Vaal had his back straight and his shoulders back slightly as he walked confidently down the various corridors and up the stairs to the break room. Officer Marshtail, sure it was a means to an end, it had always caused a bit of guilt knowing that was what had drawn him to the job in the first place but now?  

It had a nice ring to him now, Vaal enjoyed the sound of the title he had just been given, sure he was still obviously a rookie, but it was still nice to know that his hard work and education had been worth it in the end. It was a special kind of satisfaction and gratification. 

As he meandered his way towards the door marked break room, he suddenly wondered how Ciel was doing. In all the excitement and relaxation he had forgotten about his partner. That made Vaal pause mid-step. He had just done his final test, meaning he had a couple of options open to him in regards to Ciel. Mostly whether or not warning him about what the final test involved, if Ciel had yet to take the test, a warning would possibly help him get past it. That is if he wasn't currently being tested or already had been tested anyway. 

With that thought he sped towards the break room door, on reaching it pushed it open with his right shoulder and burst into the room, nearly ramming the door into someone that was standing close to the doorway.

"Arceus's sweat underwear, watch where you are going?! Wait, Vaal?!" the someone spoke in a deep gravelly voice, which went up and octave at the end, and to Vaal's surprise, it was incredibly familiar. 

Eyes now wide, Vaal took a step back leaning his weight on to his rear leg as he looked up at the towering figure of Zed Darkbreaker, a Pangoro and fellow academy graduate. However, he only managed to pass on his third and final try, making him the eldest graduate in the year. Vaal had cranked his head back to look into Zed's face, who like Vaal, was wide-eyed and slack-jawed at the sudden appearance of the Quagsire, his current piece of bamboo leaf nearly slipping out of his jaw.  

Zed was huge, even by Pangoro standards, just under 3 meters tall with a heavyset build, it was something he used to his advantage as an aspiring riot control specialist. Coupled with his ability, he was a fearsome opponent in battle. He was wearing a dark grey shirt that seemed a little tight on his body under his LFP assault vest. His belt had to be custom made for him, much to his embarrassment. He lacked any clothes on his lower half as he didn't require them.

He, much like Vaal, spent a lot of his time in natural form, while his partner Lee Shellbreaker, preferred being in human form, much like Ciel.  

Lee had a thin, almost stick-like build, the polar opposite of this partner; however, no one was worried that he was undernourished or unhealthy. His entire frame was packed with lean, powerful muscles, there was not a bit of fat anywhere on his body, much to his annoyance. You would often see him snacking trying to gain some fat on his body, for reasons only known to himself. He had an almond coloured skin which was darker on the ends of his arms and legs.

He had a thin layer of mud brown hair on his head with razor-thin eyebrows on a very sharp bony face, while he often looked like he was scowling with his bright evergreen eyes he contrasted it with a natural smile to show his true feelings. He was wearing a pale red loose-fitting shirt under his LFP vest with cream coloured chinos that were turned up at the end, a utility belt around his waist and dark maroon boots on his feet.

Vaal's sudden entrance had stunned the rest of the room's occupants, who currently were; Lee, Ise and.

"Ahhh great, swamp things showed up, I thought I smelled something rotten" the crass obnoxious voice to the final occupant spoke up as he eyed up Vaal with a sneer on his face. 

Callum. Vaal just grimaced as he shot back his reply. 

"Oh look what the fishermen dragged up from the depths, it's the catch of the day! Shame it's been out in the sun too long, they should have thrown it back out to sea. It really is rotten isn't it" he spoke in a cheerful voice that was laced with enough venom people would think he used toxic.

"Oh boy..." Ise placed a hand against her head and looked away, Zed just scratched the side of his face with one hand, looking awkward and Lee just got back to his snacks he had brought from the vending machine. Callum just rocked up out of his chair and slowly strode his way towards Vaal, a fake smile plastered on his face as he opened his arms wide to greet him.

"Oh, I am so sorry, oh great lord of puddles and mud, where were my manners."

"Probably with whatever carcass you slept with last night, can smell the carrion on your breath from here, brine head."

"Come on that's plenty enough you too, now is not the time to get your cocks out" Lee spoke up from his table as the two water types started eyeing each other up. Zed blushed slightly at the term his partner used but moved in between the two pokemon, acting as a natural barricade.

