs pushed underneath, the teacher’s desk at the front, the only noticeable differences was, firstly, that the chair was occupied by a man in his late forties, with bleached hair that curled in one direction, attired with a cream shirt, a red waistcoat, and a purple tie. And the other: a strong smell that clogged the room, and nearly caused Kale to gag at the unfamiliar smell. Rhythmi quickly laid a hand across his mouth to prevent those events from conspiring.
“Mr. Kincaid’s extra-hold hairspray.” She explained,
“Yes, do you have anything to say about my hairspray Ms?” The man at the desk questioned, looking up from the papers he was writing.
“N-no sir, none at all.” Rhythmi stammered, obviously this teacher gave her shivers.
“And how about you, young man.” Mr. Kincaid asked, turning his question over to Kale.
“No sir,” Kale replied, his voice in better shape than Rhythmi’s. “I’m just ain’t used to the smell, we all ‘ave our unfamiliar scents. I’ll get used to it.” Kale explained.
“Well, you should. And might I if there’s anything you two require.” He continued to question,
“I’m-I’m just giving Kale here a-a tour of the school. That’s all” Rhythmi continued to stammer,
“Well make sure Kale learns our rules, especially mine-“ Mr. Kincaid instructed,
“No running in the halls, yes sir.” Rhythmi interrupted, already familiar with the teacher’s famous No.1 rule
“Excellent. Carry on with your tour then.” The two students turned to go, “but first. Kale,” he leaned in closer from his table. “I hope we get to know each other better over the course of the year. That is all.” Kincaid finished, the two students quickly left.
“He’s a creepy teacher isn’t he?’ Rhythmi asked,
“After that suggestive comment, I ‘ave to agree.” Kale admitted,
“We only have class with him only once a week thankfully.” Rhythmi informed, “Well, we better get on with our tour.” Then led Kale through the school, pointing to each of the classrooms that were for the students that were part of the main school program, the dormitories, and of course, the restricted rooms.
“That is the main school building then, in a nutshell.” Rhythmi concluded, Kale responded with a half-hearted smile, hiding how tiring that tour was. If that were her idea of a nutshell, then he wouldn’t want to get the full tour. “I better show you the school grounds, there should still be time to see some of it before dinner.” Rhythmi explained, and then dragged Kale onto what was hopefully the conclusion of the tour.
“We’re usually allowed on the school grounds in between classes, it’s a natural habitat for Pokémon, so we have opportunities to practice using our capture stylers. And there’s also the-“
“NO! Oh dear! Oh dear! Oh dear!” A voice suddenly shouted, Rhythmi and Kale looked over at the field in front of the door to see a swarm of Bidoof scatter, running off in all possible directions, a middle-aged woman was left panicking in the spot where the Bidoof were before.
“Janice! What happened?” Rhythmi shouted, running towards the woman.
“I was just feeding the Bidoof, when I accidentally trod on one of their little tails and now the entire group has gone off running! Oh they must be so agitated now, I’m worried someone could get hurt. Bidoof have strong teeth you know.” Janice explained.
“Then we all know what comes next.” A voice proclaimed, Kale turned to see Keith approach, a grin on his face and a few beads of sweat running down his face. He apparently just came from a shed on the far side of the field, which was where Kale performed his entrance exam. “You… uh whatever your name was, I say we ourselves have a capture race. The person who captures the most Bidoof wins.”
“Keith! Are you treating this like some sort of sport? And you could at least remember the name of your own classmate!” Rhythmi shouted into Keith’s face.
“It’s alright, I can handle this” Kale said, lightly pushing Rhythmi out of the way, so that Kale could see Keith eye to eye. “Sure, if you wanna a competition, then I’m game. On your Go then.” Kale accepted, both rangers-in-training pulled out their stylers and braced themselves to sprint.
“3… 2… 1… GO!” Keith counted, and then the two of them bolted in two different directions, pursuing the running Bidoof. Keith got lucky and managed to get three in one place and capture them all at once, taking him far into the lead. Kale wasn’t going to give up though, as his captures were noticeably faster than Keith’s, taking only four seconds to complete a capture, while Keith took six. After five minutes of running and capturing both of them returned to the center of the field panting, with their captured Bidoof in tow.
