Two summers passed and Wallace heard nothing of Steven. He had hoped that Steven would choose to visit Sootopolis gym earlier in his travels rather than save it for last like so many trainers from the mainland did, but here he was with nothing but a flyer for Devon Corp.'s latest pokéball, the dive ball. Juan had promised to let him know if any challenger that looked like him passed through, not that Juan had to worry with the amount of time Wallace spent around the gym. The pair made quite a team now and worked together in double battles for fun.

However, this world of security was about to come to an end. Sure, Wallace had enjoyed being Juan's apprentice and he was becoming a small celebrity in the city, but he yearned to see the rest of Hoenn. If he stayed he could be a gym leader in no time, but then he felt he would never leave. Juan understood when he said it was time to go and make his own path.

"Enjoy every moment of it," was his advice, "and don't forget that everyone will still be here to support you – don't be a stranger."

"As if I'd forget you."

As much as Wallace wanted to head straight for Rustboro on the off chance that Steven was around, he decided to stick to the plan. Dewford would be the first gym that he faced, followed by Petalburg and then Rustboro. The leaders of the gyms were amazed at how good he was for someone with so few badges. When he told them of his mentor they complimented the pair of them.

Before moving onto Rustboro he took some time to see some of the smaller towns. After all, this was not just a journey for badges, it was also a chance for him to explore and meet new people. The townspeople were an inviting bunch, always pleased to have someone new visit despite having neither gym nor contest hall. They also tried to sell local souvenirs for ridiculous prices, but they were easy to shrug off; he was still a child after all.

Rustboro was truly deserving of the word 'city.' It was larger than anywhere he'd ever been, with towering buildings and lots of people. At first it overwhelmed him, but as he learned what was where it didn't seem as scary. Devon Corporation was a lot easier to find than he'd anticipated. After being greeted with many similar looking buildings he had worried he'd never find it, but Devon looked nothing like its modern surroundings. To him it looked like an old church that should have been demolished with whatever else used to be here.

"Hi, I'm looking for Steven Stone," Wallace told the lady at the front desk.

"Mr. Stone is currently in a meeting," she said, glancing at him briefly before turning back to her computer. "Come back in an hour or so."

He could see it was worthless to press the matter, so he decided to wait around. The walls were covered in framed posters advertising various products from years ago all the way to modern items that were yet to be released. Plaques telling of various awards also adorned the walls. After reading every single one he found that barely half an hour had passed, so he took a seat and began to read through magazines that were lying on the table. Every so often he glanced at the clock and exactly one hour later he got up and approached the front desk again.

"Hi, I'm looking for Steven Stone."

She picked up the phone. "Who are you?"

"His friend, Wallace."

"Hello, Mr. Stone, I have a boy here, Wallace, he's looking for your son… Okay, bye." She put down the phone. "He said to go up. Top floor."

Wallace thanked her before briskly walking away. When he reached the top floor he was greeted by a man in a suit with hair almost like Steven's, but beginning to grey. The image he had built up of Mr. Stone from Steven's description was exactly like the man before him.

"You must be Wallace. Come in, Steven's told me much about you." Mr. Stone motioned for him to take a seat on the most expensive looking chair Wallace had ever seen and proceeded to offer him a biscuit.

"Sorry to bother you, Mr. Stone, I realise you're a busy man, but do you know where Steven is?"

"It's no problem at all; I'm always pleased to welcome Steven's friends. I sometimes worry he'll spend too much time with his rocks and forget real people exist." Mr. Stone laughed to himself. "I suppose it wasn't so bad when he was in Mossdeep and there was only the Shoal cave, but you should see him now. If you want to find him, he'll probably be in Meteor Falls right now, but he should be along in a few hours for dinner. If I were you, I'd wait for him to come here. The boy does like to find the smallest corners to hide in. Say, how about you join us for a bite to eat?"

"I'd love to."

"And until then maybe I can get someone to give you a tour of the lab, unless you have other plans?"

And so Wallace found himself being shown every nook and cranny of Devon's lab. It was pretty impressive stuff, not that he could understand a lot of what was being said. The guy giving him the tour was pretty excited about the science of it all and couldn't help but give away what was probably every corporation secret he knew. The tour ended with Steven coming in to fetch Wallace.

"Wallace? Dad wants to –"

"Steven!" Wallace got up from the computer he was being shown and hugged his friend. "Wow, you've grown."

"Good to see you too. Shall we?" Steven held the door open. "Sorry if Matt kept you. He's doesn't really know when to stop."

"It was cool to see everything, but yeah…I didn't want to tell him to stop. Anyway, how have you been?"

