Amidst the murmurs and curious stares of the gathered crowd, Steven accompanied Wallace as they made their way to retrieve the five Pokémon they had stored at the Pokémon Center.
"Let's go, Steven," Wallace said after securing his Poké Balls.
"Right."
Steven released his Skarmory, and just as he was about to climb onto its back, he noticed Wallace still standing beside him, unmoving.
"What's wrong, Wallace?" Steven asked.
"I... don't actually have a Flying-type Pokémon," Wallace admitted, coughing lightly into his fist to cover his embarrassment.
"..."
Well, you could always borrow one from Lance...
"Then you can ride Skarmory," Steven offered with a helpless smile, stroking the steel feathers of his partner. "Can you handle carrying both of us, Skarmory?"
"Skar!"
Skarmory nodded enthusiastically, indicating it would be no problem at all.
If it were Metagross being asked, the Steel-type might have been a bit reluctant.
"Thank you, Steven," Wallace said gratefully before mounting Skarmory. "And thank you too, Skarmory."
Steven glanced back at the crowd still gathered outside the Pokémon Center. At least now he didn't have to worry about anyone trying to steal his Shiny Metagross.
It wasn't as if Elite Four Trainers were common enough to run into everywhere, right?
"Metagross, come out!"
The Poké Ball sprang open in Steven's hand, and his Shiny Metagross materialized in a dazzling display of light and gleaming metal!
Listening to the excited exclamations and discussions from the surrounding crowd, Steven skillfully hopped onto Metagross's top surface and called out firmly:
"Let's go! Metagross, Skarmory!"
"Meta!"
"Skar!"
Steven and Wallace took to the air, heading swiftly toward Mt. Chimney.
Volcanic ash fell continuously from the sky like gray snow. Steven had to ask Metagross to use Psychic to create a protective barrier around them.
They had lost some time bringing Dr. Cozmo back to safety. There was a real possibility that Team Magma had already begun their operation with the meteorite.
Upon reaching the cable car station at the base of Mt. Chimney, Wallace suggested they take the cable car up instead of flying.
"Your Pokémon have expended quite a bit of stamina from the flight. I have some energy cubes made from Sitrus Berries," Wallace said, producing a small container after they landed. "Let them rest while we take the cable car."
"Alright, that makes sense," Steven agreed, accepting the energy cubes from Wallace.
While Metagross might still have plenty of energy left, Skarmory's stamina had definitely taken a hit from carrying two people.
After feeding the energy cubes to both Metagross and Skarmory, Steven and Wallace purchased tickets for the cable car.
Wallace even insisted on paying for both.
The two trainers sat facing each other in the slowly ascending cable car, too focused on the mission ahead to appreciate the volcanic scenery outside.
"Steven, when we get up there, you handle the grunts and I'll go straight for whoever's in charge," Wallace said, his voice low and serious.
"Understood," Steven replied with a nod.
The temperature inside the crater would be extremely high. Wallace's Water-type Pokémon would be at a significant disadvantage.
Not to mention Steven's Steel-types.
Ding—
After a tense conversation, the cable car arrived at the upper station.
The moment Steven and Wallace stepped out, they heard the faint sounds of battle echoing from the crater above.
The two exchanged a knowing glance and nodded to each other in silent agreement.
Steven immediately sent out both Skarmory and Metagross again. The two trainers mounted their Pokémon and rushed toward the crater with all speed!
"If you're allowed to expand the land, the living space for Water-type Pokémon will shrink!"
"Hmph! Land is what truly matters—we'll create more of it for everyone!"
Flying through the air, Steven and Wallace caught fragments of the argument between Team Magma and Team Aqua grunts. They exchanged another meaningful look.
"Whatever the situation is, let's help Team Aqua stop them first!" Wallace said, frowning.
"Agreed."
Steven felt somewhat exasperated. These two rival organizations in the Hoenn region—one obsessed with expanding the land, the other with expanding the ocean...
Honestly, they were two sides of the same coin.
But judging from the conversation they'd just overheard, Team Aqua did seem to be leaning toward the better side of things.