“Alright… I caught six, and you have… five so… victory is mine!” Keith proclaimed, jumping into the air with his styler in hand, somersaulting… and falling on his face.
“Real smooth Ranger Pose there, Keith.” Rhythmi gloated,
“Mock my pose if you will, but you must still accept that I’m still the best ranger here.” Keith proclaimed,
“Is all this competition all there is to being a ranger for you Keith!? You’re forgetting the most important thing here!” Rhythmi argued,
“Lay off Rhythmi! Keith won, so let him have his gloat.” Kale interrupted,
“Actually, no he hasn’t.” Janice cut in, this got all the heads to turn to her as she explained, “Twelve Bidoof ran off, and there are only eleven here. Where’s the last one?”
“Ms. Janice! Ms. Janice!” a voice suddenly shouted, a young boy in the main-school’s uniform, which was a green shirt and pants under a blue blazer; more or less an invert of the colors the three ranger students had on. “Some seniors are being mean to a Bidoof, over by the cliff!”
“It must be Jasper and Boris again! Can’t those two boys stop?” Janice groaned, the whole group followed the child around the Eastern side of the school, where the rolling grass ended with a rock face that led to the ocean below, a two-and-a-half-meter brick wall being the obstacle between a person and a drop into the sea. The boy led them towards a part in the wall in which a small hole existed, small enough that only a Pokémon could fit. Next to it, there was a neat pile of bricks and stones against the wall, forming a mound that a person could stand on to be able to reach the top of the wall and climb over.
“They chased it through here! I don’t know what they’ll do to it!” the child cried.
“No telling what those scoundrels could do now, no doubt they’ll hurt the poor Bidoof.” Rhythmi said, putting across that she’s familiar with the actions of the two bullies.
“Hey, don’t ‘cha worry.” Kale said, putting an arm reassuringly on the young child’s shoulder. “They won’t be harmin’ a hair on that lil’ Bidoof, or any Pokémon for that matter, while I’m around.” Then he ran towards the wall, placed his foot on the brick pile, hoisted himself up high enough to get a firm grip of the wall, and then the rest of his body followed.
“You guys better go get Ms. April and Principal Lamont, quickly. We’ll break this up before anything happens.” Keith instructed, and then followed Kale over the wall. Rhythmi was dumbfounded by what just happened.
“They… they’re almost the exact same…” she stammered, noticing the similarities between the two.
“We really should go and get the teachers now.” Janice suggested, pulling Rhythmi with her to call for help.
On the other side of the wall, there was a small field, dotted with flowers. There were four Budew here, small bud-like Pokémon with leaves curling around themselves on their heads and small yellow faces, no arms, and stump-like feet. However, they all were huddled against the wall in fear of what was transpiring on the far side of it. Two boys, in the main-school uniform were closing in on a terrified brown Pokémon with a short, fluffy tail, a round nose, and huge teeth.
“C’mon you little rat. You don’t want tha ‘ungry Hippowdon ta eat ya, do ya?” the taller of the two coaxed, a lean teenager with a bony face, long nose, piercing eyes, and a heavy accent. The other, a short and round teenager with a pudgy face was making menacing noises that were meant to sound like a Hippowdon, but barely came close. The Bidoof was still downright terrified, backing back so far that it’s back feet were only centimeters away from the edge of the cliff.
“Hey! You leave that Bidoof alone!” Keith shouted, capturing the attention of the two bullies.
“Oh no Boris!” the taller one gasped mockingly, “Tha rangers are here ta’ stop us! Whatever shall we do?” making a theatrical performance out of his words.
“Let’s send this Bidoof at them and show it how to attack nosy little people like them.” Boris suggested, making a grab for the Bidoof. The tiny mouse pokemon took a step backwards to try and avoid Boris’s thick hands. Unfortunately, the Bidoof ran out of room, and tumbled over the edge.
“NO!” Kale shouted as the Bidoof disappeared from view.
