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"Hey, Uncle Ingo? How much further until we get to… wherever it is you're taking us?" Akari asked for what felt like the millionth time that day as she and Ingo trekked uphill through the Coronet Highlands.
Ingo turned to face her, holding onto his cap so as to not lose it to a strong gust of wind passing them by. "Do not fret, Akari. We are very close to reaching our destination. The tracks lead on just a little bit further up into the highlands. I can confidently assure you that we are nearly there."
Akari gave him a quizzical look, but otherwise continued following the Subway Master up the oddly familiar route. "If you say so."
Prior to their impromptu hiking trip, Arceus's chosen had been hard at work filling out several Pokédex entries that she neglected to take care of the previous day. To put it simply, Akari had been too exhausted to carry on with her duties and, by Cyllene's orders, now had to pay the price for her negligence in the form of paperwork (OH THE HORROR!). In her defense, though, it had taken all afternoon and part way into the evening for her to finally catch a single damned Magnemite after hours, LITERAL HOURS, of scouring the mountainsides for one. Why there were only Magnezones floating around the mountains and not their base evolutions, she had no clue.
But really, she didn't care anymore.
That version-exclusive bullshit was, well, bullshit, and she wasn't going to catch any more Magnemites from here on out. Fuck that. She'd take catching Cherubis and Cherrims any day over Magnemites.
Needless to say, Akari had been quite busy this morning, filling out as many entries in the nearly-completed Pokédex as she could. It was boring, tedious, exhausting work, but she was so close to finally getting home! There were only a dozen or so empty entries left, and after everything she'd been through: Quelling the nobles, un-frenzying the literal Gods of Space and Time, and whooping Volo's sorry ass, she just wanted to go home, hug her mom, grab a tub of ice cream, lie in bed, and do nothing but binge watch her favorite shows for an entire month.
As long as she didn't have to walk anywhere far, any activity would have sufficed, really.
So, when Ingo had unexpectedly arrived at her quarters, looking a little more scratched up and dirtied than he usually did, much to Akari's concern, she all but jumped at his offer to leave for the highlands despite her exhaustion from her previous expedition.
Anything to get away from doing more tedious paperwork. It could wait another day, damn it!
Apparently, Ingo had something important to show her. What it was, he wouldn't say, and that fact annoyed Akari to no end, especially since she could tell he was doing it entirely on purpose. Still, she trusted her honorary uncle's judgment, so she kept her complaints to a minimum during the course of their hike. Her legs were still sore from walking all day yesterday, but even so, she soldiered on, spurned by her growing curiosity.
Eventually, after traipsing through several dirt roads that lead up to the mountains, the duo finally reached their destination. Instantly, Akari recognized it as…
"Is that… Lady Sneasler's cave?" Akari asked, grounding to a halt while Ingo proceeded onwards towards his liege, who was seated directly in front of the cave's entrance along with a few of her kits and chirped happily as her warden approached. "What are we doing here? Not that I'm complaining or anything."
Ingo stopped and turned to face her. Akari could see the faintest hint of a grin on his normally expressionless face. "You'll see."
The elder Subway Master resumed his approach while Akari lagged behind, both impressed and annoyed at his cheeky behavior. It was starting to become routine now. Maybe helping him remember his brother Emmet was a mistake after all?
Nah, who was she kidding? She liked Ingo just the way he was, even if he had gotten sassier recently.
"Greetings, my Lady. I have returned with young Akari in tow." Lady Sneasler let out a purr as her two favorite humans stood before her. Her kits mimicked her chirping and started encircling the duo, begging them for headpats and neck scritches, which they were all given in full by Akari while Ingo attended to his Lady. "I trust that our unruly passenger is still in the cave?"
"Snea!"
The highland Noble, with a less than pleased expression, pointed deeper into the cave, the hackles on the back of her neck standing on end at whatever or whoever was inside her den. Akari stopped petting one of the Sneaslets (much to its disappointment) and followed the direction of her extended claw.
"Passenger?" Akari felt even more confused than she already was. She turned to Ingo. "Ingo, did you kidnap someone and now I have to help you get rid of the body? Is that what all this is all about? Because there's definitely easier ways to do it than asking a teenage girl for help.”
Ingo shook his head. “Of course not! I would not stoop to that level so easily.” He defended, adding, “Besides, that line of action would belong more to Emmet than it would to me. Out of the two of us, he has always been the more trigger-happy twin. You should have seen him when Team Plasma attempted to hijack the Gear Station. I still have the camera footage saved on my personal desktop.”
“Ooookay. So, what’s the deal, then?” Akari asked.
“In favor of an immediate explanation, I believe it would be best if you see for yourself.” Ingo gestured towards the cave. "After all, 'Seeing is believing,' as the phrase goes."