"You know that you both are here to get hired and start a career not start a brawl" Zed warned, his head swinging from one pokemon to the other as he stood sideways between the two, his arms were up with palms facing towards the pokemon either side of him.

"I heard you were nearly drier than a hooker in a poor house, Mudhead. That true?" Callum spoke, eyeing up Vaal for a response.

"Yeah I was, they put me in a damn oven and a sucker on the side for 40 minutes" that made Lee look up sharply as he whistled in admiration, Zed just gave Vaal a sympathetic look as he slowly lowered his arms to his side, cautiously wary if the two would do anything else. 

"Heard you needed your puddle mask, things that bad?" Callum's face softened slightly as he asked the question. Vaal turned away slightly, avoiding direct eye contact momentarily with Callum. That was all the Huntail needed to know. He motioned to the sink behind him in the kitchen area with his thumb.

"You fill up over there, don't be such a dumb ass next time" With that, he turned around walked back over to his table where Ise was sat, drew his chair up the table with his back to Vaal. 

"Oh" Zed was expecting things to be much worse so was a little surprised at the reaction Callum had, but rather than questioning it and starting things up again, he just turned to Vaal.

"It's good to see you Vaal, how are you fairing? It sounds like you had a rough time, want to talk about it."

"Zed he's breathing isn't he, he fine get your ass down, they have seats big enough for your ass" Lee butted in before Vaal had a chance to reply.

"Lee come on if he had to use his breather-"

"He's fine, anti chat Marshy."

"It's Officer Marsh to you Shelly" Vaal spoke, a grin spreading on his face as he witnessed the look of Ise, Zed and Lee dropped and paled as they registered what they heard, even Callum spun around with bewilderment etched into his face.

"Your kidding" from Zed.

"No way" from Ise.

"Bull titties" from Lee.

"Kyoga's piss course you would be the first to pass" from Callum who just rolled his eyes and turned back around, an aggravated look on his face.

"Bull titties?" Vaal inquisitioned Lee, eyebrows raised.

"Sounded better in my head not going to lie" Lee admitted before grabbing another snack, a chocolate bar and started munching on it, avoiding eye contact with anyone else.

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"So how did it go? What was it like during the last test?" Zed rounded on Vaal, towering over him, his face full of anticipation, Ise, Lee and even Callum took an interest in that question, more subtle compared to Zed. Ise just turned her head slightly towards Vaal, Callum tilted the right side of his head towards the conversation while Lee got up and walked over to the nearest vending machine to the two pokemon.

"Well..." Vaal started to ponder how to explain what he had been through, he suspected it wasn't typically standard, and by all accounts, he had even skipped part of the test. Well according to Cathrine anyway. 

"I suggest if you want your former classmates to pass you withhold any information about the final test, Officer Marshtail" A thick masculine voice sounded out behind Vaal, interrupting him before he could say anything. The voice had undertones of an order, not a suggestion. The voice sounded like he was used to giving orders, a sense of confidence and power could be felt from it. It stunned the group of five, making them freeze in place.

Lance just walked into the room just as Vaal had started speaking, Ciel, a step behind him, walked into seeing the group of pokemon that had recently passed and were waiting for their final test. Ise was the first to recover.

"Ciel! How did it go?" Ise asked in an excited tone, but it was Lance that replied.

"He passed, but right now it should be you and your partner you should worry about, Mr Fellowfae, you and Mr Deepwater will be undergoing the test next" Lance glanced over to the Huntail before flicking his head, motioning the two pokemon him to follow him out of the room.

The two pokemon got up from their chairs and started moving towards the commissioner. As Callum passed Vaal, the Quagsire whispered to him.

"Don't stare, she's taken" that got an inquisitive look from Callum, but Vaal had already moved towards the table with items and berries.

"Fellowfae you will be with me, Deepwater your test will be conducted in the washroom, best of luck to you. Reala will the one to guide you to the washroom, meet her down at the reception got it?"

"Understood sir" Callum gave the dragon type a salute before heading out of the room for Reala. Lance watched him go.

"Good, Fellowfae follow me", and with that, he turned and walked out of the room, Ise in tow. They left the rest somewhat shellshocked, they didn't know what was going on, but they would in time.

"Congrats on passing Ciel!" Zed was the first to recover and congratulate the Persian on passing. The Pangoro was trying to get past the sudden changes in everything that was going on. Ciel just smiled as he looked up the Pangoro.  