"Not too bad, you?"

"Two badges down, six more to go."

Steven nodded, impressed. "I've got six, two more to go."

"Wow, does it really take that long? I'll be old before I face the Elite Four."

"Haha, no. I've been spending a lot of time in the caves, so I haven't gone back to Mossdeep yet. It's…never mind."

"Hm? What's up?"

Steven sighed and stopped. "I guess it's better that you know. My mum…she passed away about a year ago now. Dad's really torn up about it. You know, he spent all of his time working here so that they could have a nice future together, but in the end it hasn't worked out…so I'm living here at the moment."

Wallace took Steven's hand. "How are you holding up though?"

"It's life… I'm doing fine, really, Wallace. I'm pleased that you're here and we can remember some good times and stuff. Just don't worry about me."

"I'll worry just a little bit."

"A year's a long time to get used to something."

"But to me it sounds like you're spending all day in caves and maybe they're linked?"

Steven smiled and ruffled his hair. "You know that's not right. You could have told me I'd win a million dollars if I never set foot in a cave again and I still wouldn't have taken it."

Wallace patted his hair back into place. "That's because you don't need the money!"

"Hey, stop being a smartass. Come on, dad's waiting."

OooO

Wallace's stay in Rustboro lasted longer than anticipated. He wanted to spend as much time with his old friend as possible before they both continued their journeys, but he also didn't wish to outstay his welcome.

Steven walked through Rusturf Tunnel with him on the day he left, but he wasn't going anywhere yet.

"I've got some stuff to do with Devon before I finish collecting badges. Dad's slowly turning me into a businessman so I can take over one day."

"I can't imagine that," Wallace laughed.

"I know, but I can't complain about the location. I could go hang out in the caves during lunch or something. Anyway, I've got something for you. Would've given it to you earlier, but it needed a few tweaks." Steven produced a small device from his pocket. "It's a PokéNav. Does all kinds of things, but I figure it'll be really handy for keeping in contact. I've already stored my number on it."

"But I thought these weren't out yet? I'm pretty sure I remember that Matt guy saying something about it."

"They're not officially out for public sale, but why make a friend wait?" Steven smiled.

Wallace flicked it open and had a quick peek at the functions. "It's pretty amazing. Thank you."

"Just don't forget to call me when you get another badge or something."

"I will." Wallace waved goodbye as he exited the tunnel into Verdanturf Town. Although it was a small town it was enough to quickly make him forget that badges were the end goal. To his right he could see a familiar building. It took a lot of willpower not to run inside. Calmly he walked towards the place he'd seen on TV and stepped inside. He'd clearly come at the right time because a queue was forming by the stairs, people with their dressed up Pokémon stood waiting for the next contest to begin. For a moment he stood in awe, soaking up the sight of the contest hall's lobby.

"Sir, can I help you?"

"Oh, um, can I get a ticket to see the contest?"

Minutes later he sat watching a cute contest, amazed to see what all of these people were bringing to the stage. He thought of his own Pokémon as he looked on, imaging his Milotic being cheered and winning a ribbon.

As soon as the contest ended he went straight to the front desk. "I want to sign up for a contest!" he said eagerly.

"Which category would you like to enter?"

Although he'd never really thought about it, the answer was simple. "Beauty."

"And have you participated before?"

"No."

The lady smiled and handed him a ticket. "The next beauty contest is tomorrow at 10am; please arrive half an hour early to ensure sufficient time to prepare."

Wallace looked down at the ticket in his hand as if she had handed him a $100 bill.

It had been a while since his Pokémon had had any contest training or practice, so he used his evening to prepare them, glad to see that they were as excited as he was.

Milotic was his Pokémon of choice and he took the contest by storm. His first contest experience was as incredible as he always dreamed it would be, but to walk out with the ribbon was more than he'd ever dared to hope for. If only Juan had been there to see him.

"You've got great talent, kid," one of the judges said afterwards. "Haven't seen you around here before, was that seriously your first time?"

Wallace proceeded to tell him all about how he'd got into contest performing.

"Ever thought about being a coordinator?"

"That's the goal."

The judge nodded. "I'll be looking out for you. I reckon you'll go far."

With an inflated ego Wallace walked out, ready to take on all of the greatest performers.

"You may not take Milotic into another beauty contest," the receptionist said. "You can enter a different category or choose another Pokémon, but we don't offer anything above normal rank." She watched as his face fell. "Don't worry, Slateport isn't far, but if you want to visit all the halls I'd recommend Fallabor Town as they only do up to super rank."