Seeing little reason not to go with Ingo at this point, Akari nodded.
“Alright. Lead the way, then.”
“Gladly.” Ingo stood up straight and struck his signature pose. “All aboard!”
The two skyfallers descended into Lady Sneasler’s nesting grounds, with the warden uttering a quick request for the Noble to keep watch over them while they attended to their business, to which she and her kits simultaneously chirped in affirmation. As they ventured into the cave, avoiding piles of berry stems and Sneaslet droppings as they walked, Akari felt herself growing uneasy. Just what exactly had happened to Ingo this morning, and why would he go through all this trouble to bring her here? It had to have been something big. That much was obvious. But what it was, Akari had almost no clue.
As it turned out, however, the truth was more surprising than she could have possibly imagined, for as they rounded the last corner of Lady Sneasler’s den, Akari was met with a sight that she would never forget for the rest of her life.
“What the… VOLO?!”
Akari could hardly believe her eyes. Lying against the back wall was none other than the manipulative prick that got her stranded in the past in the first place: Volo. His arms and legs were tightly bound with a suspiciously green-colored rope that she swore she’d seen before. A thick gag made of the same green material was also coiled around his mouth to keep him from speaking, and his once immaculate outfit was lined with dirt and other unidentifiable grime. Akari recognized some of the stains, many of which more than likely came from the young Sneaslets (if the smell was any indication) while others came from the assortment of bruises and welts spread across his skin, including his swollen right eye, but she didn’t feel sorry about him in the slightest.
Volo obviously got what he deserved.
The ace survey member’s hands instinctively went to the six Pokéballs around her waist, but upon seeing that Volo didn’t have his own team with him, she allowed her hands to loosely fall back to her sides. Still, she kept her guard up, just in case.
As soon as they entered, Volo’s eyes immediately snapped over to Ingo with a vengeance. The merchant-turned-cultist gnashed his teeth against the gag in his mouth before unsuccessfully attempting to free himself from his binds, shouting what could only have been muffled curses as he did so. His glare only intensified as Akari cautiously stepped forward, staring down at the megalomaniac with a displeased expression.
“What the hell is he doing here?!” Akari shouted, turning to Indo and demanding answers.
“Allow me to explain.” Ingo grabbed the tip of his weather cap before turning towards his honorary niece, “Earlier this morning, while I was carrying out my daily safety check around the mountains, Volo made an attempt on my life.”
“He did WHAT?! ” Akari screamed, her voice echoing off the cave walls. “Is that why you look more beat up than usual?”
Ingo remained unperturbed by her shouting, and simply nodded. “Indeed. He and his team saw fit to ambush me on my way through the Celestica Ruins. From what I gathered, he intended to use me as a hostage in order to draw you out, no doubt so he could steal those plates that you’ve been carrying all this time.”
“Um, actually, I don’t really have them anymore.” Akari shyly admitted, shooting an angry glare at Volo before pulling out the Azure Flute from her satchel. “They all sort of fused together into this flute that’s supposed to summon Arceus.”
“Is that so?” Akari nodded. “Well, I suppose it makes no difference. He would have carried out his cruel intentions regardless of which items you had mixed in with your luggage.” Ingo reasoned. “In any case, my team and I were able to successfully defeat Volo. Quite easily, I might add.” He glanced over at his captive, who looked ready to strangle him in a heartbeat. “For someone who commands such powerful Pokemon, his strategies and tactics are quite poor. It was… disappointing to say the least.”
“Yeah. Disappointing. Like Volo.” Akari taunted. She made no attempt to hide her smug grin as Volo screamed even more muted curses and names. He couldn’t do shit to stop her, either, which only encouraged her further. “And I’m guessing you brought him here for… something?” Akari paused. “Come to think of it, why is he here at all? Aren’t you going to take him to the Pearl Clan? Y’know, since he attacked you and everything?”
Ingo paused for a moment before answering her. “To answer the first question, immediately after our battle, I had Tangrowth ensnare him and bring him to Lady Sneasler’s cave. There was no sense in leaving him to his own devices. He’s caused enough grief as it is. Additionally, I had Alakazam scatter his Pokemon across the region. I would rather avoid another confrontation with them if at all possible.”
Ah, so that was why those ropes looked so familiar. And why Volo had no Pokemon on his person. Good to know.
“Oooooh, okay! I get it now!” Akari said, lighting up in realization before growing confused once again. “But… What does any of this have to do with me? You are taking him back to Irida, right?”
“Of course.” Ingo replied, straightening his posture and glaring down at his equally resentful captive. “Not only did he attack a warden with the express purpose of doing harm, but his actions have brought untold chaos across Hisui and other dimensions. It is only proper that he faces punishment for his crimes.”
