6: A Lesson in Technology

"What's good about the Celestica Trail?"

Akari asked the question as they were doing the last of their packing up and clearing the camp. In truth, she wasn't sure if the question was meant for Volo, or if she was just thinking out loud.

She didn't feel ready to leave this place yet. She was still tired, and her whole body was aching. If they could have stayed longer, she would have chosen to do that. But the way ahead was long, with no more Survey Corps camps until they reached the top of the mountain.

There was no way they could cover all that ground in a single day, so they would have to find another place to camp. Akari wasn't sure, yet, what that would look like. In that sense, she would be relying on Volo's knowledge and experience. She trusted him, but she was anxious.

I hope he's done this before, in the mountains, without a Ginkgo Guild wagon to sleep in…

Even though they would not reach the Summit Camp today, it made sense to leave early, and get as far as they could. At the very least, they should try to get over the Celestica Trail, so that they didn't have to spend the night on that long stretch of open ground.

It was a barren, rocky path, laid bare to the wind. There were some clusters of rocks here and there, but they didn't provide very much shelter, nor did they make good hiding places from wild Pokémon. There was no way they'd get any sleep, if they had to stay there.

"What's good about it…?" Volo repeated the question slowly. "The…views?"

"Huh. If you say so. Can't say I ever stopped to look. Too busy trying not to get headbutted off a cliff by a Hippowdon." Akari realised that she'd been hoping for a more profound answer. "Hey, why is it called the 'Celestica Trail', anyway?"

"It's not!" Volo answered with a short, dry laugh. "That's just what your Galaxy Team decided to write on their maps! Like most of these places. I suppose they must have run out of ideas. If in doubt, put the Celestica name on it…"

"Really? So, the Celestica Ruins…? They're not…?"

"Oh, no, they are. In the sense that they are, indeed, Celestica ruins." Volo continued to smile, but his movements, as he finished packing up and adjusting the straps on his backpack, became noticeably rougher. "But so is everything else. So…is…everything else. The whole of Hisui is Celestica ruins, Miss Akari."

Akari decided not to say anything else on that, but she nodded in a way that she hoped was sombre and respectful.

The start of the trail was just a short walk away. Well, at this rate, it would be short. Volo was going so fast this morning, Akari thought.

She wasn't struggling to keep up just yet, but she might have been by the end of the day. Especially since she was the one taking care of all the battling. She was well aware that most of the effort belonged to her Pokémon, but as a trainer, there was still mental effort on her part. She had all the worry, the strategising, the burden of watching her Pokémon get hurt.

But that was the deal they'd made. Akari's team would look after them, and Volo would look after Akari's team, supplying potions and whatever else they might have needed.

Before they turned onto the trail, Akari thought she saw something in the opposite direction, where the path veered off into a large ravine. It looked like someone had made a campfire at the bottom of the cliffs, but there were no other signs of human life now. Just the usual pair of Alpha Bronzong that always hung around there.

To see a pair of Alpha like that, the same species, was a rare thing. And Akari knew from personal experience that those two Bronzong were in cahoots, determined to defend that spot from any other living things. It couldn't have been a campfire, she thought. Maybe the ground was just burned from a Pokémon attack.

Or bandits…?

In any case, she didn't have time to go and investigate. Not with Volo power-walking in the other direction.

After they'd made their way through a winding and sheltered path - just the kind of place bandits might hide, Akari thought, but they encountered none - the cliffs on one side dropped away. That must have been the view that Volo was talking about, although it was mostly hidden by mist right now. On a clearer day, they might have been able to see far south, beyond the mountains.

On the other side of the trail, the mountainside rose up in stark walls and towers, impossible to climb unaided, too high to even see where they ended.

The path opened up before them, so flat and empty that Akari imagined she could see all the way to the other end. Whether she could or not, it made the trail seem so much shorter than it really was.

Between here and there, the distinctive jagged peaks that lay above the ancient quarry rose up. It was a landmark they'd have to pass, but fortunately not climb or cross. Right now, the very tops of those ridges were hidden by a thick fog. There was often fog there, floating above the swampy grounds near the quarry.

The mist and fog gave Akari an idea. "We could use smoke bombs…?"

Volo shrugged. "Alas, I don't have a single one."

