It's a picturesque mountainside, actually! Lots of beautiful mountains with people climbing them and creeks and even a river, visible from a cliff with a view reaching on for miles! Well, that's until the sound of a rockslide and people running in terror start filling the air...

Well, the mountains are a nice view, at least, but the screaming immediately gets her attention. Nira immediately starts running in the direction of the screams as fast as she can, stumbling slightly as Aria follows after. She's already doing her best to extend her senses, trying to tell how much momentum the rockslide has gathered and if she can halt it.

Running towards the sounds shows a group of hikers there on the mountainside, trying to somehow escape the incoming rockslide. The rocks have luckily only just started moving; there isn't much momentum behind them, although her powers also let her know that the rockslide has only begun, and far more will start rolling soon.

Alright, this doesn't need a sword. She plants her walking stick against the ground, staring right at the rocks and willing them to stop. Aria crouches by her, the Absol extending her own disaster sense to try and tell if any stray rocks are going to come rolling out of nowhere, or if this is the prelude to some other disaster.

Beyond the slowly growing mass of stones, there are no other disasters that the Absol can feel within the vicinity. The terrified hikers look around and at each other in confusion, wanting to know why the sounds of the rock slide have stopped.

"Keep running!" calls Nira. "I can't hold them back forever!" She's already tapping deeper in, trying to sense the mountain itself and preparing to reshape new grooves into it if necessary. Either that, or if they get away fast enough she can probably bring the rocks down at a slower, safer pace.

The confused hikers start running again, quickly heading off towards a creek near the bottom of the mountain. They herd themselves away from the rocks; they should safely be able to roll down, away from where the hikers are running.

Once the hikers are enough out of the way, Nira slowly starts easing up her hold on the rocks, letting them slide down at a slower pace to collect at the foot of the mountain, in a hopefully more stable formation. She shapes them a little as they land, allowing them to form a steadier formation and lock together, so that the new pile hopefully won't be disturbed as easily.

A few of the hikers turn their eyes to Nira. "Lady, who are you? Where did you appear from?" It's a group consisting of both adults and a fair few children, dressed in fancy and colorful jackets and thick pants.

She manages a smile, now that the crisis is over. "Nira Tyr," she says. "And this is Aria." Now that the crisis is over, Aria has relaxed slightly, moving to lean lightly against Nira's leg. "And, well, I was training in my yard when this weird gold ring appeared under me and I fell here. I heard giggling, but it wasn't like any Pokemon I'd heard before."

"Pokemon? What's that? Is that thing leaning on you one of those?" A few of the adults are walking off, with the rest of them starting to surround Nira, curious to find out where she came from and who she is.

"You...don't know what Pokemon are?" Nira blinks, looking extremely confused. For that matter, she now notices that none of these people have Pokemon with them, or even Pokeballs. "Aria's an Absol, to be precise, one of the many species of Pokemon. They're...pretty much everywhere, in the wild and among humans, depending on their choice."

"Everywhere? I haven't seen a single one of them!" A bitter wind begins blowing. The hikers seem to be completely unfazed. "It'll take a while before the cars arrive to drive us home. Do you want to rest here in the meantime?"

Nira frowns. "There's no way there'd be a place like this without Pokemon that's not also hostile to human life. And it's not possible that you've never seen a Pokemon. Unless...they really don't exist here." She feels a slight shudder run down her spine, but she keeps it hidden.

She blinks. "I'd be fine with waiting, since I didn't bring supplies for staying out in the wilderness," she says. "But I can stand." She's definitely using the walking stick to stay balanced, though. Aria lets out a soft "sol..." but doesn't object yet.

"Well, we were worried that maybe you might be getting cold. But anyway, we'll find someplace to sit down and wait. Is there some kind of music you particularly enjoy?"

"I don't get cold easily, and I can keep myself warm if the wait gets long. As for music...something energetic, like you'd hear at a party." She'll head wherever they're going, since they know the area best. Well, if everyone's going to sit down she'll probably do so, just so it isn't as awkward.

They walk up a fairly steep path, finally ending up at a gravel road by a clearing. They place down some sitting mats, sitting or lying down against the soft grass. One of the adults starts to play a fun electronica song on his phone's speakers, letting everyone enjoy it. Everyone decides to lie down as they wait for the cars to come back. One of the children start talking.

