Clayton started out the door just as his dorm-mate Alex proposed to have a battle with that Ritzy girl, he kept in mind what Alex looked like and he couldn't forget Ritzy which was probably the effect she was hoping for. He headed off to the dorms with quite a bit on his mind, he figured he might have to look at a type-chart before deciding to battle anyone. He could tell that there were some pretty confident battlers here and though he is confident, Clayton figured he wasn't as experienced. The other trainers most likely went out on journey's around their home region battling Gym Leaders and such but he didn't. He did, however, travel across vast oceans and visit other various regions. It just so happened that Orre didn't have a Pokémon League, probably because of how much of badlands Orre has and how cities are obscure throughout the region.

After a trek that seemed to go on for quite a while Clayton appeared before his dorm room, #24. He glanced around and noticed a student with a Togetic quite a ways down the hallway behind him. He looked back down at the door and jiggled the handle, apparently he was the first one there.
He rummaged through his pockets and picked out his card key, swiped it through the lock, opened the door and walked inside. They seemed fairly small but probably because of how much stuff was in the room. There was even a kitchen, it almost seemed surreal to see one. He had missed his breakfast running for the ferry and seeing that almost seemed as if it were a mirage. Clayton took his shoes off at the and left it open a crack, suspecting that the student he had seen in the hall was heading towards this dorm. He walked to the door at the far end while peeking at the other four rooms that were a living space, the kitchen, a dining room, and a bathroom. He opened the door and walked in to the bed room. He flicked on the over head light and looked in the left corner, he was surprised to see a bunk bed instead of five separate beds. He quickly realized that what he though was a traditional bunk bed was actually two different beds, the top bed was actually stabilized by some wooden beams, he guessed it was so there were no complaints. He ignored the bunk bed and went for the bed in the bottom left corner. Clayton then dumped out all of his belongings on to the bed and started to unpack.

That's suspicious, Chris thought to himself as the teacher accepted his challenge. The way he worded everything seemed off. He figured Adams would be a tough opponent, but so far it would seem he may have underestimated him. But it was too late to back out now. And win or lose, it would certainly be an experience. Though I really don't want to lose... Chris smirked. "One second," he said, before withdrawing a Pokeball with a pink dot on it. After tapping the release button, a Jigglypuff appeared at his feet. With that, his Jigglypuff and Wartortle began to interact but Chris knelt down and interrupted the two. "Okay now, Jigglypuff. You stay back and watch. Pay attention to everything that happens and next time I'll let you battle. Got it?" he spoke to her. Her big eyes widened at the thought of getting to battle. "Jigglypuff!" it agreed, before bouncing backwards and landing on one of the desks.

With that settled, Chris stood up and took some steps back himself. His Wartortle asserted a fighting stance. The Lucario before him seemed daunting, but the Wartortle wasn't afraid. "Alright, now I'm ready," Chris said, before raising his hand dramatically and pointing it at the Lucario. "Wartortle! Use Water Pulse!" he commanded, taking the initiative. The smaller Pokémon drew its head back briefly, before thrusting forward. From his mouth spewed a highly focused stream of water, aimed directly toward the opposing Lucario.

After a long walk through the campus, Max finally found his dorm, room 24. He dug through one of the pockets of his purple backpack, and found his card key. After swiping the key, he opened the door, and walked inside. The room looked like a small apartment, than a simple dorm room. Max made a mental note to take a look through the room later. First, he went to the bedroom, and claimed the single bed on the bottom right corner of the room. He placed his back on the floor, threw off his purple hoodie and let it fall to the floor, and collapsed onto the bed. He would unpack his things later. Right now, he just wanted to relax.