"Me neither. But we could make some." Akari wasn't the best at remembering crafting recipes for things she hardly ever used, but this one came to her quicker than usual. She'd been reminded of it, just that morning. "You used caster ferns and sootfoot roots for making those…those mochi at breakfast, right? Well, we just need to get more!"

"If only you had said before now! I'm afraid I used up all the ones I had, not knowing of this plan of yours. And smoke bombs do make me cough quite terribly. That's not so good for stealth, is it?"

Akari sighed through her nose. She got the feeling that Volo just didn't want to spend any of their travelling time on crafting. There was something restless about him, like he would have gone racing all the way down the Celestica Trail if he were alone and well-armed enough to deal with the wild Pokémon by himself.

But, since he wasn't, Akari rushed to keep close to him. They were in the open now, and it was time to think about guard duty.

Torterra and Samurott seemed like the best picks for this place, with its population of Rock- and Ground-type Pokémon. But, when Akari had released her two Pokémon, it seemed that Volo might have had some other ideas. He smiled at Samurott, but when he laid eyes on Torterra, he spun around, walking backwards so that he could address Akari without stopping.

"Will that not slow us down?"

Akari blinked. 'That'? She knew Torterra wouldn't care - his thick skin wasn't only physical - but she cared. "Not really…? Anyway, if I'm the one handling security, it's my choice, right?"

"As you wish."

Akari could feel herself blushing. Volo might have had a point, even if he'd been uncharacteristically blunt about it; Torterra was not very speedy. But neither were most of the wild Pokémon here. They were, however, strong. That was why Akari had chosen Torterra: for his hardiness, and his type advantage. She had Samurott for agility.

But now she felt like she had to prove something. When they drew the attention of a nearby Rhyhorn, before the wild Pokémon could make a single move, she ordered Samurott to hang back.

"Watch this! Torterra, use Headlong Rush!"

Torterra charged at the Rhyhorn. Akari had to admit, it was like watching a battle in slow motion: the Rhyhorn tried to dodge, but even though it had plenty of time, it reacted too late, and Torterra's tackle sent it flying into a nearby rock. The Rhyhorn got up again and shook off the dust, still strong enough to fight, but apparently it didn't care enough to come back for revenge. It skulked off towards the cliffs and disappeared.

"Okay, so he isn't fast." As Torterra wandered back to her, Akari reached out and placed her hand on his head. "But he makes up for that in other ways."

"Once again, I stand corrected." Volo bowed - not just his head, but a much bigger gesture, briefly removing his cap and sweeping it through the air as he bent low at the waist. "And I apologise."

If it hadn't been for the apology, Akari would have thought he was being sarcastic. But at that point, at least, he sounded genuine enough. She would let it go, soon…but not before gently calling him out. It wasn't fair for him to go questioning her Pokémon and her strategies while relying on them for protection. But if he wanted to earn the right to make comments about battling, he could.

"Maybe this would be a good chance for you to train, Volo. We could do doubles." Akari immediately saw the blank look on her companion's face and groaned. "Oh…course, you don't have those here. I mean, you could send out your Togepi or Gible next to one of mine. That way, they get some battle experience without being in too much danger. It's a good way of training up younger Pokémon while keeping them a bit safer, you know?"

"That sounds a fine idea." Volo tapped his forehead with his finger, like he was committing it to memory. "Let's see how it goes. Yours seem to be holding up very well for now."

When he turned around again, Akari stared at his back and shook her head.

Their progress was slow but steady, regularly hindered by Rhyhorn and Rhydon. They were easily handled, but each battle - especially at the pace of these Pokémon - was time added to the journey.

The occasional Hippopotas wandered close, too, but Akari would leave them alone, and urged Volo to do the same. On their own, they were usually harmless, but the same couldn't be said for their protective parents. They were never too far away.

Volo was either speeding ahead - until Akari had to call him back, in case he wandered beyond her Pokémon's reach and encountered something he couldn't handle - or he was at Akari's side. They would talk, sometimes. Akari found it difficult to focus on the conversation. She figured it was because of the constant interruptions, and the need to keep an eye on her Pokémon's conditions.

