Heart of Steel [Pokémon Fanfiction]

19| Drawing the Line at Prescient

After we met with Arietta on Route 113, we parted ways and made it to Fallarbor Town a day later where we were severely underwhelmed by what we found. Uninspired tan and orange architecture, a lack in citizens, and anything interesting in general made Fallarbor and Dewford quite alike. It wasn't the hidden gem of a town we were hoping to see after having to walk through a route of eternally falling ash. We quickly moved on to Route 114, and were now taking a break from walking.

   "So what you're saying is, Meteor Falls is the best place in Hoenn?" Wallace asked jokingly. Route 114 was connected to Meteor Falls and that meant we were going to go through them at some point.

   "Yes, it is!" I replied excitedly. "The cave waterfalls are breathtaking, and you can never find enough quality limestone samples. It's like they're practically begging to be found and examined!" I had been singing the falls' praises the entire day. To say I was excited to see my old stone excavating site was an understatement.

   "You are the only person I've ever met that gets so hyped over limestone of all things. Are you sure you don't actually want to be a geologist instead of a Trainer?" Wallace chuckled, shaking his head. If he was trying to tease me, he was doing a horrible job. What he said did cause me to stop my rambling and think for a moment. He had a point there.

With how I used to spend every moment of my free time researching and hunting for rocks, it would have seemed strange if I hadn't thought about going farther with it. If dad had let me choose what I wanted to do in life from the start, I would have pursued a career in geology. But then I thought of the four Poké Balls in my bag. If my thought was reality, none of this could've happened.

   "Not a chance, I wouldn't give up being a Trainer for anything," I said. I watched as Meteor playfully sparred with Wallace's Marshtomp. Yesterday, Mudkip had evolved thanks to a little help from me. I was glad to see that my friends' teams were making progress. "Speaking of which, you said you used to be a Coordinator. Do you mind if I ask why you decided to stop?" I hoped Wallace would say yes, since I was genuinely curious.

   "I was waiting for when you were gonna ask," Wallace said, smirking. "Prepare for a story worthy of its own novel! Back when I first left home, I already knew what I wanted to do in life. I'd seen other Coordinators showing off their Pokémon in Contest Spectaculars, and I wanted to be in the limelight like them. I set off with my team and started training and competing.

   "For the first few months, things were a little bumpy because of how precise your Pokémon's moves have to be when showing them off, but I soon got the hang of it. By the time I turned thirteen, I had won four ribbons and was so close to being eligible for Hoenn's Grand Festival. I was also a pretty well-known Coordinator at that point, so I had more than a few fans. It was more than I could have ever hoped for and I was loving it!" His smile then slowly faded. "It was when I was competing for my fifth and final ribbon when I... made a mistake.