Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon or any of the characters that are included in the story.
This story includes and references events that took place in Pokémon: Omega Ruby and Pokémon: Alpha Sapphire. It does not, however, attempt to tell a story that took place the aforementioned titles.
Stronger, Chapter 5:
Rustboro City was bustling with activity as the two arrived at the Pokémon Center.
Ralts, Grovyle, and Slakoth were all in near perfect health, but the two trainers knew that they could not take the risk of progressing without healing. After handing the pokémon off to Nurse Joy, the two sat down for a moment to collect their thoughts.
"S-so we are going to the Gym next, r-right?" Wally asked.
May nodded her head in response. She hated to admit it, but she was actually a little nervous for the upcoming battle with the Gym Leader. "H-hey, you'll do really well!" Wally said, noticing how May was acting differently.
May couldn't help but smile at the boy's enthusiasm. "Yeah, you're right! Our pokémon are all really powerful!" she replied.
The two collected their pokémon from Nurse Joy and headed towards the Gym. They read the signs outside and took note of the 'Rock- Type' theme that it had. "S-so Ralts and Grovyle will just w-win with Grass moves!" Wally said, very motivated.
Together, they walked in to challenge the entire Gym. One after another, they battled against the gym members, each of which had a Geodude or two. Because they are Gym members, when their pokémon fainted against one trainer, they were healed again before another trainer could battle them. They both easily made it to Roxanne, the leader.
"Alright, prepare to be thoroughly educated on the Rock typing!" She yelled to each of the trainers. May battled against her first, Wally just barely lagging behind.
May sent out Slakoth, as Roxanne sent out Geodude.
Wally sent out Ralts, as Roxanne sent out Geodude.
Against Slakoth, the Geodude seemed to be a wall. Slakoth did not know any useful moves with which to counter Geodude's typing. As a result, Grovyle was thrown out to replace Slakoth. As Grovyle emerged from its pokéball, it was hit with a 'Rock Tomb.' Hundreds of rocks seemed to fall from the ceiling, landing on Grovyle. Due to Grovyle's typing and strength, he was able to easily shrug them off. He countered with an 'Absorb,' restoring his HP to full and almost defeating Geodude.
Instead of following up with another 'Rock Tomb,' Roxanne used her turn to heal Geodude, in hopes that he may not faint just yet. Unfortunately for her, May commanded another 'Absorb' from Grovyle, finishing the Geodude off with ease.
Ralts' battle against the Geodude was very similar. It only took two 'Magical Leaf' attacks to take down the Gym Leader's first pokémon. Once Nosepass was thrown into battle, it was a similar story. The type advantage of the moves and the sheer strength of the pokémon made the battle incredibly easy. After the battle had ended, each of the trainers received their first Gym Badges. It was almost as if a whole new world of opportunity had opened itself to them. They suddenly felt endowed with the confidence that collecting all 8 Gym Badges would be no problem to them at all.
As Wally was battling, May was on the sidelines, cheering him on. She knew Ralts would have no trouble defeating the two pokémon, but she wanted to bolster Wally's growing confidence. As Wally went to receive his badge, May noticed something happening to Ralts. "Uh, Wally! Look at your pokémon!" she shouted. Wally turned around, and jumped back. Ralts bean glowing so bright that Wally, May, and Roxanne had to shield their eyes.
"W-woah! What's g-going on?" he said, shocked and confused. But the question was answered before May could speak up. Ralts had just evolved. May and Wally both gasped; they had never seen what Ralts looked like in its evolved form. The two brought out their Pokédexes and examined it, while Roxanne was giggling to herself at their reactions.
"Kirlia, Kir!" the pokémon shouted triumphantly. Wally stared in amazement, then walked up to it slowly. "Ralts, you're now a…" he began, but Kirlia cut in by shouting its name, confirming what Wally was going to say before he even said it.