After yet another battle, she sighed loudly. "It's been like this for hours. How are we going to catch a break around here?" Wyrdeer would have just leapt over those Rhyhorn.

"A break...?" Volo almost seemed offended. "Surely you cannot be tired already! Not when you're so young, and so used to these adventures! Do your Pokémon need some potions, then?"

"No, they're fine for now. I just want to be able to eat something without watching our backs." Yeah, even teenagers and 'adventurers' need to do that. Sorry to burst the bubble, Volo. At the mention of food, Akari's stomach grumbled in agreement. "Are you not hungry? Breakfast was so long ago!"

Volo didn't answer in words, but he slowed down and began to look around. Then, without warning, he ran off towards the tall cliffs. When Akari caught up with him, she found him climbing up onto a small ledge. After the previous day's events, she'd never expected to see him climbing again, but there he was.

"What are you doing up there?" She stood beneath, looking up at him with folded arms.

"I found us a grand place to rest! Don't worry, Miss Akari!" Lying on his front and leaning over the edge, Volo offered his hands. "I'll help you!"

"You guys stay down here," Akari muttered to her Pokémon - or to Samurott, at least. Torterra was still a few paces behind, still making its slow way across the width of the trail, too far away to hear. "I don't think this ledge is high enough to stop anything, if it really wanted to get us."

It wasn't exactly a big climb - only about the same height as Volo himself - and Akari didn't feel like she needed help, but she would let the merchant have his moment. Just let him think he was pulling her up, even though that wasn't really what was happening. If anything, Akari was more worried about pulling him down. She was heavier than she looked.

Maybe he's worried about me falling again. Even though, if I fell here, I'd only bruise my ass.

"How'd you get such warm hands, Volo? It's freezing!"

They'd been clammy, too, by the time they were done. But Akari was being polite. She tried to be discreet about wiping her damp palms on her trousers.

It must have been around the middle of the day by now. Sitting up here, facing south, with nothing to shield her view, Akari couldn't look up very far without feeling like she was staring straight into the sun. She kept her eyes down and took long and slow blinks, appreciating the warmth on her eyelids.

Volo turned himself around, until he was sitting with one foot hanging over the edge, the other bent and pulled into his chest. That awkward position seemed to be for the sole sake of being able to bounce his leg. Before this trip, Akari would never have known he was such a fidgeter. Or was he just that impatient to keep walking?

He also seemed to be breathing heavily, like the imaginary effort of pulling Akari up had tired him out. Akari considered making a joke about it, but decided against it. They were friends by now, and they'd already teased each other a few times, but she was still conscious that manners and jokes didn't always travel very well through time.

Akari watched, out of the corner of her eye, as Volo took out his water bottle and started to drink like there was no tomorrow. She took it as a prompt to do the same, but when she really couldn't drink any more, he was still going.

"You should slow down," she said, framing her words with a laugh so that they wouldn't sound too harsh. "The Cel-… I mean, this trail is dry as a bone until we get to the other end. You're gonna end up thirsty enough to go drink swamp water along the way, if you keep going."

"Hmm." Volo put his bottle away and wiped his mouth with his sleeve. "Say, that device of yours…"

"My…phone?"

"Yes." He put out his hand. "Can I hold it?"

Akari chewed on her lip, staring down at his eager fingers.

Something told her she wasn't meant to let go of that phone, or that nobody else was supposed to touch it. But, without knowing why, she thought that seemed silly. What was the big deal? Was she worried about sharing germs? Out here?

Then she thought she might have worried about Volo breaking it, since he'd never held a phone before. But that didn't cut it, either. That thing had survived falling out of the sky with her, without so much as a cracked screen.

Perhaps it was nothing more than her vague memory that, in her own time, a person's phone was a private thing. Asking to use somebody else's, unless it was an emergency, would have been weird. But that would have taken too much explaining.

With a shrug, Akari took the phone out of her pocket and gave it to Volo. She'd been expecting him to handle it like a brick, but he let it lie flat in his palms, like it was something fragile and alive. The screen was blank and dark; he didn't seem to realise that he had to touch it.

He looked at her, eyes wide. "How do I…?" Then he turned to stare at the cliff wall behind the spot where they were sitting, like he was sizing up where the secret door should be.