"Your pet looks cool. Where do they come from?"

If there isn't any spare space on a mat, Nira will lean against a tree, but if there's space she'll sit down once most of the other people have sat. She bobs her head a bit to the music, before the kid speaks up.

"Well, she was a gift from my parents. They wanted a Pokemon who could look out for me when I was exploring the mountains, and Absol are very good at sensing potential disasters and danger. So she's been with me most of my life. And if you want to go earlier...I believe she was bred on a ranch...Palmer Breeders, I think it's called? They're one of the more famous Pokemon breeding ranches around."

There unfortunately isn't any space on any of the mats for Nira, although the music is excellent. One of the adults replies to Nira. "I'd know of someplace called Palmer Breeders. I'm quite convinced you have the only pokemon in the world! But if they can sense disasters, that's fantastic. You could save a lot of lives, you know."

Some 20 minutes pass before a trio of cars arrive, there to shuttle Nira and everyone else back. The cars are almost like a hybrid of minivan and bus, flat on the front and with 3 extremely roomy rows of seats. Everyone streams into them, leaving the back row of one car for Nira and Aria.

"We'll drive you to Leakey; we'd have to find a way to repay you, after all."

"The only Pokemon in the world, huh..." Nira reaches out to stroke Aria's back, thoughtfully. "She can't sense disasters that are too far away, unless they're on a large enough scale to cause ripples even from that sort of distance. But I guess I wouldn't object to traveling more to keep people safe, if they need it."

She blinks at how roomy the seats are, but slides into the back easily enough. "What sort of place is that?" she asks, Aria curling up next to her. "And-wow, you don't have Pokemon Centers either, do you? Where do passing Train-travelers usually stay?"

"Well, your power could really help save many lives! We'd hope that you'd use it for helping lots of people, wouldn't we?"

"Leakey is a resort town, mostly. It has a beach where a bunch of fossils used to be found, but now it's just a place for people to enjoy the water. Or the nature areas not too far away from it. It's a bit cold for bathing right now, though."

"We don't know what a train-traveler is? People hiking or camping just use tents, but it sounds like a train-traveler is something different."

"Of course! I'll want to try and contact my family, but while I'm here I can definitely help out!" Aria lifts her head, her brow slightly furrowed, but she doesn't object for now.

"Fossils, huh? You know, there are some Pokemon that have only been found as fossils. Maybe I could take a look to see if any are familiar."

She looks a bit embarrassed. "Ah, I was going to say 'Trainer' at first. It's a term for anyone who trains Pokemon, and they travel a lot. But since you don't have Pokemon, I guess 'traveler' would be the better way to put it. Does the town sell tents, then?"

"I think that'd be unlikely, miss! And all the fossils there are in museums, now. Wouldn't want them hurt by people playing on the beach."

"Well, yeah. It's a normal thing they have at travel-focused tailors."

Eventually, Nira can see a city made of white skyscrapers, seemingly cut from slabs of marble, in the distance.

Well, that's not too strange to her, although she's not sure if it's meant to be thematic considering they don't have Pokemon or Gyms here.

"Still, I'd be interested in taking a look, just to see what sort of fossils you do have. And I'd like to pick up a tent-" She pauses. "Huh. My money is no good here, am I right?" Not that she has much cash on her when she's training, anyways.

"Feel free to look at the fossils. I think they have a free museum now?"

"Oh, and we're quite convinced that your money isn't any good here. Unless you sell it to some coin collectors, of course. But don't worry; we'll take good care of you. You're saving people's lives, of course you shouldn't somehow not have the money you need. And we'll put you on the basic income plan, anyway."

"Yeah, I didn't think you weren't going to compensate me or anything. Just wondering what I should do about immediate purchases. How much is the basic income plan, by the way? I guess...put it in terms of rent and food?"

"Well, very sufficient? If you lived somewhere small and ate something cheap, I think rent and food would be less than half the basic income plan."

The car makes its way towards the densely-packed skyscrapers, revealing huge glass facades looking out on the mountainside behind Nira. It's quite striking how the city just suddenly stops, going from skyscraper to rolling hills.