Wally couldn't help but smile. He kneeled down and hugged the Kirlia, who returned the hug immediately.
The trainers walked down to the Pokémon Center before trying to find out where to go next. "Congratulations, Wally!" May said cheerfully.
"Thank you! Y-you and your pokémon did amazing!" Wally said just as cheerfully.
May smiled brightly at him as the two handed their pokéballs to Nurse Joy. "He barely stuttered just then… It's still so early, yet he's progressed so much!" she thought to herself, very proud of Wally.
After their pokémon were all happy and healthy, the two started to walk North to see what the enormous city had to offer. Almost immediately, though, they found trouble. The same man with the lab coat was pacing, clearly on edge. Wally, recognizing him, spoke up. "W-what happened?"
The man turned to face Wally and his expression turned from worry to joy. "Oh thank Arceus, you're the remarkable young trainer who saved me last night!" he grasped Wally's hand. "Young man, you must help me again… another one of those scoundrels has taken something from me. This time, some parts from Devon Corporation's latest designs have been taken! Please, get them back to me!" he begged. "He went east, towards Whismur Cave!" he said, pointing in the direction that the burglar went.
May raised an eyebrow, as she was about to protest the idea of Wally being ordered around like this. Wally, however, eagerly agreed to help and motioned for May to follow him. May frowned a bit but shrugged it off. She didn't want to stop Wally, he was on a roll. As the two made their way towards the cave, they battled every pokémon and trainer they encountered. Of course, their original pokémon were much too powerful to be affected very much, but May's Slakoth could benefit greatly from the experience.
The two made it to the entrance of Whismur Cave, where an older gentleman was staring into it, shellshocked. May spoke up, "What happened, sir?" The man broke out of his daze and turned towards May. "He stole my Peeko…" May spoke up again, reassuring the man that the two would rescue whichever pokémon he was talking about.
They ran into the cave, where they were careful not to disturb any of the Whismurs. Though they never came into direct contact with any, Wally was very creeped out with how they looked, so the two thought it was best not to even attempt contact. They made their way into the cave and found a man in a blue outfit, fending himself off from an angry Wingull.
"Psst! Is this the guy that scientist was talking about?" May whispered to Wally.
Wally nodded his head. "It has to be."
"Alright. I'll battle against him, and you go grab the Wingull and move it out of here. I'm sure that's the pokémon that was stolen." May explained, and Wally nodded. "And if you see anything that looks like the Devon thingy, grab that too."
Wally nodded again, and they prepared to execute the plan. "Go, Slakoth!" May shouted as she sent out the feisty, yet lazy, pokémon. The man in blue turned around immediately and snarled. "Grr, if it's a battle ya want, it's a battle you'll get!" He sent out what a pokémon that May recognized to be the first pokémon her Treecko had faced. She took out her Pokédex to identify it, and as she learned that it's a Poochyena, it attacked Slakoth with a Bite. "Hey, no fair!" May said as the man simply laughed. She retorted by ordering that Slakoth used 'Slash.'
Wally was creeping along the wall, doing his best to hide behind natural pillars and stalagmites. He was in the zone, he was only a little nervous. He had confidence in May's battling ability, but he did not quite feel fully confident in his own sneaking ability. He was close to the man, who was still too preoccupied with the battle and the Wingull, that he now was holding by a wing. Wally also saw a trinket on the ground near the man's feet, which he suspected to be the Devon part. He was starting to get more and more nervous. Wally was behind the man at this point, so he knew he could easily get the Devon part. But rescuing Wingull would prove more challenging.
May was clearly stalling in the battle so that Wally would have time to grab Wingull and the parts. She ended up switching out to Grovyle, since Slakoth had almost fainted from how long Wally was taking, and how few physical attacks she had it do to the Poochyena. "Come on, Wally. Please, I know you can do this!" she thought, wishing Wally would get it done already.