"Oh, how do you make it do that? The cave thing?" Akari wished she knew. "I have no idea. That just - "

"Then tell me something else!" Volo paused, as if he'd noticed his tone rising and needed a moment to pull it back. When he spoke again, his voice was softer, his words slower. "If you please, Miss Akari. I'm so terribly fascinated by this device. What else can you make it do, please?"

"I can't make it do very much anymore. Uh…I'll show you…"

Akari held out her hand for the phone, keen for an excuse to take it back, fearing that she wouldn't get it without an argument. But, even though he handed it over without any delay, Volo then scooted up closer and leaned on Akari's shoulder with his arm.

"And now it has light!" he whispered, as the screen woke into life with Akari's touch. "How did you make it do that?"

"You just have to touch the screen. This bit in the middle. Or sometimes it comes on just because of how you're holding it."

It wasn't his fault, Akari thought, but it felt like he was trembling. The idea of someone getting so excited about a phone - no matter how special it was - made her feel unsettled. She couldn't shake her discomfort, no matter how much she tried to reason it away. And Volo's arm was heavy. He was leaning on her.

Maybe it was best if she showed him something boring.

"This is the map. Well, you said it wasn't a real map. But it is."

"Ah, I meant no offence! It just looks terribly small, to my eyes! And you have to move it around with your finger, like so?" Volo touched the screen with a clumsy finger, which shifted the map to a different position. He recoiled, like something had just given him a shock. "Oh, how unwieldy it is! I think I shall stick to paper!"

"Yeah, well…you get used to it. And that's pretty much all I can do with it now."

When Akari closed the map, before she could make any moves to put the phone away, Volo grabbed her wrist tightly. He pointed, using her finger, to all of the other icons on the screen. "And what are these, please?"

They had been working apps, but now most of them were useless. Except for basic things like the calculator, which Akari considered showing to Volo, but she decided against it. In the era of the abacus, or whatever people had these days, a digital calculator might have seemed wild, and she was trying to calm him down.

Other than that, the phone did not work. The clock was stuck at the time Akari had fallen. She'd never used the calendar for much, anyway, but it hadn't realised that it was a couple hundred years out. Akari thought it was best it didn't realise, or else it might glitch out and explode. Okay, maybe not exactly that.

Akari didn't really want to show Volo anything else. Not the messages. She didn't want to go through her contacts list, explaining who all these people were: names of those who didn't exist yet, technically. People whom she may never see again. She didn't even remember who some of them were, and that hurt.

There might not have been any harm in showing Volo the camera - and he knows what photography is, more or less, so I wouldn't have to explain to hell and back - but Akari didn't want to stumble into her camera roll. Most of the photos were greyed out, stuck in the future, in cloud storage that hadn't even been invented yet. Akari couldn't recall what they were. But the few that were left…? Suddenly, it all seemed far too private. Even something shallow and self-explanatory, like a selfie.

Akari thought she might have felt differently, if Volo wasn't invading her space and being so forward. But he was.

Can't really blame him. He doesn't know that phones are kinda personal. Does the concept of privacy even exist here?

"Uh…they're just different communication things. Because that's what these devices are for, actually. Connecting with people who aren't there."

Volo let go of her arm. As she dropped the phone back into her pocket - the one furthest away from him - Akari realised that what she'd said probably sounded just as unbelievable, to a pre-telephones guy, as creating caves out of solid rock.

Well, at least it had the desired effect.

Volo placed his hands on the ledge and used them to push himself away from her. His eyes seemed to have taken on a different, darker hue.

"Akari, do you mean to say…spirits...?"

"N-no…!" Akari always tried to be patient with Volo's misunderstandings, when they happened, but this one was just too much. She began to laugh, clinging onto the lip of the rock like she was worried about doubling over and falling off. Through her laughter, she tried to explain. "If you have a phone, and someone else has a phone, you can use them to talk to each other! Or to send messages to each other! Even if the other person is in a different town. Or at the other side of the world. Living people. Not spirits."

"Hmm." Volo nodded slowly, but his eyes were wide and fixed on Akari, like he was trying to catch her out in a lie.

Once her laughter had dried up, it was replaced by more stomach-grumbling. Akari suddenly forgot about Volo's skeptical stare.