As Max lay there, his Togetic hovered on top of him. "Toge toge tic!" Max was suddenly reminded of something, and sat up. "Oh yeah! Thanks for reminding me!" He dug through his backpack once more, pulled out his other three pokeballs. "Ok guys! Come on out!" He threw the three balls into the air, and in a flash of light, three more Pokemon appeared in the room. Cinderella the Sylveon, Aurora the Clefairy, and a Ariel the Marill. They needed some time outside of the balls too. As soon as she appeared in the room, Aurora shoved the other two Pokemon aside, and struck a pose. Max just giggled at her behavior. His Clefairy loved being the center of attention. Ariel wasn't going to take being shoved aside like that, and actually shoved her back, and the two of them got into an argument of sorts. Thankfully, Cinderella got in between them, and used Heal Bell hoping to calm them down, and stop their arguing before they actually fought right there. Belle the Togetic added some more words of enthusiasm, before the Marill and the Clefairy stormed off to seperate corners of the room.

Max was busy watching his Pokemon interact amongst themselves, that it was only then that Max noticed there was another student in the room with him. He was unpacking his things in the bed across from him. "Oh hey! You must be another one of my roommates!" He greeted him with a smile, and offered the guy his hand. "I'm Max, what's your name?"

Where once there was a Lucario, there was an absence of one. In a blur, the anubis Pokemon disappeared entirely, letting the opposition's water pulse pass harmlessly across the room, and splash on the opposing wall. Lucario reappeared behind Wartortle, and held out it's paw, a burst of blue energy fired with a whooshing sound and Chris' pokemon was knocked out immediately.

The Lucario leaped back to where he was standing originally, and Mr. Adams leaned on his desk. "Had enough yet?"

Though it appeared the teacher had never given any commands, his pokemon still knew exactly what to do. One of the benefits of telepathy, concealing your strategy to your opponent. Extremespeed and Force Palm, two rather strong moves, I hope I didn't overdo it. The teacher thought to himself.

Clyde who was still in the classroom observing the battle this one student initiated with the teacher, out of stupidity or well stupidity, cause as his Wartortle went down right away. It was to be expected though, fighting the teacher right away, when you come to a school to help you become better with Pokemon, was not a smart plan. So Clyde simply left the room noticing his Jolteon was treading behind him looking around at everything. A few minutes of walking he found his room being room #24. He slid his card key through the slot and entered the room, seeing two people already there. Clyde smiled and waved at them while his Jolteon ran up to the Sylveon, and instantly sniffed it, then sat down and barked quite happily. Clyde laughed a little nervously as he saw all this one guys Pokemon out and about. They all seemed to be part fairy type. "Hey, I guess I'm your roommate, my name is Clyde."

The disbelieving grin returned to Alex's face as Ritzy once again started talking. This girl really was serious. Funnily enough, she seemed to acknowlege and be completely okay with the fact that this was the first time such a thing had happened. He honestly had not been prepared for the excitement she would show in givng away her autograph, he almost felt bad for withholding the pen. It was no matter though, she'd be able to give it to him anyway.

He gave her his best charming smile as she agreed to the battle. "You won't regret this battle..." He smirked, "And just think of how much better the story will be when I'm telling of how I won the sacred privilege of receiving Ritzy's first ever autograph in a battle I'm sure will be nothing less than epic. Now I was thinking we could have a chance to rest then after the next class we could bat-" He was cut off by the familiar sound of a water attack.

He turned around confused, only to see what was apparently a battle going on right in the classroom. "What the hell?" he asked. He looked at Ritzy once more with a laugh, "Is it just me or does it look like that fool just challenged our teacher to a battle?" But even as he spoke, the Wartortle had been quickly taken down by the Lucario. So it wasn't a joke. He couldn't even be excited at the chance to watch such a skilled trainer and Pokemon in battle due to the clear unfairness. There was nothing interesting here, just a simple beatdown. He rolled his eyes. And yet... "Come on, don't tell me that shell's just for decoration. I know that Wartortle barely even felt that!" he called out, though he was half mocking the guy, he wanted to see where this went.

((Note: "Aaron" and "Grovyle" will be used interchangeably.))

Terry and Alex stand on opposing sides of the battlefield, Aaron and Houndoom glaring each other down. The referee steps onto his small platform and clears his throat.

"This match shall be a one-on-one battle. Each trainer will select only one Pokemon each, and the match will continue until one or both Pokemon are unable to battle. Trainers, select your Pokemon now!"