“So where do I come into all of this?” Akari asked.
“Well,” Ingo tipped his cap so it covered his eyes, but Akari could see the grin starting to form on his face, “before he is sent off to face the clan elders, and before our time in Hisui ends, I figured that you would like a chance to, as Emmet often puts it, ‘Whoop his ass so hard that he can’t sit down for a whole week’. While I normally do not condone violence, after all the unnecessary grief you’ve been through these past months, it seems only fair that you enjoy yourself for once.”
After several moments, all the pieces suddenly clicked in Akari’s mind, and she let out an appropriate gasp of joy that she didn’t know she had been holding in. “You mean I get to--!”
“Yes, that’s right, Akari.” Ingo replied. “Before he faces punishment, I am letting you beat up Volo first. Think of it as a reward for all you’ve done for Hisui and its people.”
“You mean it?! I can finally kick his ass after all this time?!” Ingo nodded. Akari let out an overjoyed squeal before rushing over and hugging her uncle, who chuckled at her childlike glee. “Thank you so much, Ingo! Thank you thank you thank you thank you!”
“Think nothing of it, Akari.”
"Hey, you wanna beat him up together? You've got beef with him, too, right?"
"Hmm, tempting, but I believe I'll pass. I've already had my fill." Ingo shook his right hand to loosen it up.
"More ass-kicking for me, then!" Akari cheered. She’d been dreaming of this moment since she’d beaten him at the Temple of Sinnoh, and now her wish was finally coming true!
Volo, meanwhile, had started to sweat profusely upon realizing how well and truly fucked he was about to be. Akari in particular had taken on the appearance of an alpha in his eyes as she released Ingo from her hold and approached him, complete with the glowing red eyes and menacing theme. He tried to flee out of sheer survival instinct, but only ended up falling face first onto the cold stone floor.
“Oh, wait! I almost forgot something important!”
Akari stopped midway and turned back to Ingo. She pulled out her Arc Phone from her satchel and quickly pulled up the camera app before holding it out for him to take.
“Can you record this for me? I wanna remember this moment and show it to everyone back home!” Akari asked.
Ingo stared at the device curiously before taking it. “As long as you don’t show it to your mother. If she does see it, though, you’re on your own. Not even I would dare to battle someone so innately powerful.”
Akari laughed as she smiled at him. "Could you be any cooler of an uncle?"
"You mean to tell me that operating a train is not cool enough for you?" Ingo questioned with a fake gasp of disbelief, clutching a hand to his chest for added dramatic flair. "You wound me deeply, Akari!"
"Well, you could always let me pilot one when we get back home!” Akari chipperly suggested, clasping her hands together and giving Ingo the old puppy eyes routine. “Pretty pleeeeease?”
“That is an excellent try, Akari, but I’m afraid I cannot in good conscience allow a fifteen year old child unrestricted control of the subway trains. Even if I am your honorary uncle.” Ingo firmly refused.
“Phooey.” Akari pouted before turning her attention back to Volo. Ingo could see the gears start turning in her head. “Can I at least kick Volo in the dick, then? I’ve wanted to do that ever since he tried to kill me.”
Ingo thought about it for a moment before finally responding.
“Only once. I would rather we not disrupt the timeline any further than we possibly have.”
That was all the confirmation Akari needed. Grinning, she turned towards a heavily-sweating Volo, taking a moment to appreciate the terror in his eyes before enacting her long awaited revenge on the asshole who trapped her and Ingo in the past. She charged right up to Volo, raised her right foot as far back as she could, and let her momentum do the rest of the work.
It was the single most satisfying kick in her entire life, she decided.
(Elsewhere, more than three hundred years into the future, a certain former Champion of Sinnoh felt a wave of unexplainable dread and terror that she could not explain at all. She decided to go to bed early that day, believing that she was simply more tired than she thought.)
Irida wasn’t quite sure how to feel as she watched Lady Sneasler empty an absolutely bloodied and beaten Volo from her basket while Akari and Ingo stood close by, the former looking quite pleased for some reason while the latter was as stone-faced as ever.
On the one hand, she understood that Volo absolutely deserved whatever had happened to him. Through his actions, he had sullied not only almighty Palkia’s gifts, but those of its brother Dialga as well. That in itself would be enough for the village elders to condemn him to the life of a criminal and a traitor. On the other hand, though, she was more than a little concerned that someone as young as Akari looked so satisfied with his condition, almost as if she were entirely responsible for it in the first place.
In the end, though, as two of her clansmen carried Volo off to the medical tent, she decided to let her concerns be. She'd already dealt with more than enough chaos to last a lifetime.
She did need any more right now.