She reached into her satchel and pulled out a bag, the one that had started its journey full of Beni's potato mochi. Now it contained a measly collection of wild berries from last night's foraging, and a few more from this morning. Some were already squashed into pulp. Just the sight of this pathetic lunch, and the knowledge that there was nothing else around here - I wonder if you can eat Rhyhorn - was enough to kill Akari's smile.

Out of politeness, she offered the bag to Volo first, but he shook his head.

"No, thank you. Not hungry."

By the time the travellers came to their next rest stop, the trail had narrowed and darkened. It was less exposed here, overshadowed by the rising hills that lay above the ancient quarry.

The number of wild Pokémon hanging around seemed to have dropped. They were getting further each time, now, without being bothered. There were still the pods of Hippopotas, sometimes with their elders, but all the travellers had to do was keep a respectful distance from them. Some Pokémon just wanted to be left alone, and to protect their young.

Since it felt safer here, the pair had wandered apart. For Akari, it was just a breath of solitude and privacy. They needed those moments, not only for practical reasons, but because it was difficult to stay in anyone's company for too long. Especially when you were both some combination of tired, hungry, sweaty, or moody.

Even when they camped, although Akari felt hidden behind the closed flap of her tent, she didn't feel alone. Sometimes that was nice; sometimes it wasn't.

The fact that Akari's Pokémon were protecting both of them was starting to make her feel like she was on an invisible leash. Especially today, there were times when she had to escape from Volo's presence and his boundless energy, to whatever extent that was possible. It was nothing personal.

Though they hadn't spoken about it, Volo seemed to understand. And Akari was sure that he needed his moments, too. That was why she had left him with Samurott for a few minutes, just to go on a short stroll of her own, with Torterra at her side.

When she came back, Akari thought she could hear talking. But Volo was nowhere in sight. As she looked around, she saw his arm emerging from behind a tall rock some distance away. He was reaching out towards a wild Chimecho. Is he trying to feed it? But whatever was in his hand, the Chimecho didn't seem to like it. Its banner-like tail whipped around in disapproval.

"Volo, don't…!"

The Chimecho didn't attack. Instead, it chose to flee, as they often did. But, as it went, it cried out and rang its bell.

Even though Akari had heard that noise before, she was always stunned at just how loud it was. It seemed even louder here, carried on the wind that blew down the whole length of the trail, bouncing off the cliffs and the hills on either side. If someone had said they could hear a hint of it all the way from Heavenward Lookout, she would have believed them.

The sound didn't last long, but that wasn't the point. In its wake, Akari thought she could already hear rumbling. It could have been coincidental thunder. Or the sound of a Rock-type Pokémon stirring into action.

Akari had to think quickly. Should they go for speed, and try to run? If so, she should withdraw Torterra. But she didn't want to withdraw Torterra, just in case they needed his strength. So far, today, he'd been an immovable object against any wild Pokémon. Well, either way, they had to go. They would figure it out as they went.

"We should get out of here." Akari pulled at Volo's sleeve and they started walking. In her anxiety, she couldn't bring herself to be gentle. "Of all the things to mess with, you had to pick a Chimecho? Seriously?"

"No need to scold, Miss Akari!" Apparently oblivious to what he might have just invited, Volo was laughing. It seemed he'd been eating something, too: there were crumbs at the corner of his mouth, which he quickly brushed away. "I just thought it was a sweet-looking thing. And it didn't attack me, did it?"

Akari had always thought that Volo's fondness for Pokémon made a nice change from the terror and avoidance showed by most Hisuians. But there was a middle ground somewhere.

"Whatever comes to save it might not be sweet. That's what Chingling and Chimecho do, you know...? When they make that noise, it's a call for help. Just hope it didn't summon that Alpha Steelix. You know there's one of those round here, right?"

"Well, I didn't know…any of that…" Volo's laughter, combined with their quickening pace, was making him breathless. "You're the one…with the Pokédex…"

"It's not funny!"

"Very well, then." It seemed like he was trying to stop laughing, but there were still ripples of amusement in his voice. "I shan't do it again, Miss Akari. But your poor Torterra is being left behind! Do let's slow down!"

