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Oh, now the boy was starting to ask the questions. Why? Why, why, why. Desiderio chuckled, slowly at first but then grew louder. He then looked down at Nolan.

"Why? Because I want to see what sort of people you newcomers to Etrua are like. The first one was completely oblivious to how dangerous it is to travel without the right equipment, but she was being mentored by someone from the Pokemon League. And if you must know, I'm not affiliated with those stuck-up bastards from the Pokemon League." he said coolly. "You're way too cowardly and overprotective of your Pokemon. They're going to get hurt whether or not you want them to. As long as they're not dead, you can heal them. Why do you think Pokemon Centers exist in the first place? And at the same time, you allow them to shield you while you run away? You pansy."

Desiderio listened to what the boy had to say, then shook his head.

"A Caterpie can take on a Dragonite. It's called tactics. And rules? Who determined the rules on how to use Pokemon to fight? The Pokemon League? Those bastards that come out to the beginner areas and fight new Trainers for shits and giggles?" he shook his head. "If you want to start, why not get a mentor? Have someone teach you what you need to know to survive. I know an organization that specializes in raising Trainers to be able to survive any sort of situation. I can introduce you as a newcomer and you can work your way up the ranks. That's a start, isn't it? Having peers like you that you can talk to and learn new things?"

He sighed before walking over towards the other end of the pit and had the Ariados spit out some web for Nolan to grab on to. "My methods may be crude, but I can at least get the job done. I don't have to be your mentor, but it wouldn't hurt if you learned a thing or two about Pokemon."

This twist in personality from attempting to kill the kid to now help the boy was unusual for Des, but he could see potential in Nolan. It all depended on how the boy would develop that potential, and whether he'd use his skills for good or evil.

The boy did end up taking Skulltula's web to help pull himself out. Des waited for the boy to catch his breath before he was asked questions. Oddly enough, the Caterpie vs Dragonite bit.

"Baton Pass." Desiderio replied simply. "You have your other Pokemon buff up their Attack and Speed with their moves before you pass the improved stats onto little Caterpie with Baton Pass. Of course, a better option would probably be a Rattata, since that can at least learn Quick Attack and Endeavor to not only drop the opponent's health significantly to match the little rat, but then follow it up with a Quick Attack. But the set-up is still the same. You need to rely on your other Pokemon to strengthen the one you want to use."

"As for the League Rules... the League members are testing you. But they're not fighting at your level. You have to prove yourselves to them by fighting at their level, even if you're outmatched. The League can afford to break their own rules because they're strong. They know their Pokemons' limits. I'm sure you've seen a League member call a Pokemon back even though it had plenty of fight left in it. That's because they know that they shouldn't push their limit. To become strong is to know one's own limits, and then to become stronger you have to start pushing those limits." he continued.

Desiderio reached into his cloak and pulled out Scar's Pokeball before calling the Zangoose back. "Limits can be pushed. But don't push them too fast or too hard. They'll break. And that's my lesson. Learn your limits, and seek to raise the bar on them."

Kiera got seperated from Nolan because now she was all alone. That meant she probably should be looking for him AND Snivy. She heard a stranger's voice and laugh somewhere nearby, sounding dangerous, and she called her pokemon to come back to her. Zeus started to point in the dircetion he saw Nolan and Snivy go from overhead. Kiera ran to the spot that there was the wild Hipoo but no one was here. She sighed and wished that Nolan wouldn't get into so much trouble. "Now what do we do? I don't want to leave him out here when we're supposed to be traveling together."

Kiera didn't know that Nincada and Litwick were in the sand but Zeus was staring down there. "What's the matter? What do you sense Zeus?" Kiera squinted her eyes like her Abra but it didn't help because she had no psychic powers. She thought to herself, Nolan where did you go?

"Hi there Nincada. What are you doing here? Hey aren't you Nolan's pokemon, so where's your trainer?" Kiera kneeled by Nincada and tried to understand what he was saying. Her four pokemon gathered around with her and they came up with a plan. She knew she should find Nolan but she also knew they had planned to meet up on Route 1 if they did get seperated. Maybe he was chasing a rare pokemon, but if he didn't show back up in a few hours Kiera was going to go get some help from the police. "Come on everyone. Lets go catch Yanma and get to the meeting spot for lunch. You should come with us too Nincada."

