Chapter Text
(*)
Hello, Wallace.
My name is Geeta, and I am the current chairwoman of the Paldean Pokémon League. I'm sending this email as a brief introduction, and also to propose a little adventure, if you would like to indulge me. As a former Champion privy to current affairs of other regions, I'm sure you've heard of Area Zero - a large crater in the middle of the Paldea region, off-limits to the public due to the hazardous environment and dangerous Pokémon that roam here. My research team has recently discovered proof that a Paradox Pokémon (file attached at the bottom if you'd like to read further about this phenomenon) that greatly resembles your region's Rayquaza is slumbering in the deepest caves of Area Zero.
I am in need of someone who can investigate this Pokémon, who we call Iron Scales, and I can think of no one more capable than you. If you're interested in assisting me, please respond to my email and we can discuss further details. Please let me know if I can answer any of your questions, and I thank you for taking the time to read my email. Hope you have a good day.
Geeta
(*)
Two months later...
It's not until the automatic doors to Zero Gate slide shut that Wallace realizes that he may have signed up for something that's a little bit more than he can chew. Sure, he was involved in 'shenanigans' in the past, what with the near destruction of the Hoenn region, but that was years ago. The vibe he's been getting from Geeta since he met the younger woman earlier at the airport made him feel like he was a spy in a movie, something much more larger and serious than he'd originally thought this little excursion was going to be. Honestly, he doesn't even remember why he even said yes to Geeta - an acquaintance at most, a face and name on a screen who he's never had the pleasure of meeting in person. He wraps his arms around himself as he follows the taller woman down a long, pristine and shiny hallway, blinking and flickering with fluorescent lights.
He probably should have brought a coat, or something.
"I just wanted to thank you again for coming over to help with this, Wallace." Geeta's shoes make a smooth click sound they progress further into Zero Gate's laboratory. "I'd normally have someone else helping me out with this, but I was told not to bother my young champion and her friends this month." She has a small, knowing smile on her face. "Finals week."
"Ah. School." Wallace clears his throat, thinking of his own successor. "Wasn't really for May, but yes - I've had to, ah, cover for her when she wanted to be..." he shrugs. "A kid again."
Geeta turns her head to look at Wallace, and her smile grows. "You understand me." She nods to herself, and continues walking. "It makes me happy when they don't want to grow up right away. They deserve, just as anyone else, to have some semblance of normalcy." Geeta sighs. "It's actually mostly why I asked you to come and help, instead of May."
"I'm sure she's glad you thought of her, Geeta, but I'm selfishly going to admit that I'm glad you asked me." Wallace chuckles. "I was growing old and bored in Sootopolis. And I've never been to Paldea!" He purses his lips, and is already thinking of a small list of things he needs to do before he heads back home. "It's absolutely gorgeous here."
Geeta smiles, looking similar to a Pyroar proud of his pride. "Thank you. It's always refreshing to have new friends in Paldea." There's a quick pause, and Geeta continues. "Perhaps after all this is done, you can explore with the other member of your investigation party?"
"Oh?" Wallace raises an eyebrow. "I didn't realize our group was going to be... a duo?" He tries to remember the details of the succinct email that Geeta had sent him a couple of months ago, but the exact words that she used escape his mind. Wallace remembers the words 'Iron Scales', a large Pokémon that needed to be discovered and investigated, and to bring his strongest team to assist him. He had assumed that it wasn't going to be a small operation, so he opted not to ask more questions. Maybe he should have.
She nods. "I tend not to bring big groups into Area Zero at a time - for one, big groups can be disruptive to the Pokémon, and I've found that smaller groups are easier to keep track of. Area Zero is a lot bigger than you think it is. That being said, I'd rather not have newcomers wander around Area Zero alone. It's just better this way. I found someone else from your region who sounded like a good fit, who seemed genuinely interested in the operation."
"And who..." The questions dies in Wallace's throat as the two of them entered what presumably was the center of Zero Gate. It was overwhelmingly large, with large monitors and computers, blinking lights and soft hums that typically accompany machinery. But besides being large, it's also overwhelmingly quiet. With such a huge space, Wallace at least expected a small team of scientists in the room, but the only people here, as far as he can tell, is him and Geeta... and a large hiking backpack propped up on one of the tables. There's nothing out of the ordinary - it's a brown backpack, what else could there be? - until Wallace spies a keychain dangling off the zipper of one of the side pockets.
A shard of a Water Stone - impossibly blue, with sharp edges and smooth surfaces.
He knows who this backpack belongs to. There's a faint buzzing in Wallace's head, and he can faintly hear Geeta's deep voice saying something in the background, but it all fades away as memories start to resurface - memories that he thought he had locked safely away, never to be thought of again.
"I know you said no gifts, but I personally think you need something that's going to remind you of me on your travels." A younger, more naive Wallace presses a shard of a Water Stone into strong, reassuring hands.
"I think you underestimate how much I'm going to miss you, but I'll take it." A warm hug - a tight one, one that squeezes a few tears out of Wallace's eyes. "I love you, you know that right? Always."
"Wallace?"
Wallace muttered a curse underneath his breath. He'd imagined their first meeting since the break-up for years, but he'd never imagined that their actual first meeting would be in an empty lab, after a sixteen-hour long flight, in a region that Wallace had never been to. He sighed, straightened up, and looked across the room at Steven Stone.
"...Hi."