"The weather seemed to have gotten better..." It was the next day as I looked out of the window, the ash clearly less visible compared to the previous night. I figured it was a good opportunity to head to Fallarbor at that moment.
After finishing with packing up, I found myself at the door of the Glass Workshop, ready to leave.
"If you're interested in some of my works in the future, you're always welcome to visit again, huff puff." The owner of the Glass Factory said.
"Of course! It's pretty fascinating to see how these things are made." I nodded before finally bidding farewell to him and leaving the Glass Factory. With the sunlight along with much lesser ashes blocking my sight, it was a much smoother journey than the previous day.
And with a bit of walking and sightseeing, we found ourselves in front of a small, yet decently-developed town.
Fallarbor Town
A farm community with small gardens.
What exactly was the point of me visiting here, you ask?
There was one particular building that caught my interest upon searching for details of this area. However, I planned to leave that for later as I checked around town. The town consisted of a small farming community with a few houses, which seemed to feel much more peaceful compared to the route I went through just a few moments ago.
As I was about to head to the place that attracted my attention to visit Fallarbor, I suddenly noticed a familiar figure with his back shown at my sight. I went closer before confirming that I was not mistaken as I greeted, "Steven, glad to see you here!"
"Oh, it has indeed been a while. It seems like your journey has been going smoothly ever since we met in Mauville." Steven looked towards me before delivering a polite smile.
"It's definitely been better," I grinned, "What brings you here?"
"To visit a friend of mine," Steven replied, "If you didn't know, this town was originally formed by scholars who gather to research meteorites."
"I've heard that once or twice from people I met before." I nodded.
"I personally like to collect rare stones around the region, so this town piqued my interest a long time ago. There's a person named Professor Cozmo who studies meteorites, and I'd always visit him for a chat or two while checking out his latest discoveries. It's quite intriguing, to say the least. I also like exploring around Meteor Falls whenever I feel adventurous." He then looked at me, "I assume you have different plans coming here, though."
"That's right. There's one place I wanted to check out to help strengthen my skills before more Gym Battles." I agreed.
"It's no surprise. Trainers around the region like visiting Fallarbor mainly for the tournaments hosted in the Battle Tent quite often. I believe you'll have an enjoyable time there."
"Yup! I'm hoping there's a tournament I can participate in there."
"Fortunately for you, I heard there's one open for registrations right now. You can check out the Battle Tent for more details." Steven suggested.
"That's the plan. Hope your visit turns out fruitful as well!"
"I'm sure it will. I'm spending time with my friend, after all." Steven smiled, before heading towards the direction of a house, which I assumed was Professor Cozmo's. I also took the chance and walked into the Battle Tent before noticing a boy at the counter who I knew too well.
I tapped his shoulder from the back, temporarily stopping him from continuing writing on a form on the counter table before looking towards me, "Lows! Are you here to join the tournament as well?"
"You bet! Now I know I got some competition, Disc." I smiled.
"No matter how the tournament goes, I'm sure we're both going to have a good time. I sure hope we can battle again, though."
"I'm excited for that, too." I then asked the receptionist for a copy of the same form and asked for the details of the tournament.
Apparently, the rules are much different compared to the usual tournaments in my knowledge. In each match, each separate Pokémon face-off is timed for three turns. If in three turns, neither Pokémon has been knocked out, the judge makes a decision depending on three factors: Mind, Skill, and Body. The Pokémon with the most points will win the battle. This would definitely change a lot of things around during the matches.
I joined the Junior Division tournament along with Disc and chose the three Pokémon joining me for this occasion: Woody, Grace and Surfer. Before the tournament the next day, I spent time training with the team for a short while to be prepared and warmed-up in advance.
The next day seemed to arrive in just a glimpse as I woke up early and checked in on time before the tournament began. I still had some time before the tournament started, and the Battle Tent actually offered a simple meal for both the participants and their Pokémon. We got the food and happily enjoyed our meal at one of the tables before someone approached me, "Mind letting me take a seat here, Lows?"
I saw Disc holding a tray full of food and nodded, "Sure thing!"
Disc sat down and sent out his Pokémon, who hungrily devoured the mouth-watering food in front of them. Meanwhile, their trainer gently took the pair of fork and spoon given to him before slowly eating his meal.
