The name sounded familiar to Natsui. He remembered it from the games but couldn't recall the details. Still, with a name like "Falls," there had to be a large body of water nearby—and where there's water, there are always plenty of wild Pokémon.
I wonder if we'll encounter any rare species?
Suppressing his curiosity, he and Misty continued along the main path.
Just as Natsui expected, the deeper they went, the more Pokémon they saw, and the greater the variety became.
Besides common Pokémon from Kanto and Johto like Diglett, Dugtrio, Geodude, Graveler, Onix, and Golbat, there were also Pokémon they were seeing for the first time, such as Solrock and Lunatone.
Natsui even caught a glimpse of an Aron darting into a small cave.
Misty looked around and said, "If Brock were here, he'd be ecstatic. He'd think he was in heaven."
Natsui laughed. He was about to say something when his flashlight beam landed on a small, peculiar Pokémon floating in the air.
"What's that..."
Natsui was stunned and quickly aimed his Pokédex at it. Despite the dim light, the Pokédex soon returned a result.
"Beep. Beldum, the Iron Ball Pokémon. A Steel/Psychic-type. Beldum's cells are all magnets, and magnetism circulates through its body instead of blood, allowing it to repel the planet's magnetic field and float. A group of Beldum will move in a coordinated, orderly fashion, as if they are a single Pokémon. They communicate with each other using magnetic pulses. In battle, it uses the magnetism from its rear to draw foes in, then stabs them with its sharp claws. If angered, Beldum will not only rampage but also release a powerful magnetic force, destroying any machinery nearby. Note: If a Beldum is in poor condition, give it a magnet."
"Beldum?"
After hearing the Pokédex entry, Misty looked at the Beldum with interest. She walked a few steps closer to get a better look.
Although it was called the "Iron Ball Pokémon" (Beldum), to her it looked more like a stone camera. It had a single large claw at its rear, a long body, and a round head with one big red eye set at the front.
She'd seen Pokémon that looked like animals and plants, but this was the first time she'd encountered one shaped like a dumbbell.
She could only marvel at the vastness of the world. But then again, she remembered Magnemite from Kanto, which looked like screws, so Beldum didn't seem so strange after all.
Not paying it much mind, Misty was about to move on when she noticed Natsui striding quickly toward the Beldum, already reaching for a Poké Ball at his waist.
She was surprised and asked, "Natsui, are you going to catch it?"
"Of course!" Natsui nodded, not slowing down. He grabbed the Poké Ball and ordered Torchic to charge. As he did, he turned to Misty and said, "Don't be fooled by its small and plain appearance. When it evolves into Metagross, it's incredibly powerful!"
Metagross?
Misty "oh"-ed, not quite understanding. But if Natsui said so, it must be a very strong Pokémon.
Torchic, chirping, ran up to the Beldum.
Torchic called out to Beldum, but the Pokémon just glanced back, then turned and floated into a side tunnel.
Natsui didn't hesitate and hurried after it with Torchic. Misty paused for a moment, then followed, calling out, "Natsui, wait! Did you forget what that old man said? We have to stay on the main path or we'll get lost!"
Natsui kept going, glancing back at her with a grin. "We're trainers! We can't let a few rules stop us. Where there's a will, there's a way. Don't worry—a tricky path is nothing. Let's hurry before it gets away!"
Perhaps infected by his smile, Misty nodded firmly, cast her worries aside, and followed closely behind him.
That's right—who cares! As long as I'm with Natsui, it doesn't matter if we get lost in this cave for weeks.
Inside the cave, Beldum flew ahead, Torchic followed close behind, and Natsui and Misty were a bit further back.
Beldum wasn't moving especially fast, but since it was flying, Natsui and the others had to watch their step and couldn't keep up at a run.
After running for a while, they twisted and turned, crossed an underground river, and went deeper. By the time Beldum finally stopped, they were far from the main path and had no idea how to get back.
But Natsui wasn't worried about that right now. Seeing Beldum hovering in place, he guessed this must be its home.
The rare ores scattered around, many of them faintly magnetic, confirmed it—this was Beldum's food source.
He signaled Torchic. It chirped, charged at Beldum again, and spat an Ember from its beak.
Beldum floated there, its single eye watching the humans and the Pokémon. Natsui couldn't read its expression.
He guessed it was probably just confused.
Living in this cave, Beldum might have seen humans pass by, but this was probably the first time anyone had chased it all the way home.
Maybe because it had never been disturbed, or had no natural enemies, Beldum had let its guard down. The Ember hit it directly before it even tried to dodge.
Natsui frowned. Did I really find a Beldum that's a bit slow?
Fortunately, after being burned, Beldum finally realized it was being attacked. It belatedly extinguished the flame on its body and charged at Torchic.