"I'll be using Aaron, of course," said Terry. His Grovyle stepped forward onto the field in response. Alex nodded at Houndoom, who stepped out onto his side.

"The Pokemon have been chosen!" announced the referee. "Let the match... BEGIN!"

"Fire Fang, now!" Alex shouted almost immediately. Houndoom charged forward, his fangs wrapped in a red-hot flame. He leapt, fangs bared, at Grovyle.

"Dodge, and use Aerial Ace - full speed!" came Terry's response. Aaron leapt back in time to avoid Houndoom's attack, then leapt high into the air. With a quick backflip, he dove and flew right at Houndoom.

"Use Headbutt!" Houndoom ran at full speed, meeting Grovyle's attack head-on (literally), and both Pokemon are knocked back. Houndoom slides backwards, managing to keep his balance. Aaron, however, was not so fortunate; caught off-guard by the unexpected counter-attack, he is sent flying back toward Terry and lands with an audible "Oof!"

"Wha- He can keep up with that?!" Terry exclaims in shock. He hadn't been expecting Houndoom to be so fast.

Alex grins, but quickly returns to his usual frown. "Fire Fang, again!" Houndoom charges forward again, and this time Aaron is unable to dodge in time. Houndoom sinks his burning fangs into Grovyle's side, and Aaron cries out in pain! He desperately flails at his attacker, but Aaron can't get Houndoom to let go.

"Aaron, use Slam!" Terry shouts. Grovyle whips his head in a circle, sending the long leaf on his head slamming into Houndoom's side, knocking him off and sending him flying back. "Great job! Now use Agility!" Aaron takes off running at an incredible speed, even faster than when he had used Aerial Ace. He catches up to Houndoom just as he lands on his side, growling in pain as he does so. "And Double Team!" Terry shouts again. Suddenly, there are three Grovyle surrounding the fallen Houndoom.

"Houndoom, get up! Now!" Alex yells as Houndoom scrambles to his feet. The sight of three Grovyle shocks Houndoom, but he quickly adopts a combat pose, growling at the three opponents. Alex clenches his fist at his side; a mistake here could cost him the match. "The right one! Attack now!" Houndoom leaps to his right, tackling the Grovyle to the ground! Suddenly, it vanishes! An illusion?! No! "Houndoom!"

"Too late!" Terry shouts. "Finish this, Aaron! Use Brick Break!" Grovyle's fist glows as he and his remaining illusion charge at Houndoom. Having been fooled by Double Team, Houndoom can't react in time, and Grovyle's attack slams into his side, sending him soaring back toward Alex; a critical hit! Houndoom hits the ground hard. Really hard. And he doesn't get back up. Alex stands in shock as his partner hits the ground. Terry glares at Alex, who had acted so arrogant, as the referee raises his flag, and Alex closes his eyes in defeat.

"Houndoom is unable to battle! Grovyle is the winner! The victory goes to-"

"Grr..."

Alex's eyes snap back open. Terry is staring wide-eyed at Houndoom, who is slowly struggling to get back to his feet. Neither trainer can believe their eyes; even Alex had thought that last attack was it. As both trainers stare, Houndoom continues to shakily attempt to rise. He slips once, falling back to the ground, but almost immediately begins to struggle again.

Terry recovers first. "Might as well finish with a flourish. Aaron, use Leaf Blade!" Grovyle charges ahead, his two glowing blades forming on his arms. He leaps high into the air, does a stylish 360, and falls right toward Houndoom, whose legs gave out on him yet again. There's no way he'll avoid it.

Suddenly, Alex sprints out onto the field, sliding to a stop right between Aaron and Houndoom. He spreads his arms out defiantly and waits for Grovyle's attack. Terry's jaw drops as Aaron's Leaf Blade cuts a long, bloody gash across Alex's left arm, Aaron having barely enough time to divert his full attack. Alex grits his teeth and growls in pain, but he refuses to budge an inch. As Aaron lands and leaps back to his trainer, a silence born of shock descends over the battlefield. Terry can only stare as Alex brings his arms down, his wound now weeping fresh blood.