"Thank you, it was quite sudden I have to admit, I can't believe that I managed to pass, it all seems like a dream I can't believe I passed" 

"Sounds like you can't tell us what to expect though" Lee cut in as Zed opened his mouth to ask for hints and details. That caused Zed's face and arms to drop, the hopeful look in his eyes fading as Lee reminded him about what the commissioner had warned them.

"Yeah sorry Zed, no can do on the hints, I don't want to get you failed mate," said apologetically as he moved over to join Vaal over at a table, Zed just sighed out loud as he plodded over to join his partner at his desk. The Quagsire had snagged a table for himself as well as an armful of berries, fruit and potions. He was munching on an apple when Ciel made it to the table, looking up he offered the Persian an apple. Ciel just shook his head before glowing white to return to his humanish form.

Once in human form, he pulled out one of the chairs next to Vaal before sitting down lightly.

"So we both made it, huh?" Vaal asked innocently. The question floored the Persian who collapsed onto the tabletop in an exacerbated manner.

"THAT'S the first thing you mention" he moaned glaring at the Quagsire. "Nothing like say, how are you doing? How did the test go for you, did you do okay? Was your test as hard as mine?" Vaal just took a large bite out of an apple while Ciel bombarded him with questions.

"How did your test go?" he asked before taking another bite from the apple. Ciel just stared.

"You are such an ass sometimes" he mumbled grumpily. "It was harder than I expected" He then paused, hearing a chair scraping against the tile floor behind him, he didn't turn around, he didn't need to. Vaal had glanced over in the direction of the sound and let out a depressed sigh as he closed his eyes wearily. Ciel guessed that Zed had tried to turn around in his seat but ended up taking the chair with him. 

"Tell you about it over drinks?" proposed Ciel.

"Sure, want something from the vending machine?" Vaal agreed as he pushed his chair back out of the desk. 

"A soda and something sweet, you know what I like" Vaal just chuffed at that.

"You say that, but last time you gagged."

"Well don't get the ginger one this time!" Ciel shot back, "you should know I hate spicy stuff." 

"Yeah yeah alright" Vaal looked at the selection available in the vending machine. There was plenty of canned drinks, bottles, crisps, cooked insects, snack bars, cookies and even sandwiches on the lowest rack. Vaal just whistled as he inspected the selection. 

"They have quite the selection over here."

"They even have pure iron over there." Lee chimed in as he opened his third packet of crisps. 

"That's quite expensive, isn't it?" Ciel asked, turning in his seat to look at the vending machines.

"Depends where you get it from, its only £5 at the machine though, it is pretty small, however."

"Well, it is only supposed to be a snack, right?"

"Who do you think it's for?"

"I say that Aggron."

"An Aggron?"

"Yeah, he pulled our asses out the oven like a baker."

Once the group of four had started, they couldn't stop talking about what and who they had seen. This continued for a good half an hour until both Ise and Callum had returned and were exchanged for Lee and Zed. Ise looked a little worse for wear while Callum seemed somewhat upbeat, though he was reasonably concerned about Ise.

"Damn you look like as beat up as a masochistic Wobbuffet after a night out with nasties Ise."

"Cheers mate" Ise sarcastic reply came out in an aggravate grumble glaring daggers at her partner, "care to explain why you look like you won the lottery?"

"Ahhh let's just say Imma sleep well tonight" Callum just brushed off the question with a laugh as he fetched Ise a healing potion, he was stopped in his tracks when a shadowy arm wrapped itself around his legs. Ise's eyes were sparkling golden as a false smile spread its way over the battered and bruised skin.

"And what does that mean exactly?"

"Nothing, nothing at all" Callum rushed out his answer as a cold sweat sprung up, he grinned uneasily towards his partner.

"It means he probably is going to jerk off imagining the instructor in her swimming costume" Vaal chipped in, a thin smile growing on his face as he mercilessly threw his fellow water type into the deep end. Ciel just snorted and coughed up his drink, hacking and coughing he turned to look wide-eyed towards Callum in disbelief. 

"Ohhhh?" Ise turned her head back over to Callum who was now clearly sweating, droplets of liquid rolling down the side of his cheeks. He had a tight jaw grin with his teeth exposed, Vaal swore he could hear teeth grinding together as he glared over at his fellow water type. 