And more importantly...
Steven glanced at Wallace riding Skarmory beside him. This guy was a Water-type Gym Leader, after all.
Steven looked down and spotted Archie fighting multiple opponents alone.
If you already knew Team Magma's objective, why did you only bring so few people?
Oh right, your other subordinates probably went searching for the other orb.
"There he is!"
Wallace's sharp eyes immediately spotted Maxie, dressed in his distinctive red uniform, operating some kind of instrument!
The aura emanating from this man was clearly different from the regular grunts around him.
"I'll take care of the three people next to him, Steven. Help me hold them off temporarily," Wallace said with determination.
"I'll finish quickly and come help you."
"No problem," Steven replied, lowering his hand and tossing Skarmory's Poké Ball to Wallace.
"Skarmory, please help Wallace for now!"
"Skar!"
"Alright, let's go down!"
At Steven's shout, Metagross and Skarmory dove simultaneously.
Steven and Wallace leaped off their Pokémon with practiced grace and landed in cool, elegant stances.
The two looked at each other from a distance and shared a brief smile. Their teamwork was already proving quite effective.
"Kid, who do you think you are, daring to interfere with Team Magma's operations!" shouted the large man leading the three Team Magma members. His name was Tabitha, and he was clearly furious.
"Wait a minute—you're that kid who disrupted my operation at Meteor Falls!"
"You're really persistent! Well then, let me, Tabitha, teach you a proper lesson!"
Tabitha hurled a Poké Ball forward, releasing a Camerupt onto the field.
The two Team Magma grunts beside him followed suit, each sending out a Mightyena.
One Camerupt and two Mightyena stood before Steven.
Their strength wasn't particularly impressive. The only one worth noting was Tabitha's Camerupt, which appeared to have the strength of a mid-level Pokémon.
It was probably his ace.
The other two Mightyena might not even reach basic competitive levels.
"Damn it! If that cursed Gym Leader hadn't interfered earlier, I'd still have more than just one Camerupt!" Tabitha gritted his teeth in frustration.
"Camerupt, use Earth Power!"
"Metagross, Earthquake!"
Steven called out while secretly moving his right hand behind his back.
Metagross used its Psychic ability to keep Steven levitating safely while it slammed its massive arms onto the ground!
BOOM!
The two Ground-type energies collided beneath the surface. Camerupt's Earth Power shattered against the overwhelming force of Metagross's Earthquake!
The seismic energy rippled through the ground, striking the opposing Camerupt and both Mightyena with tremendous force.
The violent tremors from Earthquake knocked all three Pokémon to the ground—and their trainers as well.
Surprisingly, Tabitha's considerable bulk seemed to have a cushioning effect. He actually managed to push himself back up!
"Use Bullet Punch!" Steven commanded.
But Metagross beside him remained perfectly still.
"What do you mean by that?" Tabitha looked confused. Why wasn't the opponent's Metagross following the command?
Steven grinned. That order hadn't been meant for Metagross.
A red blur suddenly appeared behind Tabitha. A pincer adorned with an eye-like pattern slammed heavily into Tabitha's back.
The impact sent Tabitha sprawling to the ground once more.
You're not as tough as you look...
"Damn it! I was ambushed!" Tabitha cursed through clenched teeth from his position on the ground.
This left Steven genuinely dumbfounded.
Are you serious? You're built like a tank!
It was one thing that he hadn't been knocked unconscious by the aftershocks of Earthquake like the regular grunts—he was an Executive, so that was somewhat reasonable.
But he took a direct Bullet Punch from Scizor and he's still not out cold?!
All that weight on him really wasn't just for show!
While Steven was internally complaining, a group of Team Magma grunts began surrounding him from multiple directions.
"Team Aqua is pretty useless too..." Steven muttered, turning to face the encircling grunts with a helpless expression.
Noticing that even Tabitha's Camerupt had somehow gotten back on its feet, Steven's expression sharpened with focus.
"Metagross! Scizor!"
"Meta!"
"Scizor!"
"Use Earthquake and Fury Cutter!"