"...You win. I forfeit the match."

Alex pulls out a Pokeball and points it at Houndoom, who disappears into it. Without another word, he walks off the field. The referee recovers from his own surprise and announces Terry as the winner.

Terry barely hears him. He's still trying to understand what he had just seen.

Clayton shoved the rest his clothes in to the dresser at the end of his bed and sent out Raider once again. The swine Pokémon leaped up on his trainer's bed and snuggled in his blankets. Clayton glanced up and smiled, his Piloswine was already sleeping. He didn't mind though as it would be helpful for his Pokémon to rest if he were to battle later in the day. He sat down on his bed and stretched him arms out. He looked back at the archway after hearing the door open, before he thought about who it was the trainer he had noticed earlier walked through the archway. He headed over to the bed directly across from his while his Togetic fluttered on behind him. The student hadn't realized Clayton was also in the dorm room until he had released all of his Pokémon in to the room. The creatures started to fight among themselves but their trainer quickly told them to stop and Clayton chuckled.

"Oh hey! You must be another one of my roommates!" The student said, "I'm Max, what's your name?"

Clayton rose to his feet and shook Max's hand, "Yeah, I'm Clayton ... Clayton Dalee. You've got some neat friends there." He smiled and beckoned Raider to come meet Max's Pokémon but sighed as he snored. "Ignore him, here are my other Pokémon!" He shook his head as he tossed his other Pokéballs Magneton and Heracross popped out of their respective Pokéballs. Heracross crossed his arms and smirked while Magneton floated around Max's Togetic, "My Heracross is Stagger and Magneton is Tritan. Their names might seem strange but I'll probably end up telling you the back stories about them some time."

While awaiting for his pupil to bring out another Pokemon, or forfeit, Mr. Adams suddenly received a call on his phone. From an urgent line. He pulled the device out of his pocket, "Yes? uh huh, okay, on my way sir."

"Sorry, need to end this now, but consider yourself to have failed your extra credit, now get your normal battle." Mr. Adams swiftly strode out of the room and his Lucario appeared to literally vanish into thin air. He arrived at the central meeting room with haste and took his seat.

"Now then, we have received word that suspicious activity is mounting around the school. We believe this to be the return of Cipher. We will begin keeping tabs on all the Pokemon of every student, if anything changes or you see any signs of shadows, alert us immediately, we will take care of it."

Meanwhile, Terry recalled his Grovyle, who sat down at his legs idly. "That guy seems to really care about his Pokemon, it's not like you would have killed him with that move, hell it probably wouldn't have worked in any other situation."

He supposed he should get back to his dorm, the duo walked back in and he laid down on the bed he had decided on earlier when he had hit Alex, who wasn't here yet. Strange. He let out his other two pokemon, who seemed happy to be free for once, unlike Aaron who always got special treatment.

The guy stood up, and shook Max's hand. "Yeah, I'm Clayton ... Clayton Dalee. You've got some neat friends there." He smiled and gestured to his sleeping Piloswine, the thing just lay there snoring. "Ignore him, here are my other Pokémon!" He shook his head as he tossed his other Pokéballs Magneton and Heracross popped out of their balls. The Heracross crossed his arms and smirked while Magneton floated around Belle.

"My Heracross is Stagger and Magneton is Tritan. Their names might seem strange but I'll probably end up telling you the back stories about them some time."

"It's ok. They aren't any stranger than mine. I named mine after Princesses! Heh." Max said as he rubbed the back of his head, and grinned sheepishly. Then he gestured to his Pokemon. "My Togetic is named Belle, my Marill is Ariel, my Sylveon is Cinderella, and my Clefairy is Aurora."

Belle's smile widened as she looked at the Magneton floating around her. She looked at the Steel type wondering how exactly she was supposed to play with this thing. "Togetiiic?"

Just then, a Jolteon ran up to Cinderella, and instantly sniffed her. Then sat down and barked quite happily. Max giggled as Cinderella just smiled and gave the other Eeveelution a friendly pat on the head with her ribbons. He was then approached by another guy. "Hey, I guess I'm your roommate, my name is Clyde."