"You cock sucker!" he whispered through clenched teeth to Vaal who's grin just grew as Ise's face darkened, the shadows around her growing denser and darker.  The door opened behind her as she raised a shadow clad hand to slap Callum. The newcomer walked in and watched as Callum took the slap to the face and a follow-up knee to the groin before being dropped to the ground. Ise just huffed as she pouted and walked off to take a seat. The newcomer had gone unnoticed in all the drama but spoke up. 

"Why am I not surprised that Callum has messed up again" Ciel was the first to recognise the newcomer. 

"Charly!" Vaal, Ise and Callum turned to look and standing in the doorway stood Charly Springfeather and Sophia Lakebed, her partner. Both pokemon were in their human form for the moment. Sophia looked down at Callum with mild contempt and disgust. 

"Most likely tail-chasing again, honestly." she walked past the groaning Huntail to collect some potions as he stumbled to his feet and hobbled over to the table Ise was sat at. The Mimikyu waited till Callum was about to sit down before yanking the chair from under him, causing him to hit the ground ass first. Vaal barked out a laugh as Charly and Ciel chuckled lightly at the sight.

"Okay okay I get the hint, I'm sorry. I will get you something later to make up for it okay?" Callum spoke up to Ise who looked over blankly before letting loose a sigh as a gentle smile took form.

"You don't have to, but thank you for the apology" she spoke in a soft tone, Callum just gave a wary look towards her before asking quietly.

"Can I sit down now?" Ise raised an eyebrow resting her chin on the one hand. 

"Aren't you already?" she replied evenly as the others started to chuckle. Callum just reddened as he got up and fetched a couple of potions from the tabletop before returning to the table, offering Ise one in a peace offering before finally sitting down.

"So what the heck happened to you Ise? Your disguise is all messed up" Charly wandered over to join them at their table as Sophia returned with a range of healing items and snacks. Vaal and Ciel shared a glance before getting up to join the others at the table.

"It's nothing serious mate, just took a blow, so you know the drill" Ise shifted in her seat, edging it slightly away from everyone else as four others joined her and Callum at the table.

"Ahhh gotcha" realisation spread over Charly's face while Sophia gave a small nod adding.

"That would certainly explain it yes." 

"So I take it you both passed the final test then yeah" Ciel spoke, smiling as he offered Ise a sweet from the vending machine.

"Course we did, if mud for brains can, so could we!" Callum replied boisterously as Ise accepted the bribe of sweets. That revelation took the newcomers by surprise.

"You mean to say you have already passed and become full-fledged officers?" Sophia's eyes widened as Charly just went.

"WWWWHHHHHAAAAATTTT" as she leaned back in her chair.

"Yep! Can't tell you anything yet though, they would fail you instantly if we did, sorry."

"Awww damn it..." Charly looked crestfallen while Sophia just pondered on the details.

"It is likely we will be in for a confrontation, judging by the fact Ise's ability had activated it would suggest they will be testing our battle experience." 

"Better stock up on berries then!" Charly jumped out of her chair and flew over to the table, grabbing as many berries as she could. 

Charly Springfeather was a Swellow; she was quite short in height and lightly built with a narrowish face and body with slightly tanned skin. Her chin and eyebrows were quite thin and sharp while her cheeks were more rounded, with wide eyes that had narrow pupils in the middle of an amber iris. 

Her hair was cropped short, cut just below her ears and was raven black with small highlights of bright holly berry red at the front. The most prominent trait in her human form was the two large wings sticking out of her back. 

The wings themselves were elliptical in shape and structure, allowing for easy manoeuvrability in tight situations, they were covered in sleek glossy dark blue feathers. 

She, like everyone else was wearing the standard LFP black assault vest and belt, however, she was wearing a black tee-shirt beneath it, with grey form-fitting gym trousers and a pair of black trainers with the Luxray logo on the side.

Her partner, Sophia Lakebed, was a Seaking. She was larger than her partner, both in height and overall build, she had delicate snow coloured skin and a daintish look that made her look like a fairy tale princess. The noticeable feature for Sophia in her human form was the large white fin-like tail that emerged just above the base of her spine. She had dark granite coloured eyes that seemed aloof a lot of the time. Her hair was quite long, wavy and smooth, grown down past her shoulders; it was a reddish amber colour like leaves in the autumn. 

Charly quickly returned, landing on the table with a thud as her feet slammed into the metal surface, her bounty in tow clutched in her arms.

"So who else made it?"