Akari tilted her head back in exasperation, staring up at the sky, as they slowed down and waited for Torterra to catch up. I still can't believe he did that. "Do you always go messing with wild Pokémon like that? I'm just asking because, if you do, then it's a miracle you're still alive."

"Tch, you sound just like my mother."

Well, your mother was right. But Akari didn't appreciate being put in that position by his recklessness. Her Pokémon might have been helping to take care of Volo, but she wasn't there to -

Torterra nudged his trainer's leg as he arrived, prompting Akari to lean down and pat his head. She gazed at both of her Pokémon. Though they stared back with ready eyes, they looked weary. "Hmm, maybe they could use some - "

Before Akari could finish, she heard an explosion from the high cliffs to their right.

Dust and rock rained down like a sandstorm, and something crashed heavily in front of them, hard enough to make the ground shake. Had they been going any faster, had they been just a foot or so further along, they might have been hit.

Even though she was unhurt, Akari felt dazed. Her ears were ringing.

At first, she thought it must have been a landslide. They happened here, occasionally. But when she managed to open her eyes for a split-second, she thought the rocks that lay across their path were…joined? That's an Onix.

Somewhere behind her, Samurott was barking. Akari tried to turn around and see, so that she could get a better measure of the 'battlefield' and command her Pokémon, but her eyes were stinging from the dust.

Volo's hand landed upon her shoulder, wordlessly, perhaps just to let her know that he was there and safe. Or it might even have been an apology. Akari didn't have time to think about it. She could only call out blindly.

"Samurott, use Aqua Tail! Torterra, Wood Hammer!"

Now they just had to hope the Onix didn't come crashing down on top of them.

Akari felt Volo's hand pushing her towards the ground. She understood, and they both dropped into a crouching position. Volo's cloak swept over Akari's head like a blanket. A square of fabric wouldn't do much good if the Onix fell in an unlucky direction, of course, but it shielded them from any more dust, and from the rain of Samurott's attack.

Please, guys, be careful how you land those moves -

Akari was sure that she gasped with each crash that followed. Unable to see, and not knowing when it was over, she didn't dare to budge. It was Samurott who gave the all clear, gently prodding his horn into Volo's cloak, in a desperate search for his trainer.

When they'd stood up and made their way out of the trap that the Onix's coils had created, they found the Pokémon's head. It was flat out, lying in a small crater of its own making.

Unfortunately, Torterra was in the same state. The recoil from that attack must have taken the last of his strength. Though she knew he would be fine, Akari hated to see any of her Pokémon knocked out like that.

Volo touched Akari's shoulder again, more gently this time. "I have some reviving medicine if you - "

"No. He can rest." Akari took out Torterra's ball, and the Pokémon disappeared into light. She was trying to think - weighing up how far they had left to go, and what to do next - but another question from Volo cut into the quiet.

"Perhaps it's time to bring out someone else…?"

"No! Just…" Shut up for a second. Akari rubbed at her forehead; her hand came away dirty, streaked with damp grit. "Can you give me some potions for Samurott? Please?"

"Say no more!" Volo took off his backpack, and opened it to retrieve what Akari had requested. As he did so, he continued to talk, but his tone and cheerful smile didn't seem to match his words. "Well, that was a tense moment! Although…I suppose we can't know if that Onix came just because of the Chimecho's call, can we…? But, in any case, I hope you can forgive me. It was innocent enough, but…perhaps my ignorance put us in danger…?"

This was a maximum strength potion, Akari noted as she took it from him. Not easy to craft from scratch, and expensive to buy. But Volo, despite still being clad in his merchant's uniform under his cloak, wasn't charging. That was understandable right now, since they had a deal; it was part of the compromise they'd agreed to, for the sake of this trip. But he'd hardly ever charged Akari for anything, even though that was how he made his living.

Not for the first time, she wondered many meals his generosity might have cost him, and whether he was just as generous with everyone. If it was just her, she wished she could let him know that he didn't have to buy her friendship or her favour. She would have found him just as engaging, just as helpful, without any of that.

After this trip, I'm not taking any more freebies from him. Even if I have to chase him with the money.

"I believe you," she said. "Anyway, I put us in danger yesterday, on the ridge. I guess it was your turn, right?"

Volo held out his right hand to shake. "Here's to no more turns, hmm?"