“Whoopsidaisies!” Jasper said, “looks like you’ve got nothing left ta’ rescue now.”
“Actually Jasper, it’s still there, hanging on to a little branch down there.” Boris explained, pointing down the cliff. Sure enough, the Bidoof was hanging on to a root just below by its enormous teeth.
“Bah, shut it Boris! One step atta’ time, let’s send these rangers down there ta’ ‘rescue’ tha Bidoof first.” Jasper cackled menacingly, then stepped towards Keith and Kale. Then reached into his pocket. “We were savin’ this for tha Bidoof’s second lesson. But I’m sure it won’t mind us teachin’ these intruders some lessons first.” Jasper pulled out a small red and white pokéball, then pressed the button that sat on the line that separated the two colors, the ball enlarged until it occupied the entire space of his palm.
“Alright ol’ frogger! Time ta’ get smashin’!” he shouted, tossing the pokéball at the space between him and the two ranger students. In a flash of light, a Pokémon emerged. A blue pokémon a foot tall with small feet, small arms that ended in large white gloves, two eyes that sat on the top of its head, and a swirl pattern on its belly that would appear to rotate to those that stared at it for long enough. The Poliwhirl looked just as cruel and menacing as its trainer.
“What shall we do with ‘em, Boris? Shall we beat ‘em, spray ‘em, or hypnotize ‘em to walk off tha cliff themselves?” Jasper asked. Looking away from the two rangers,
“Well, we haven’t tried hypnotizing anybody to do something that crazy, so we should give it a try!” Boris suggested,
“Atta’ boy Boris! Frogger, you know what ta do! Hyp-” Jasper said, turning back towards the two rangers, only to see what they did when his back was turned. The Budew that were once huddled against the wall were now forming a line in front of the rangers, the two rangers still having their stylers active. What happened in the small space of time that the two troublemakers had their backs turned was the two rangers capturing the Budew, knowing full well what to do with them.
“Budew! Use Absorb!” Keith shouted, the two Budew that he captured jumped at the Poliwhirl, opening their head buds as the closed in. They then clamped their buds on the amphibian skin of the tadpole Pokémon, instantly beginning to suck nutrients from its moist skin. The Poliwhirl tried to swat them off, but it wasn’t as strong as it acted, it quickly became dizzy, exhausted, and then collapsed. The two Budew released their grip as soon as the Pokémon lost consciousness.
“Budew! Use Stun Spore!” Kale shouted to his own pair of Bud Pokémon, the two pokemon slowly unraveled their head buds, to display a different effect. Both Budew ejected a thick cloud of yellow powder that billowed out and caught the wind, blowing through the two boys before they could react. The miniature spores, which although could grow into small mushrooms or play a part in the species reproduction cycle, also had a nasty side affect to those that inhaled it. The two boys instantly fell forward, falling into a small seizure before passing out. It wouldn’t have kept a Pokémon out for more than ten seconds, but humans are a different story. The duo moved past the two crooked students to lean over the cliff. The bidoof was still clinging on for dear life, but probably not for much longer.
“It’s too far down. I can’t reach it!” Keith shouted, trying desperately to grab the Bidoof in his hands.
“Keith,” Kale said, prompting the hot-headed ranger student to turn around to see the other with his hand extended, as if in a handshake. “I can count on ya’, right?”
“Um… yeah I… guess so?” Keith responded, unsure on what this person was trying to do. Kale grabbed his hand and tightened his grip.
“Then don’t let go.” Kale said, then fell sideways and went over the cliff. Keith’s knees buckled and he fell onto them. The rest of his body locked up and kept him from falling forward and over the cliff. His hand went over the edge and linked with Kale’s who was now perched by his feet on the face of the cliff. His lowest foot was now just ten centimeters short of reaching the branch the Bidoof was clinging onto. Kale waited, then moved his foot a little to catch the endangered pokémon’s attention. It looked up with terrified eyes, Kale looked back with gentle eyes, trying to convey his intentions to the Bidoof. “trust me” he mouthed, to try and convince the Bidoof to cooperate. The branch below made a creak and suddenly the Bidoof sprang into action, making a desperate leap to grab for the lifeline.