OOC: Link to a force venture of the unknown

Nolan stood a little straighter, his expression clearing, and finally he was entirely won over by the time Desiderio was done speaking. He could buy into the idea of the Ranger Academy, since it sounded more like training the trainer, instead of intruding on his own techniques. It all now added up perfectly in his head, and right then - even though just minutes ago he had been afraid for his life - he could actually laugh off the entire incident. Nolan didn't exactly do any laughing though, because Des's question reminded him he was still missing two more from his team of six.
"No ... I still need to find Taillow and Nincada. I'll ..."

Now Nolan was hesitating, but for entirely different reasons.
"I can't leave without them."
It was now understood how ridiculous that sounded, but Nolan couldn't help himself. He had his morals to stand by, and if he did anything like abandon his own pokemon, he would never be able to forgive himself for that. He had been taught to be better than that. Sighing, he quickly went over his options. Snivy had other ideas. The Grass Snake started pointing out into the other direction, a little frown on her face. Then she looked down at Honor sitting at Nolan's feet, dispensing more curt orders, and again pointed from her perch in the bag now. Nolan started to catch on just as the Shinx began to turn to bound off.

"Wait."
He put down Valor, staying on a knee, and asked the cubs,
"Can you find them?"
"Inx inx!" Although Nolan didn't understand Valor's enthusiastic cries, he certainly did understand when Honor slowly nodded his head. The more sober of the pair let his yellow gaze slide over at Desiderio for a moment, and was already sauntering off as Nolan stood back up.
"I had better go with them. It won't do me any good now to let us split up again. I'll ... well, I'm heading right back to Route One once I find them, and Kiera too. I would like to ... join, the Academy, if that's okay."

While before it had been terror, now all that was left was that healthy dose of respect for the other trainer and his pokemon. Nolan was intimidated, itching to escape with his Flash pokemon, but that didn't keep him silent. He looked back at Des.
"Thank you though, for that lesson. I'll- ... I'm just glad my mistakes haven't cost any of my pokemon their lives. I'll be at Blyse's pokecenter tonight, if you're serious about the offer. I would be honored to have you as a mentor, if that's okay with you, but I can- I can ..."
Nolan cut himself off before he started to ramble, "Thanks, but I have to go find my pokemon now."

Desiderio nodded. "Go. We'll meet again soon. I'll put a good word for ya if that'll help improve your chances of getting in. The guy in charge of registration is a hardass, so hopefully a recommendation will help you get in." he then grinned. "Today's lesson was free. I have some business around Blyse, so I'll try to make some time to come by for a visit. If not, I'll send someone in my stead."

He then waved the boy off, watching him follow after his Shinx cubs to look for his missing Pokemon. He waited a few minutes once the boy was out of earshot and sight before bringing his hand up to his face, appearing to facepalm. But then...

He laughed. That kind of laugh that started off slow and quiet and built up until it was loud and uncontrollable. He did it. Not only did he successfully deceive a Gym Leader and what appeared to be a Legendary Pokemon in his company earlier, but he had also set fire to Route 1 and had now lied to a naive little brat. Getting into the Ranger Academy? Hah! He had cut ties with those sorry bastards a long time ago! It took years of training to even get in there in the first place! A mere recommendation wasn't enough to get anyone into there!

But the boy had invited him to visit him in Blyse City. That gym leader from before was probably going to linger around a little longer and check out the other Trainers, maybe mentor that retarded girl from earlier. And there was still that strange cat that was with the pair. How interesting... it seemed like a challenge. Just how much damage could he get away with under the inept eyes of the Pokemon League?

He brought his fingers to his lips and whistled, calling back Wickersham. The little candle giggled with glee upon her return, and Des held his hand out for her to sit on. "We'll be burning Blyse City tonight, dear. Let's see if we can get some others in on the fun." he said with a sinister smirk before he reached into his cloak for his Pokenav to phone base. Maybe mentioning the cat with Dante wouldn't hurt. He could get someone to do some research on whatever it was so that they knew what they could be dealing with.