Going forward and beyond {Path of the Aura Ranger: Book I}

I Dawn's P.O.V

This is not how my first day as a trainer was supposed to go! I screamed in my head, as I hugged Piplup close and looked fearfully at the Ariados cluster. I was supposed to get my first pokemon today and become the best coordinator... not die before I even began my journey!

Just as I began to lose hope and accept my end.

"Pikachu, Thunder!" A male voice rang through the clearing, and as in the art of magic, a thunder fell from the sky fainting every single Ariados.

I looked at the scene before me with stupefaction, not believing my eyes. One move did that?! A Pikachu at that! But I could not be bothered to care about it too much, Piplup and I were safe.

"Ah," a shuddered breath left my lips and I tightened my hold on Piplup. "We are fine, we are safe," I mumbled against his fur.

"Piplup," he replied, hugging me back.

"Miss, are you ok?" I looked up to find an older boy, looking down on me with a concerned but friendly expression.

He was quite handsome. Shot straight black hair, with hazel eyes that almost turn red under the light. Not too tall but not short either. With a friendly expression that spoke of a charismatic charm that makes you want to get close to him immediately. He wore a casual black t-shirt with an open short-sleeved black and red shirt, a red and white hat, red sneakers, and black jeans. He was quite fit, in the lean swimmer way, with legs to die for! The way those jeans clung to his legs... it was clear he trained himself.

I almost got lost in his beauty, only snapping out of it when I noticed the gun on his belt, right beside his Poke Balls. I almost returned to hyperventilate when he spoke up again.

"Relax! There are no bullets!" He assured me. "It fires miniature electroshock weapons to temporarily paralyze criminals."

"Cri-criminals? You work for the police?" I asked, more relaxed now, but still confused.

"Something like that..." He chuckled. "Let me help you up," he offered me his hand.

I blushed at the gentleman-like gesture. I thankfully accepted the hand and stood up with his help.

"Thank you for helping me." I finally thanked him. "I'm Dawn Berlitz, from Twinleaf Town, and this is Piplup."

"Piplup!" My new friend exclaimed proudly, puffing his chest once I put him back on the ground.

"Hi, nice to meet you. These are Pikachu and Jolteon," he pointed to the electric pokemon on his shoulder and his side, who greeted us back cheerfully. "I'm Ace Ranger Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town, Kanto, at your service!" I could only look at him in shock. I was saved by an Ace Trainer, a Ranger at that! How lucky am I? "Can you tell me what happened here?" He asked, taking out his PokeNav Plus ready to take notes. It's then that I realized that he was asking me as a Ranger and I quickly tried to give him an answer. "So, that's what happened." He sighed. "Honestly, Professor Rowan was extremely irresponsible."

"But I was the one who offered to help him out!" I protested, getting upset that I had gotten Professor Rowan in trouble with the Rangers.

"I know, Professor Rowan takes his responsibilities seriously and this was only a lapse of judgment on his part." He replied, smiling at me warmly, making me feel better. "But the fact remains that you are a civilian, even if you were a trainer these kind of jobs are for Rangers for a reason." He pointed out at the Ariados still laying on the ground. "You were very lucky I was passing by," he told me, gently abut firm, making me flinch. "He must have not known about the Ariados cluster, otherwise he wouldn't have sent someone without a pokemon. Especially, someone who isn't even registered as a trainer yet. I'll still have to talk with him, just to make sure it doesn't happen again. I'll escort you back, but first, we'll have to wait for other Rangers to come so they can deal with the Ariados. We can't have such a violent cluster forming near the Professor's Lab. Not when a lot of trainers, new and experience, take this path to get their pokemon or inscribe in Sinnoh's Pokemon League."

"Can't you do that yourself?" I asked, calmer now that he chastised me. "You are an Ace Ranger."

"I am, but I am also a Kanto Native who had only just arrived in Sinnoh this morning." He replied, chuckling. "Even if I am a Ranger, I cannot exercise the job and rights of a Ranger in Sinnoh without the necessary paperwork being done. That's why I was heading towards Professor Rowan's Lab. Until then, I'll have to delegate the job to others. Politics..." He sighed, sending me an amused smile.

I chuckled, but then squealed when Jolteon sent a Shock Wave towards the cluster. I didn't even notice that they were waking up! But Ash's pokemon did and dealt with them swiftly, Jolteon didn't even look the Ariados' way!

Soon, a couple of Rangers appeared. Both of them looking at Ash as if he was some sort of legendary hero, saluting with the utmost respect. Then again, he is an Ace Ranger, so maybe he is some kind of hero or legend among the Rangers. Ash saluted back and nodded at the Rangers with respect, he then proceeded to explain the situation to them. I cringed when the newcomer's expression turned dark.

"You're going the Professor's way," the female Ranger stated more than asked, but Ash still nodded his head. "Good, then we'll leave that to you. We'll deal with the Ariados."

"Not as if there's much to do." The male one laughed cheerfully, he reminded me of a little kid who had gotten to meet their personal hero... maybe he did. "When I heard from my commander officer that you were coming to Sinnoh I was over the moon! Now with you by our side, we can finally deal with..."

"Josh, that's enough," the female Ranger barked.

"But Sarah!" Josh whined.

"Josh!" She looked pointedly at him, before turning her eyes towards me. "There's a civilian around us."

I wanted to protest; I was ten already! Starting my journey! They didn't have to hide things from me to protect me. But then I recalled Ash's sarcastic comment: "Politics..."

Ash winked at me, to reassure me, before turning towards the Rangers: "Thank you for the aid. If there's nothing more we can help you with, I need to escort this lady back to Professor Rowan's Lab."

"Of course," Sarah said, straightening her back. "Thank you for your service, Ace Ranger Ketchum."

"No need to mention it," he chuckled. "Just doing my job."

"By the way," Josh began, getting closer with a serious expression before whispering something in Ash's ear.

I could only hear Ash's whispered reply: "Don't worry, I noticed." His goofy and carefree expression was replaced by a serious one, that sent shivers down my spine. "I'll deal with it later."

"Good!" He cheerfully replied, going back to Sarah's side. "Then that's all! It's been an honor to meet you, Ace Ranger Ketchum."

"The honor's been mine." He replied smile back on his face. "We'll be taking our leave."

I could only stand back as the conversation carried on, asking myself: What in Arceus's name have I gotten myself involved in?

Just as Ash turned towards me, asking if I was ready to leave, did I remember a very crucial detail?

"Oh no!" I moaned, sadly. "The Ariados destroyed my bike!"