As the group pushed deeper into Area Zero, the world around them grew ever more fantastical.
The air thickened with shimmering motes of crystalline energy. Huge crystal clusters sprouted from ground and rock face alike, an upside-down forest of prisms glowing with dreamlike light.
Keeping their guard up for so long in such a high-energy environment strains even seasoned Trainers. All the more for Liko—the one in their party who wasn't a Trainer yet.
The faint flush in her cheeks had drained to pale. Her breathing had turned shallow; her steps, slower.
Up front, Cynthia sensed the change behind them. She halted, glanced back at the girl trying hard not to hold anyone up, and said, "Alright—let's rest here a moment."
Liko shot her a grateful look. "Thank you," she whispered.
Jason wasn't surprised. Cynthia might be forceful sometimes—but she was gentle, too. You could tell from how she wanted to fall asleep hugging him every night.
They found a flat, safe clearing nearby and settled into their first short break since entering Area Zero.
"Hungry, right? Chow time!"
Jason hopped lightly from Liko's arms. Under looks that by now were more resigned than startled, his small body worked like a pocket dimension: glug-glug—he "spat up" supplies.
Bags of beautifully packaged chips, cookies, energy bars. Bento boxes still steaming and fragrant. Top-grade, nutritionally balanced Pokémon food.
In half a minute the clearing was stacked into a little hill of food, human and Pokémon both. Jason kept everything impeccably sealed—no spit, no mess; each item was as clean as if it had just come off the line.
Still, Iono couldn't resist a half-teasing, half-ugh jab. "Jason, you doing that is so gross~" Arms folded, she pulled an exaggerated face. But the sparkle in her pink-blue eyes betrayed her smile.
Jason rolled his eyes. "Then don't eat."
"Hmph, I'll eat extra."
Like a kid picking a fight, she huffed, then very honestly fished out her favorite seaweed chips and tore the bag open. "Watch me—nom nom~" she crunched—and pulled a face at Jason.
Banter done, Iono wasn't idle. She glanced at her Rotom—signal dead since they came down. Signal? No live? Then record.
Snap—she was out of lounge mode and back to full wattage. "OK, OK—mic check—3, 2, 1!" She lifted her Rotom, hit record, and switched on the persona:
"Hellooo everyone! Your fave, the super-cute, mega-charming Iono-sama is in Area Zero to film an exclusive Survival Vlog for you!"
"No signal here, so no live—only this exclusive look at the Crater!"
Her voice bubbled. She panned across the glowing crystals and plants. "Look at this flower—so special! Its petals are crystal! Wonder how it tastes… kidding! Iono-sama does not eat random stuff!"
As she delivered her trademark over-the-top, fun patter, she was already workshopping the title in her head: EXCLUSIVE REVEAL! SHOCKING! The Paldea Great Crater Hides… Jason had taught her the clickbait format. Pair that with her own flashy cuts and—she could already see the spike in subs.
While Iono filmed her next hit, Liko quietly set about caring for the party's Pokémon. A little guilt sat in her chest. She was the only one here without a Pokémon—even Jason had a Haunter. On expedition, she couldn't carve the way like Cynthia, Iono, or Nemona. It felt like all she did was be protected—and that made her feel… useless.
So at rest, she did what she could—at least she could care for the partners protecting them.
She took the special feed Jason provided and passed it out one by one. "Lucario, this is yours." Lucario gave her a gentlemanly nod. "Bellibolt, thanks for your work." Bellibolt "blooped" and rolled the food in with its long tongue.
Then she picked up a grooming brush and, gently as a breeze, combed the dust from fur and hide. Even Garchomp, fierce façade and all, half-closed her eyes under Liko's soft hands, rumbling with contentment.
In contrast to Liko's quiet kindness—Nemona was the same inexhaustible bundle of fighty energy as ever. Bento polished off, stamina restored, her battle itch flared again. She didn't challenge Jason for once—it was rest time—but that didn't mean she could sit still.
Her eyes roved the clearing and locked on a perfect target—Cynthia's Garchomp.
She jogged over to where Garchomp lay feigning sleep. "Garchomp," she said in her best challenger tone, "arm wrestle."
One eye cracked open—you again? Unimpressed. Nemona plopped down and planted her elbow on a flat rock.
Garchomp stared. Eventually, under Nemona's relentless "audio spam," she heaved herself up, touched scythe to slender human hand—and held back hard enough not to cut or crush.
The result was never in doubt. Nemona strained till her sunny face went tomato red; Garchomp didn't even change posture—just pressed down, thunk, and pinned her. Nemona puffed her cheeks, rubbing her wrist, muttering "again."
Jason sighed.
As everyone enjoyed a sliver of peace their own way, Cynthia finally moved. Most of the time since they'd entered, her gaze had drifted to Jason—now happily eating unagi don. Since it got dangerous down here, Liko had basically carried Jason nonstop—Cynthia hadn't had a chance to rua the jelly in too long. Her hands itched.
But she couldn't exactly tug-of-war a Ditto out of a girl's arms—so she picked her moment.
Graceful steps brought her to Jason's side. Before he could react, she scooped up the Ditto—and his bowl.
"Hey—wait! Sis Cynthia—what are you doing? Let me finish!"
She ignored his protest, snipped a sauce-lacquered eel bite, and held it to his mouth. Jason's complaints stopped dead. "Aah—" Chomp. Swallow. Peace.
Seeing him go docile and blissed-out under hand-feeding warmed her mood—though something felt odd. She looked down at the patient jelly waiting with bright eyes for another bite and thought:
How strange… how does a Ditto love human food this much?
While Cynthia fed and enjoyed her rare "pet the Ditto" time, Gast drifted over, curious. Her big red eyes fixed on the eel at Cynthia's chopsticks, then Jason's happy face; her whole body tilted inquisitively.
"Jason," she piped, "is that really so tasty?"
As a Ghost type, Gast had never tried human food. Jason swallowed another bite and sighed contentedly. "Of course—top-tier chef."
"Then… then I want to try." Gast said, hopeful.
Cynthia smiled at the eager ghost. She plucked a golden, fluffy tamagoyaki and held it out. "Here, Gast—try this."
"Ke—!" Gast chirped, opened her gaseous maw and bit.
A second later—like touching a live wire—she jolted. Her usual grin contorted into the most human expression of tasting poison.
"Bleh! Puh—puh—!" She gagged and zipped ten meters back. "What is that flavor?! Sweet and salty and this weird eggy… it's awful!" She shuddered. "Human food really is the strangest thing in the world! Never again!"
She whirled away to the Pokémon chow, hugged an Energy Cube like a comfort toy, and nibbled as if soothing traumatized taste buds.
Cynthia and Jason exchanged a look and laughed. Clearly, Dittos with a taste for human cuisine were a rare breed indeed.
~~~
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