SLUDGE MOUND.

Such an ugly name, but that was what they called it now.

Volo knew he shouldn't take it to heart, since many of these names were given by the Galaxy Exploration Team. They labelled things only as they saw fit, having no deeper respect for Hisui, no connection with the land.

In truth, the ugliness of the name was not the problem. It was the fact that Volo didn't know what it was truly called, even though it was his first home. No amount of research had uncovered that knowledge, because it wasn't significant.

He knew what he was going to find there. He'd known since the first time he'd looked at one of the Survey Corps maps, recognising the contours of the land but finding only that unholy name where a tiny Celestica village had once stood.

Sludge Mound.

He'd realised that these newcomers were sophisticated in their technology, but not necessarily in other ways.

Today it was Volo's destination, though he knew he was being unwise. The marsh clung to his boots, weighing him down, adding even more gravity to his grim pilgrimage. It would cling to him again as he left, as though it were begging him to stay.

His Togekiss flew by his side - for protection, sure enough, but mostly for company. She was not weighed down, neither physically nor by heavy thoughts, for she had never been here before. This brought Volo some comfort. At least one of them could be happy.

(He was finding it so hard, these days, to be happy. When did it begin?)

After a long and silent walk, they reached their landmark. A relatively new camp - this, too, an imposition from the Galaxy Exploration Team - now occupied the more solid ground, and Volo paused to look around at the empty tents and unlit lanterns. At present, there was nobody at the camp, yet it had a presence.

Togekiss drew closer, sensing that something was wrong.

They continued to the ridge, to a point where Volo could look out over the land. It was just as he'd expected. Just as they called it. He couldn't even pinpoint where the houses had once stood. Maybe it had been right here, under his feet, but they would have cleared out anything that remained and levelled the terrain before constructing the camp. Every trace would have been thrown in the nearby bog, resulting in -

A mound of sludge.

"Just think about it," Volo said, addressing his concerned Pokémon as she hovered beside him. Togekiss knew that he simply needed to break the silence, but she listened, nonetheless. "This could be the very spot where I was born. That's something to ponder, is it not?"

(Or the spot where he was torn away, bewildered and crying, reaching for his mother. He was devastated that she didn't try, didn't even pretend to reach back.)

Why did I come here? What have I gained? Nothing has changed, I've learned nothing that I didn't already know…

The empty grey sky was replicated in his stare, until he closed his eyes to block it out. In response, Togekiss flew in front of him and gently pressed her forehead against his. When Volo spoke again, his tone was deep and sombre, almost unrecognisable as his own.

"This land is nothing but a graveyard, Togekiss. We should leave…before the ghosts arrive."