“I got ‘im!” Kale shouted, Keith quickly tugged hard and pulled the student and the pokémon back over the edge. Keith fell backwards and panted heavily. Kale laid on his back and relaxed, Keith finally looked over and saw Kale’s empty hands.
“You said you had him!” Keith almost screamed, trying to push himself back up to his feet. Kale responded by lifting his leg. It was the first time anyone would be relieved to see a thick patch of fur clinging to someone’s leg.
“So that’s what happened.” Keith finished explaining, the two were now in the staff room. Rhythmi, Ms. Janice, and an assorted group of staff including Ms. April and Mr. Kincaid were behind the two. While in front of them was a fairly short man with large spectacles, a brown suit, and thick grey hair and a matching moustache that was neatly combed. This was Principal Lamont, the head of the Ranger Academy.
“This act is not uncommon for Jasper and Boris, that pair has a reputation for taunting students as well as Pokémon in such a way. The two have already been suspended and will be taking a few months off in Pueltown until they can continue their final year of education.” He explained. “As for you two, although I admit that your cause was just, I must condemn you for your actions-”
“-They saved the Bidoof though-” Rhythmi interrupted,
“At great personal risk.” Lamont finished, and then focused his words on Kale. “That stunt you pulled was incredibly dangerous, not just did you endanger your own life, but also Keith’s. What would have happened if Keith couldn’t hold on to you like that? What if he fell forward and you both plummeted over the cliff? Did you take that into account?” Kale bowed his head, but remained silent. Ten seconds went by and nobody spoke, Keith shifted uncomfortably in his place. Lamont inhaled deeply, and then spoke again.
“Allow me to reword that, what was going through your mind when you decided to go over the cliff?” Kale inhaled slowly, collecting his thoughts, before he finally replied.
“Family… My grandpa always taught me that you got to stick up for your family, however costly it is. My parents run a ranch in Fiore, see, so I spent a lot of time looking after Pokémon, growing up with them, helping them and being helped when I needed it most. And that’s what a family does, so in a sense, Pokémon are my family. That was why I wanted to be a ranger, and endangered myself to save the Bidoof; to protect my family.”
“Family…?” Lamont repeated, then stroked his moustache gently, in deep thought. The silence made almost everyone in the room nervous. Finally, Lamont smiled to himself, then looked back up at the two students in front of him.
“You may go now, don’t allow yourselves to fall into such dangerous situations again please.” He finished. The room almost emptied out in seconds. Ms. April was the only person that remained with the Principal.
“Are you sure about letting him go, there’s no telling if it’s going to happen again?” She asked, unsure about Lamont’s decision.
“I’m sure… Kale has a young, spirited, and caring heart beating within him. We need more rangers like him in these growing times.”
Kale, Keith, and Rhythmi walked silently across the halls, it was getting late, and the corridors were emptied as all the other students have already retired to their dorms, none of them were sure what to say, whether to be proud, cheerful, or angry with each other. When they finally reached the dorms that the rangers were going to sleep in. Keith finally broke the silence.
“You know what Kale,” He said, breaking his face into a smile, “you’re going to fit in here just fine. Come on, I better introduce you to the rest of the boys in the dorm.” Kale looked over, then his face too brightened up.
“They all as competitive as you?” Kale asked,
“Nah, they know their place. You… will learn yours eventually.” Keith answered mysteriously. The two of them chuckled as they walked towards the male dorms. Rhythmi stopped behind them, just before the turning that separated the girl dorms from the boys. She looked at the two of them, joking and smiling as if they were old friends. Who would have thought it started out as what was about to become a fierce rivalry. Suddenly, her thoughts stopped at one final point. As she realized this, she started to seethe with rage.
“You knew his name the whole time, didn’t you!?” She shouted, waking just about everyone on that and the two adjacent floors.
It was going to be a long year.
Phew, going to start on the second episode now, read and comment while you wait for it
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Thank you for explaining, Bren.