"Have you been preparing for the tournament yesterday?" I asked.
He stopped and swallowed his food before answering, "Definitely. Ever since I lost to you in the tournament in Verdanturf, I've been looking forward to a rematch. You better go far in the tournament so we can battle again on the stage.
"You bet." I smiled before continuing our meal. Afterwards, the P.A. system called for the participants to gather around as the battles commenced.
The battles with this new format was definitely an eye-opener for me. Other than than, the tournament went somewhat smoothly for me, with me being able to defeat the opponents ahead of me without many close calls. However, I knew all these opponents I sparred would eventually lead me to the opponent I wanted to face.
Just as I thought, once my semifinals battle ended with a victory, I went ahead and checked the list pasted on the notice board: Disc was also able to reach the finals.
Disc walked towards me shortly after with a grin, "Seemed like you made it. I knew you wouldn't let me down."
"Same to you. Let's do our best later!" We had a friendly fist bump before the P.A. system called for our names once again as we separated to enter our sides of the battlefield for the final match.
"Without further ado, let us welcome our two finalists, Disc and Lows into the battlefield!" The referee announced as we slowly walked towards our sides. I noticed the crowd watching us at the spectator area were much bigger compared to the previous matches, which made me a little nervous; I wonder how big the audience would be during the Ever Grande League...
After reading the usual rules, the referee had commenced the start of the match, "Trainers, please send out your first Pokémon!"
"Time to battle, Woody!" I threw my Grass type's Pokéball as he appeared beside me, the crowd slightly startling him before he quickly tried to recover.
"Let's do this, Ghoul!" Disc did the same as the familiar Sableye showed up again as it stared at Woody.
"Battle begin!"
"Ghoul, use Fake Out!"
"Woody, dodge and use Rock Throw!" Thanks to his faster speed, Woody's attempt to dodge the flinching attack was deemed successful as he quickly followed up by forming the boulders and launching them towards the Ghost and Dark type.
"Protect yourself with Knock Off!" The Sableye's claws glowed with a dark aura as it striked the boulders with them. Most of the boulders broke as a result, some even pushed back towards Woody, hitting the unaware Pokémon as the Grovyle slightly winced in pain.
"Woody, retaliate with Leaf Blade!" The blade was formed at his forearm as he dashed forwards, slashing his opponent in succession. The Darkness Pokémon was pushed back from the impact as it stared at Woody, acknowledging his strength.
"Both Pokémon only have one move remaining!" The referee yelled.
"Ghoul, one last move! Use Fury Swipes, full power!"
"We're not giving up either! Woody, counter with Pursuit!"
Ghoul took a big leap forward and scratched Woody five times, causing Woody to grit his teeth in pain. However, he was not planning to let Ghoul retreat unharmed as he quickly followed up with a slam right at his opponent. The impact caused both Pokémon to collapse in exhaustion, surprising almost everyone around the battlefield.
"Both Ghoul and Woody are unable to battle! This battle is a draw!" The referee announced before I thanked Woody for his hard work and returned him.
"You're up, Leafy!" Disc threw his second Pokéball almost immediately as the evolution of the Kanto Grass type starter was sent out. It surprised me, as I thought he would presumingly keep his strongest Pokémon for the last.
It did not take me long before I reacted by sending out my second Pokémon, "Grace, you got this!"
The Psychic type calmly landed on the field and briefly examined her opponent as the referee announced, "Battle begin!"
"Leafy, use Sleep Powder around the field!" Leafy quickly
"Just do your best. Winning or losing, it's all good." I encouraged her before the match continued, and once I was ready, the referee announced, "The battle between Leafy and Grace begins... now!"
"Leafy, use Sleep Powder around the field!" Leafy nodded and immediately released white spores all around the area.
That's going to limit Grace's teleportation by a lot... It's still worth a try, though.
"Grace, Teleport and use Shadow Ball!" Grace obeyed my command as she spun around and disappeared from the field. I could see Disc trying to track for any trace left by my Kirlia to get a clue of where she would land.
I could sense the uncertainty in Disc's voice as he said, "Leafy, Razor Leaf at your two-o'clock direction!"