Naturally, Wallace didn't leave without first entering Luvdisc and Whiscash into contests, but once they were over the small town held nothing for him. The week had still been one of the best he'd had since starting his adventure.

Mauville was the next stop; another great city like Rustboro, but with added sales people. There was a guy trying to sell him a really expensive bike. He had to admit that the two gears on the bike were quite impressive, but with that price tag he's rather just catch a dodrio or rapidash. Then there was the Game Corner trying to tempt him into gambling, yet another thing he really couldn't afford.

The most annoying part about Mauville though was the gym. Wattson was an electric type specialist, the only leader running a team that could do him some serious damage. For the first time since he left home he was beaten and had to do a little extra training before a second attempt. The battle was still a close one, but he managed to walk away with the badge in hand.

The path to Lavaridge was a breeze, full of ground and fire types. The town's gym was no different, but he stayed for the people. A pair of nice old ladies convinced him to stay and enjoy the spa for a few days.

As much as the journey to Fallabor town was interesting, he couldn't say he was pleased with the colour of his clothes by the time he got there. The soot was incredibly annoying, but the prize at the end was worth it.

The competition in the super contest was clearly a level higher than those he'd faced in Verdanturf, yet they still were no match for him. He decided to take a break before taking a trip through Meteor Falls. Currently he only had 3 Pokémon competing in contests, so he took time to make poffins with the locals and bring Gyarados into the fray. The tough contest was harder than anticipated, but he guessed that Gyarados hadn't been in training as long as everyone else. Wallace stuck around for a good while, taking advantage of the nearby river for contest training and Meteor Falls for power training.

When he arrived back in Rustboro, after attempting to understand a certain person's fascination with rocks, Wallace found that Steven was no longer around.

"He said he's off to get the rest of the badges. Didn't he give you that PokéNav?"

"Yes, and I never got to thank you for that, but we haven't spoken for a while. Whenever I ring it doesn't connect."

Mr. Stone frowned. "I can get it checked for you, make sure nothing's wrong."

In the end it turned out that the PokéNav was functioning perfectly and they came to the conclusion that Steven was way too deep in a cave to be contacted. Wallace still worried.

"Don't look so concerned – I've got people about who I can call to see where he is. Tell you what, I'll ring you when I know."

Wallace was barely a few feet into Petalburg Woods when he received a call telling him that Steven had been seen around Mossdeep that morning. So he really was going to get the other two badges, although maybe after he'd spent another week in the Shoal Cave. That was a load of his mind as he surfed to Slateport. He wanted to catch up to Steven, but contests were incredibly tempting.

The hyper rank contests were truly another level. These contenders really knew what it took to bring out the best in their Pokémon. They knew exactly which moves to use and when and always left him trailing just a little behind. Sure, Juan had trained him well, but not like this. They'd never really discussed how to compete against others like this. He was almost tempted to surf back to Sootopolis for a little extra training with a master, but that wasn't the point of this. His journey was supposed to be something he did alone without relying on everyone back home… Juan's words echoed in his mind. They hadn't actually spoken since he won his first contest.

"Hello, Juan, how are you?"

"Wallace! Nice to hear from you again. I've been just fine. Yourself?"

They had a catch up before Wallace finally let on to his real reason for calling.

"Hmm, that's up to you. I believe if you go and continue your adventure and come back to the hyper rank you may find that your Pokémon will grow naturally without intense training."

"But these people are really good. It's like they know a special formula."

"Maybe. Or perhaps they can see the specific quality in their Pokémon and know how to utilise it from hours of working together. I believe you can figure that out too. I mean these people are surely much older than you, right?"

"Yes, but -"

"Then maybe you should stop being comparing yourself to someone who has much more experience."

What Juan had to say was really what Wallace needed to hear. He'd been so downhearted after losing his first contest that he had almost lost faith in himself.

He decided to dwell on his losses no longer and the next day he left Slateport to continue on his way to a complete set of badges.

The road to Fortree was full of grass, both short and tall, and trees too. As such grass Pokémon were rife and it was a long hard trudge to the next city, especially when it rained and turned the ground to mud. After a few nights of camping out he was excited to see the red roof of a Pokémon centre in sight, the thought of a warm, soft bed making him walk a little faster.

Fortree city was an experience. As a child he'd never really heard too much about Fortree, only that it didn't have a body of water despite being in a rainy area. He was amazed to find that most of the residents lived high in the trees, their homes accessible by rope ladder, connected to each other by bridges of the same design.

"Well, are you going up?"

Wallace stopped staring up and looked around to see a girl a little younger than him, purple hair poking out of her hat.