Max took his hand, and shook it. "Yup, that's me! Hey, how's it goin'?! I'm Max, and that's Clayton." He gesturedto the other guy. "I'm guessing that's your Jolteon over there? Hehe, hey we should battle some time. We could have an epic Battle of Eeveelutions!"

Alex sat in the Center, holding his arm out and cringing slightly as a Blissey finished bandaging his wound. "Blissey, Blissey Blissey Blissey!" she chided at him. He didn't speak Pokemon, but Alex caught the gist of what she was saying. He merely shrugged in response, causing the Blissey to sigh and walk off.

"Alex?" called the nurse. Alex glanced up as stepped toward him, a Pokeball in her hand. "Your Houndoom is all better."

"Thanks," he said, accepting the Pokeball from her. As the nurse returned to her desk, Alex pressed the button and opened up the ball, revealing one fully recovered Houndoom. He looked at Alex's injury, then stared pointedly at him. "...What? We've both endured worse." Houndoom's gaze did not falter. Alex smirked and held out his hand, palm up. Houndoom stared at it for a moment, then sighed. Smiling, he held up a paw and placed it down on Alex's hand. It was their promise, the oath that took them both through thick and thin. No matter what, the two of them would always stand beside each other.

Alex stood up and walked toward the doors, Houndoom following in faithful pursuit. Heading out, the pair headed for the nearby woods, where after about fifteen minutes of searching, they found a small clearing surrounded by trees. Perfect, Alex thought. Reaching down, he pulled out all three of his remaining Pokeballs and threw them into the air. Suddenly, all four of his Pokemon were out in the open. Ruby, his Sableye, glanced around shiftily. Milotic yawned and stretched as though she had just been awoken from a nap. Roserade struck a heroic pose, to which Alex sighed and shook his head. Even in his eyes, his Pokemon were definitely an unorthodox bunch of misfits, to say the least. Still, they were his, and he was glad to have them all.

"Alright," he said, causing each of them to snap to attention. All but Houndoom glanced at his torn jacket sleeve, but he decided to ignore it. "It's time for warm-ups. Ruby, Houndoom, play Hunt. Start approximately 100 meters from here. Houndoom, focus on tracking; we won't be fooled by illusions anymore." Hunt was how Alex liked to warm the two of them up before training. Ruby would hide in the surrounding area, and Houndoom would try to catch her. If she could make it back without getting captured, she got a poffin. If she was caught, her hunter would get the poffin. "Milotic, stretch and do some spring-bounces. Roserade, ten laps around this area from the tree branches above. Meet back here when you're all done." Each Pokemon gave its version of an affirmative and headed off to begin their assigned exercises. Alex, meanwhile, took off his jacket and tossed it to the side. After some quick stretches, he dropped down to do some push-ups of his own. To Alex, being the best meant a strong trainer was just as necessary as strong Pokemon, and a strong trainer was strong both physically and mentally. His arm throbbed painfully in protest, but Alex gritted his teeth and pressed on; one stupid injury was not going to stop him from becoming the very best.

Clyde looked over at Jolteon was was staring at Max's Sylveon's ribbons with curiosity, which made Clyde chuckle and nod. "Yeah that's Flash, he is somewhat hyperactive twenty four seven. He for some reason wont stay in his ball no matter what I do. As for the battle, we are suppose to battle a dorm-mate so we could always do that now or later." Clyde said which made his Jolteon bark in agreement. Clyde then noticed that Max, and Clayton had their Pokemon out so Clyde decided to do the same thing, he held out three pokeballs sending out his Grovyle, Honedge and Gothita. Tia his Gothita looked around the room at all the new people and Pokemon and jumped in fright and ran and hide under the bed Clayton was on. Clyde sighed and walked over to the bed and pulled out Tia who was clutching Clydes arm for dear life. "Well the one holding me is Tia, the honedge is Excalibur, and Grovyle is called Queen."