It was a bold move that almost pulled off, but Grace ended up teleporting to a place that was barely away from the attack. I sighed in relief as Grace formed the shadowy blob and released it towards the Grass type, fortunately hitting her as a result.
"Grace, follow up with Psybeam!"
"Leafy, counter with Vine Whip!"
Two dark green vines immediately came out of the Ivysaur's bulb as they lunged towards my Psychic type. However, before the vines could reach the Kirlia to do anything, it was the psychic rings of energy that hit the Grass and Poison type first, causing all Leafy's energy to be drained and the attack to be unsuccessful as the super-effective attack took Disc's starter out.
"Leafy is unable to battle! Grace wins!"
Disc appeared slightly worried, but he nodded and returned Leafy nevertheless before taking out his last Pokéball for the match, "Let the wind take you, Breeze!"
Breeze definitely seemed to become bigger in size and much stronger, which was definitely a work of evolution on this former Wingull. I knew I had to be careful.
"Battle begin!"
"Breeze, use Mist!" A layer of mist was formed by the Water and Flying type, surrounding and hiding his large figure surprisingly well.
Knowing that the mist would give us a disadvantage, I needed to get that out of the battlefield almost immediately, "Grace, remove the mist using Psybeam!"
As the psychic rings of energy were released towards different directions, a confident grin appeared in Disc's face, "Breeze, Fly high in the sky and attack!"
The Psybeam attack did end up removing some of the mist away, however, Breeze was already launching himself towards the air, making the mist removal unfruitful.
As the Water and Flying type flew towards Grace for the attack, I quickly reacted, "Grace, Teleport away!"
Grace was able to barely commence a quick teleportation as she landed away from her original position. However, instead of crash landing, Breeze controlled his pace and made a U-Turn, striking Grace with full speed from the back. Grace and I were both surprised by the attack as the impact caused Grace to fall onto the ground, unable to move.
"Grace is unable to battle! Breeze wins!" The audience cheered loudly, and I was impressed by the former Wingull's improvement from the last time I faced him.
I thanked Grace for her efforts before taking out my last Pokéball, "Ride the waves, Surfer!"
Surfer was excited to have another battle as usual, "Let's brave the wave and do our best, Lows!"
I nodded with a smile as the referee announced, "Battle begin!"
"Breeze, use Aerial Ace!" His body became surrounded by white streaks before flying towards Surfer.
"Reduce impact with Water Gun!" Surfer successfully hit Breeze with the spiral of water, but it only slightly reduced his speed as he continued slamming Surfer with his body. Surfer got pushed back slightly and fell onto the ground before quickly getting back up.
"Breeze, Wing Attack!"
"Not happening, Disc! Surfer, dodge and use Water Pulse!" Surfer managed to outspeed his opponent and barely dodged the Flying type move before quickly forming and launching the blue ball of energy towards the evolved Water and Flying type. However, just like the previous clash of moves, he did not take as much damage due to the type resistance.
"Both Breeze and Surfer are down to their last move!" The referee reminded us.
"Last shot, Breeze! Feel the wind and Fly!" Breeze flew up towards the air upon hearing his trainer's command, ready to unleash his final attack whenever the opportunity struck.
"Do your best! Surfer, brace for impact and counter with Bite!"
Knowing that Surfer would be facing him head on through my command, Breeze flew towards my starter at full speed. Surfer stood firm, trying to detect his opponent's weak spot to use his final move to his full potential. As Breeze finally struck Surfer with full power, Surfer endured the impact and fought through the pain as he forcefully bit the Water Bird Pokémon on his right wing. Once it was over, Surfer fell onto the ground again, badly damaged but he slowly got up, indicating that he was still good to go.
But their move limit was already over after that set of moves as the referee announced, "Both Breeze and Surfer are still able to battle after three moves! The winner will be decided through the three factors, Mind, Skill and Body!"
The referee continued, "Starting off with the Mind factor! The victor is chosen by how offensive the Pokémon is throughout the battle. Breeze wins!" The audience clapped before continuing to focus on the referee's results.
"Next up is the Skill factor! The victor is chosen based on how accurate the Pokémon's attacks land. Surfer wins!"