Wally very quietly reached down to grab the Devon parts. He quickly stored them in his pocket, and he slowly reached over to the Wingull to try and release it from the man's grasp. The Wingull's eyes darted open, and it started to flail around even more, so that Wally would have an easier time taking it out of the man's hand. However, this only made the man turn and see Wally. "Uh oh…" was Wally's last thought before the man let Wingull out of his hand and used it instead to punch Wally in the face.
Wally was not knocked out, but he was on the floor, wincing in pain. "Wally!" May shouted, as she ordered Grovyle to quickly end the battle and scare the man away from her injured friend. Wingull was let go, and flew back outside, presumably to go back to its master, and the man was out of pokémon. Grovyle used its long arms and brute strength to throw the man out of Whismur Cave. He landed hard, and fled the scene. May wanted to chase him, but she had to make sure Wally was okay.
Wally had tears in his eyes from the pain. He did his best not to let them fall, but he couldn't help it. May sat down and examined his face with a flashlight. "Are you okay, Wally?" she asked as she was now shining the light inside his mouth, checking for any missing teeth.
"Ahh." Wally said (meaning "Yeah."). He had a bruise on his left cheek from where the man hit him, but he was not bleeding or missing any teeth, so he was safe to continue traveling.
The two left the cave and returned the missing parts to the scientist, who thanked them dearly, and expressed concern for Wally regarding the bruise. "Here, come with me, you two! I'm certain Mr. Stone will want to thank you!" May and Wally looked at each other, and May shrugged. "Yes sir." they both said as they followed him.
The scientist lead them into the largest building in the city, the Headquarters of the Devon Corporation. Inside, they had to go up several flights of stairs, which left Wally winded. "M-May, y-you go see what the P-President has to say, I'm gonna w-wait over here in th-this chair…" He said, to which May frowned but agreed.
May had to keep being reminded that Wally was very limited, and she couldn't expect everything that is easy for her to be easy for him. Even things like going up stairs, jogging, carrying a backpack around, or wearing too many layers could make him lose his breath.
May waited outside for a moment, as the scientist went in to explain everything to Mr. Stone. He came back out and led May inside. In the middle of the room, closer to the wall, a man with spiky silver hair sat at a desk, looking at May and the scientist. "I understand that you're one of the trainers who secured the parts to our latest project from a scoundrel?"
May nodded. "The other one is just outside, but he-" May started.
"No need, I won't try to force anyone to come in here. I'm very thankful towards you and the boy sitting outside, you have my deepest gratitude. Now let me ask you, are you planning on facing every Gym Leader in Hoenn?" he questioned, and May answered by nodding. "Excellent, then you must be a very skilled trainer. I suppose you are going to look for the second gym?" May nodded again. "That gym is in Dewford, I suggest you ask the sailor who lives on Route 104 for assistance in your travels there."
May's face lit up, as she knew where she and Wally were heading next. "Thank you very much, sir!"
"Of course. But I have something to ask of you. I hate to ask for a favor after you just bravely helped return the parts to me. But you see, my son is on the island somewhere, and I need you to bring him this letter." Mr. Stone showed May the letter. "His name is Steven, I'm certain he'll be somewhere, looking at minerals…"
May cocked her head in confusion about the last remark, but ignored it. "Alright, I'll be sure to give it to him when Wally and I get there!" she said as she took the letter from Mr. Stone and said her goodbyes to him and the scientist.
Once outside the room, she explained everything to Wally, who was brimming with excitement. "I get to go on a boat?!" He asked, overjoyed.
"That's the plan!" May answered, and the two slowly made their way downstairs and outside the building. Wally was huffing some more, but he denied it when May asked about it. He did not want to sit down again just yet, he wanted to tough it out this time. "He's so cute when he tries to be tough…" May thought as they exited the building. Outside, there was another boy, seemingly waiting for the two.
"Brendan?" May called out, as she and Wally approached him.
"In the flesh!" he replied, charismatically.