"Oh, no, I was just looking."

"New to Fortree?" she asked as he moved out of her way. "Suppose you're here to challenge my mother for the gym badge?"

"Your mother?"

"You're a very day-dreamy person, aren't you?"

Wallace shook his head. "No, I'm just overwhelmed by this place."

"Well if you have the strength to climb, follow me and I'll give you a little tour so don't leave this place with nothing."

Wallace gave a short laugh. "Very good, but I think you'll find I'll leave with a badge as well."

"Not if you keep looking around and not focussing on the competition." She started to climb the ladder.

"I assure you I always pay attention when the situation demands it." He put a foot on the first rung, testing how stable it was. "Are you sure this thing is safe?"

"We've had these for how many years and you're asking that? Don't worry; I've seen people bigger than you get up without a wobble."

"Are you saying I'm fat?"

"Insecure too? Just get up the ladder."

Wallace found the ladder to be a lot easier than anticipated.

"Not bad for a twig."

"Hey. I do a lot of swimming."

"Whatever, follow me, Blue."

"The name's Wallace."

She turned and held out her hand. "Winona, future leader of Fortree gym."

He raised his eyebrows and shook her hand. "Pleasure to meet you. Now, what exactly goes on in these trees?"

Winona showed him how pretty much the entire city functioned in the trees. People lived there, businesses flourished there. For some they could live for weeks at a time without ever needing to touch ground.

"And there's the gym!" She pointed down and he saw the gym sitting at the centre of the city. "Are you going to challenge it now?"

Wallace shook his head. "I'll spend a few more days around here before I do."

"Okay, just make sure you tell me when you do. Or tell my mum to tell me. I want to watch."

"Sure thing."

At first he felt a little pressure knowing that Winona would be watching, but they ended up spending the next few days in each other's company and it began to feel like he had a friend who would cheer him on. Of course that was wishful thinking – Winona was never going to betray the belief she had in her mother.

The gym battle was heated, especially due to Winona cheering from the stands. However, all of her encouragement didn't stop Wallace from taking home the badge. She stood by the doors as he was on his way out. "Congratulations, I guess."

"Thanks. Maybe one day we can battle and you can have your revenge."

Her eyes lit up at the prospect. "Drop by the gym in a few years and I'll be waiting."

"I guess this is goodbye then – for now. It was lovely to meet you."

"Yeah, see ya."

The journey to Lilycove City had many detours. Wallace took time to visit the safari zone as well as Mt. Pyre. Although there was no gym in Lilycove, there was a massive department store and the final contest hall. He checked into the motel before spending hours wandering the 5 floors of the department store.

The plan to keep contests until after he had all the badges fell through. He couldn't help but have a little try. Once again he failed to achieve the top spot, falling just behind in the performance category.

And so, with nothing but the calm atmosphere keeping him there, Wallace surfed on to Mossdeep. It was back to familiar territory, but the familiar face he wanted to see was nowhere to be found. The Stone residence was dark and empty. It made him sad to look at.

The gym was famous across the region for being the only gym with two leaders that ran double battles as the standard challenge to get the badge. At present a couple, married for many years, were running the gym. They were very tough and with psychic Pokémon too; this was no simple task. It was no wonder they were often a trainer's later choice of gym. Just as he had trouble with Wattson he found himself running to a Pokémon centre without a badge, but this was nothing he couldn't handle. The Shoal cave was not far and perfect for training, as well as expanding his team. For a long time he'd wanted an ice Pokémon on his team, but they weren't the most common species in Hoenn's warm climate. Yet the Shoal cave had hidden treasures and soon a young spheal was under his wing. He took the time to train Spheal until he was a sealeo, almost level with the others.

It was a few weeks before he returned to the gym. Even with an ice type he still had no type-advantage, so the battle was just as difficult, but this time he just about pulled through, Milotic barely upright at the end of the match.

As he sailed home to Sootopolis he couldn't help but be proud of everything that he had achieved. He couldn't wait to see the looks on his parents' and Juan's faces when he showed them his new Pokémon, badges and ribbons.

The reunion dinner reminded him how much he actually missed home and everyone in the city. It had been the most amazing experience of his life, but after a year and a half away all he wanted now was to enjoy being back. Of course, this part of his journey wasn't complete until he challenged Juan for the final badge.

"You asked me to keep a lookout, and I have news," Juan said. "A young man named Steven came by about a month ago with an incredible steel team. He wasn't very talkative, but he did say he would be moving onto Victory Road."

Wallace smiled at the news. "Yeah, I guess he's been waiting to get to the biggest cave in Hoenn for a long time."