The atmosphere was tense for the final results as the referee revealed just shortly after, "The last factor is Body! The final victor is determined through the condition of the Pokémon. The winner of this factor is..."
He took a second to pause before continuing his sentence, "Breeze! The winner of this tournament is Disc from Pallet Town!"
The audience cheered at the results as well as the performance we brought upon this battle. I shook hands with Disc, happy to have such an intense battle with my childhood friend.
After Disc received his winning prize: some cash money and Ultra Balls, it marked the end of the tournament at the Fallarbor Battle Tent.
The tournament was over, but it was definitely something worth recalling as we continued talking about it even on our way to Meteor Falls, which was considered a shortcut back to Rustboro. He wanted to head back to Petalburg while I needed to travel further for my next destination: Slateport.
"I'm most surprised at Breeze's improvement. I could tell he trained very hard." I complimented the star of that last match.
"For sure. The evolution helped him boost his performance, but his efforts also brought outstanding results like this." Disc smiled, "Your team definitely had gotten better as well, though. It's quite a rare sight to see someone not taken down after a full power Fly attack."
"I guess we've both been training hard for the league." I sheepishly scratched the back of my head.
"I assume you're planning to battle your sister next?" Disc asked.
"That's the plan. Have you battled her already?"
"Yup. She went all out in her battle against me, which made it hard for me to get the badge. It was probably the closest victory I had so far."
"I wonder if I'll be able to win against her..." I muttered.
"You'll be fine." Disc chuckled.
As we neared the entrance of Meteor Falls, what welcomed us were screams that worked very well in the surprising factor.
"What's going on in there?" I was confused.
"Only one way to find out." Disc shrugged as we said no more and entered Meteor Falls.
"Flare, use Flamethrower!" A familiar voice caught our attention as we looked afar, noticing a Charmeleon releasing a stream of fire at a Poochyena, taking it out almost in an instant.
"Argh! How are you this strong?" The trainer of the Poochyena groaned, who I recognized as a Willpower Grunt based on his outfit.
"That's why you don't underestimate trainers and get greedy! Now, hand me the Egg you're suspiciously carrying!" The female trainer said, the voice all too familiar to us.
"..." The grunt held the Egg before saying, "If I can't get it, no one can!"
He then threw it in the dark away from Cassie, before running out of the cave, seemingly unaware of the fact that the egg was actually thrown right towards me and Disc. Disc quickly reacted and raise his hands before catching the Egg, preventing it from dropping onto the ground and potentially breaking.
"Disc, Lows, nice save!" Cassie sighed in relief and waved her hand towards us. We walked towards her as I asked, "What's going on?"
"Long story short, I was trying to search for something around this place and came across him suspiciously holding an Egg! He probably thought I was weak and tried to steal my Pokémon for 'their grand goals'. Some weird guy he is." Cassie shrugged.
"At least everything ended up okay." I replied.
"...A Moon Stone, I assume?" Disc suddenly asked.
"Huh?" I was confused.
Cassie however, grinned as she took out the Moon Stone she found from her backpack, "You read me well as always, Disc. I needed it to evolve my Skitty, Heart."
I guess that's a new member on her team.
"I'm so glad I got to see you guys again!" Cassie chirped.
"But... what do we do with the Egg?" I pointed towards the Egg, held by Disc at the moment.
"Well... why don't one of you two keep it? It might hatch into a cool Pokémon for your team."
"I think I'm good for now. Disc?" I looked at him.
"I don't mind. A new member on the team would be nice." He nodded, accepting the suggestion.
We then left Meteor Falls together. By the time we reached Rustboro, it was already late at night.
"Let's have a good dinner before we separate again. My treat!" Cassie smiled. She is always finding opportunities to put friends as her main priority.
I accepted it, but Disc seemed slightly hesitant, "You don't have to do that, y'know."
"Don't sweat it, you know I don't mind." She shrugged, "You're coming with us either way."
Disc sighed slightly before finally nodding, which made Cassie grin as we went to a nearby restaurant and had a satisfying dinner. Cassie was the one mainly initiating the conversations as we gladly entertained her and followed up with each other on our current progress and endeavors.