Natsui didn't even need to give a command. Torchic simply hopped aside and dodged the Tackle.
Torchic then raised a claw and scratched Beldum, making it shudder.
Beldum turned and used Tackle again. Just like before, Torchic dodged and landed another hit.
After this repeated several times, Misty turned to Natsui, hesitated, and finally asked, "Natsui... why does this Beldum only use that one move over and over? Doesn't it know anything else?"
Natsui shook his head. "It really doesn't. Even though it's Steel/Psychic, wild Beldum only know Tackle until they're trained. But don't underestimate it—like Magikarp, its real strength comes out after it evolves."
Hearing Natsui compare it to Magikarp, Misty finally understood what he meant.
Oh, just like Magikarp's Splash!
Although she still hadn't overcome her fear of Gyarados, she knew that Pokémon that were weak initially often underwent a huge transformation.
Now that Torchic had figured out Beldum's pattern, it handled the battle with ease.
Before long, with another Ember, it finally knocked the Beldum to the ground.
Seeing the battle was over, Natsui threw the Poké Ball he had ready.
As he and Misty watched, the ball shot out a red beam, sucked Beldum in, rolled a few times on the ground, and then, with a 'click,' fell still.
By now, Natsui didn't get too emotional about catching ordinary Pokémon—unlike when he caught legendaries. Still, a small, satisfied smile appeared on his face.
Misty, however, clapped and cheered. "Congratulations, Natsui! By the way, how many Pokémon is that for you now?"
Natsui said without thinking, "It's my 21st Pokémon."
Including Beldum, Natsui now had eleven Pokémon with him—just one slot left.
He hadn't expected this before coming to Hoenn. He was catching them faster than he thought, adding three new Pokémon in just a few days.
He picked up the Poké Ball, but before turning to leave, he scanned the area again.
He noticed many different ores around—some familiar, some unknown.
In the beam of his flashlight, something in a corner glinted, reflecting the light.
Curious, Natsui walked over and picked up a small, round, crystal-clear stone.
"What's that?" Misty asked, coming over. She noticed a strange crescent-moon pattern inside the stone. "It doesn't look natural—almost like a man-made gem."
Natsui studied it for a moment and said hesitantly, "I think this is a Key Stone."
"Key Stone?" Misty asked, having never heard the term. "What's that?"
Natsui said, "Remember that Mega Stone I found before?"
Misty nodded. "Of course."
Natsui explained, "This is what goes with a Mega Stone. It's natural, but no one knows exactly how it's formed. What matters is that it contains a mysterious power that resonates with a Pokémon's Mega Stone, allowing Mega Evolution."
Mega Evolve!?
Hearing this, Misty was instantly interested and stopped caring about how it was formed.
She crouched down and searched the ground, quickly finding seven or eight more Key Stones!
Delighted, she divided them up—half for herself, half for Natsui. Whether for her own use or as gifts, it was an unexpected treasure.
Misty enthusiastically searched the area again, but found nothing else. Happy with their haul, she and Natsui turned to head back.
But after just a few steps, they reached the first fork in the path and ran into a problem.
"Which way did we come from?" Misty asked, looking left and right. They had run too fast and hadn't memorized the details.
Natsui also shook his head; his attention had been entirely on the Beldum.
Seeing Natsui didn't know either, Misty sighed, a little regretful. "We should have left marks."
"It's fine," Natsui said, unconcerned. "There's a little trick for these situations: as long as we keep heading in one direction, we'll eventually find an exit—unless this place is an incredibly complex maze."
He wasn't wrong; it was a common exploration trick. And even if that failed, they had Pokémon to help. They wouldn't be trapped here. It was just a matter of when they got out.
They discussed it and chose the rightmost path. After walking for a long time, they noticed the ground becoming damp, and the sound of running water in the distance.
They exchanged a look. This wasn't the way they came in, but since they'd come this far, there was no point turning back. They followed the sound of water.
They could feel the path trending upwards. The sound of water grew louder. After turning a corner and squeezing through a low opening, the view suddenly brightened!
In front of them was a massive underground waterfall system, with a dozen falls of different sizes. Water thundered down violently. High above, a huge gap in the cave ceiling let sunlight pour in, banishing the darkness.
At the bottom was a huge, perfectly round crater—looking far more like a meteor impact than natural erosion.
Misty gazed up at the enormous waterfall, the roar almost deafening. She had to shout into Natsui's ear, "This must be Meteor Falls, right?!"
Natsui didn't know the name of this place either.
But he agreed it must be Meteor Falls. With a crater like that, it was hard not to connect the two. And looking closely, the water from the highest fall scattered into countless droplets, like a meteor shower, a truly spectacular sight.
-----------------
Unlock 400+ chapters across 7+ different novels on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/c/LEYI396