Ash's Story (Part 5: Modern Sinnoh)

Chapter 50: Factory Calculation

The northern part of Route 210 did not look like a road at first. It looked like the mountain had swallowed the path and left only white fog behind.

The fog did not only hide the trees. It muffled them. Even the sound of our shoes against the wet stones came back strange, like the route was answering from the wrong direction. After the Summer Academy spirit lesson, none of us liked sounds that did not behave normally.

The Psyduck were gone, the Old Charm was safe in my bag, and Celestic Town waited somewhere ahead, but none of that helped when the fog thickened around our feet. Even Pikachu's ears vanished into the mist whenever he jumped from one stone to another.

Dawn held Lopunny's paw carefully while Swinub sniffed the ground with stubborn confidence.

"Can Swinub find the path through this?" Dawn asked.

Swinub sneezed into the fog, then shook its head.

Swinub's meaning came bluntly. "Fog has no smell. Mud has too many."

"That is honest," Daniel said. "Not encouraging, but honest."

Lillie took out her badge case and looked at the Fen Badge. The badge had opened more than Wake's Gym victory. It had also made a hidden move truly usable outside battle.

"We have the field permission now," Lillie said. "This is exactly what Defog is for."

I nodded and sent out Staravia. She landed on a wet branch, feathers already damp from the fog, but her eyes stayed sharp.

"Staravia, can you clear the path for us?" I asked.

Staravia spread her wings and looked into the white air. For a moment, the fog swallowed even her outline. Then her meaning came steady through the mist.

"I see wind where eyes cannot see road."

"Then use Defog," I called.

Staravia beat her wings in a controlled rhythm. The fog did not vanish all at once. It loosened, pulled apart in layers, and drifted away from the road like curtains being pushed open. Stones, trees, and the safe path appeared one piece at a time.

The Rotom Phone chimed as the route opened ahead.

Move Dex Updated — Ash and Lillie's Shared Sinnoh Record

Defog — Flying type. The user clears fog or other obscuring conditions, making the field easier to see and move through.

Dawn breathed out in relief.

"Now I understand why Wake mentioned it," Dawn said. "It is not just convenient. It is safety."

Tox nodded immediately, already watching the road.

"Visibility is a medical issue," Tox said. "Falls, wrong turns, and panic all increase when people cannot see."

Pikachu hopped onto a newly visible stone and shook mist from his fur.

Pikachu's meaning came pleased. "Fog hid the road. Staravia told it to move."

Staravia lifted her head proudly, then flew low ahead of us to keep the path clear. We followed the opened road carefully, and for a while Celestic felt closer.

The cleared path revealed why trying to force through without Defog would have been foolish. One side of the road dropped into a shallow ravine hidden by pale grass, while another turn crossed slick stone steps with no railing. In thick fog, even a careful trainer could have walked straight off the safer line.

Drifblim floated ahead for a moment, large enough now to act as a marker when the fog tried to curl back over the stones. Gallade walked near Lillie, blade arms low and ready to cut away fallen branches if the road narrowed again. Staravia kept clearing the air in shorter bursts, not wasting strength once the main wall of fog was gone.