Afterwards, we were on our way to the PokéCentre to spend a night before continuing our journey the next day before Cassie asked, "How long do you think that Egg will take to hatch?"
"...Not too sure. It's whatever though, it can take however long it needs." Disc shrugged as he took out the Egg and examined it, making sure it was fine.
"Will you be keeping the Pokémon no matter what?" Cassie said.
"If it's willing to, of course. No matter what Pokémon it is, it would definitely have potential as a team member. There's no weak Pokémon, after all." Saying that, Disc looked at me with a smile. I was glad I influenced him in some way, just like how he inspired me to improve as a trainer.
Suddenly, the Egg started shaking vigorously as it started to slowly crack.
"No way..." Cassie was surprised.
The Egg continued to crack as we saw a beam of light appearing as the Egg hatched. It revealed a small, chick Pokémon with yellow wings and a body covered with orange feathers. It struggled to keep its balance on Disc's palms as it looked around its surrounding, the newborn taking a first look around the world in its surroundings.
I scanned it with my Pokédex, [Torchic, the Chick Pokémon. It has a flame sac inside its belly that perpetually burns. It feels warm if it is hugged.]
"That's the Fire type starter in Hoenn!" I exclaimed.
"..." Disc said nothing, but I could tell he already started to take a liking towards the Torchic as he petted it gently. The Torchic closed its eyes, seemingly enjoying its new trainer's company.
"What do you plan on naming him?" Cassie asked.
Disc looked towards the starry sky, "...The Egg hatched under the night sky full of stars. Let's name it Starlight."
"That's a good name." I nodded. We then spent the rest of the night taking care of the cute newborn starter and resting up for the next day.
"I guess it's time to separate again." The next day came and I said to the two.
"Not exactly for the both of us... We're going to battle Norman at Petalburg together!" Cassie said.
"Don't be upset. We've met each other several times throughout our journeys. I'm sure the next time we meet won't be too long." Disc reassured.
"That's true. Good luck in your battles against Norman!" I said.
"Same to you, Lows." Disc nodded.
"See you soon!" Cassie waved her hand before the two walked towards Petalburg Woods.
I nodded, ready to continue my journey as I started working my way towards my next destination: Slateport.
...I'm coming to fulfill my promise, big sis.
Above the waterfall, Steven was staring at the scenery of Meteor Falls. However, the breathtaking beauty of the cave was not what was on his mind at that moment.
He slowly opened his hand, revealing what looked like an orb-shaped gem of some sort, the sky blue color surrounding the gold shade in the middle.
He recalled his conversation with Professor Cozmo.
"Steven, I think this would interest you for sure!"
"Hmm? This is different from my collection, that's for sure." Steven took the gem-like object and examined it.
"It seems like this sort of stone is related to something that I've been studying! It said that these stones have some sort of mysterious energy that can change the forms of Pokémon and make them even stronger."
Steven's Metagross said, "This does seem quite odd. I seem to feel the energy coming from the stone... like my body's automatically reacting to it."
"...So you're saying this stone could make my Metagross even stronger?"
"Definitely! I don't have much use for it, so you can keep it and see how that works out for you as a way of helping me with my research." Professor Cozmo said.
He looked at the mysterious stone.
...What's the purpose of my Pokémon having more power?
I thought my ways as a trainer were already long over.
After a while, he eventually clenched his fist and continued holding the stone.
Everything has their own purposes.
Perhaps... this is a calling for me...
To complete the unfinished business that I have long pursued.
It's time to end this...
Once and for all.
Lows' Pokémon Team:
Surfer (Wartortle, Male) Jolly Nature, Moves: Bite, Water Gun, Water Pulse, Sand Tomb
Ziggs (Linoone, Male) Naive Nature, Moves: Dig, Headbutt, Swift, Facade
Grace (Kirlia, Female) Calm Nature, Moves: Teleport, Magical Leaf, Shadow Ball, Psybeam
Woody (Grovyle, Male) Lonely Nature, Moves: Pursuit, Leaf Blade, Bullet Seed, Rock Throw
Power (Machop, Male) Timid Nature, Moves: Fling, Focus Energy, Karate Chop, Low Kick