Well, obviously the mountain view is the best. "I guess we'll see. It'll have to be somewhere both Aria and I like, of course."

She gazes around as she gets a closer look. "You build pretty tall here, huh?"

"Yup! Better views, more space, and it lets everything be closer to everything else."

The car starts slowing down on the streets, driving past a police station before driving into a parking garage.

"You'll have to have a bank account for you to have any money. So, we'll get you a phone and sign you up for a new account at the police station, and then we can talk about what'll come next."

Nira nods thoughtfully. She likes the heights too, although she prefers seeing them directly from the mountaintop.

"Ah-how much does a phone cost, here? I wouldn't want to impose too much on your purses. Also, the police station? Wouldn't it make more sense to go to a bank? Unless we're also making a report about what just happened, and it's just more convenient to do everything there?"

"Ah, a phone is 300 hects, don't worry about it; we're all happy to pay far more than that for saving our lives."

"We're going to the police station because you're getting a basic income plan as well, and the police have the necessary equipment for making sure that you're not defrauding the welfare system. They'll just take your prints and your eye scan, don't worry about it."

The man speaking to Nira makes his way into the police station, explaining that someone needs a new basic income account.

It still feels a little weird to be getting paid for saving lives, but for now she's not going to argue. She enters the station after him, Aria trotting along beside her.

"Yeah, that's me," she says, waving a hand at whoever seems in charge of this part.

There's a tall man sitting behind a counter as Nira walks in. "Yup, just come over. It'll take just a few minutes."

He points at a machine consisting of two white squares, with hand-shaped patterns engraved on them, together with a camera placed on a cable.

"Just put your hands on the squares, and I'll use this camera for the retina scan, and we'll start sending you the money immediately, understand? You'll want a phone for actually accessing it, though."

"Yeah, that's up next." She leans her walking stick against the side of the machine or a nearby wall, whichever is more convenient, before leaning forward to place her hands down on the squares, peering into the camera.

The side of the machine works well as a place for placing her walking stick. Nira doesn't feel anything, before the man who was just talking to her nods. "That's everything ready, really. Because you don't have a phone, I'll give you the card with the account number and private key. The private key gives total and absolute control over your account. Please don't lose it?" The card has some kind of special film, that makes it impossible to read anything from it unless you're looking directly at it.

Nira takes the card, tilting it slightly to study the film. "Of course not," she says, frowning a bit as she realizes she doesn't have her bag on hand. Eventually, she just has to slide it into one of her jean pockets.

"Remind me to take that out, okay?" she asks Aria. The Absol nods solemnly, nudging against her leg as she takes her walking stick back up. "And...do we need to make a report about what happened out there?" She brought it up, but didn't get a concrete answer as to whether they were doing that or not.

"Well, not really. I think the local branch of the Insurance Institute Rescue Team will interview people and make all the relevant reports. It's considered good form to talk to them, but unless you, like, used your magical powers to stop the disaster, they don't need to talk to everyone involved."

"..and, um, if that's exactly what I did?"

"Then they really really really want to hear that! Their whole job is to stop people dying in accidents or natural disasters, so if you did something that had a big impact, they'd want to hear about what you did and if you could do something that would help going forward." The officer seems like he's only amusing Nira, as opposed to taking her seriously.

"...how would I get in contact with them, exactly?" She supposes it's natural for them to not believe her, if she's actually the only Elementalist here, but it still feels weird, emotionally.

"Once you've got a phone, you can easily find their number and let them know that you were a witness to the most recent possibly fatal natural disaster and have important information for them to know. They tend to bend over backwards to make room for anyone wanting an interview, and are extremely flexible in terms of scheduling."

She nods. "I guess the next step is getting a phone then?" she asks the person who escorted her here in the first place.

"Yes, that's fully correct. The nearest phone shop is just a short walk away, just head over, look around, and find something that fits well in your hand. They're basically all the same these days, really."

"Yeah, got it." She heads out, Aria still trotting after, and looks for the phone shop. While she's at it, she'll also check out what other kinds of stores or businesses are nearby.

It doesn't take particularly long to find a store selling phones; the phones come in a wide range of sizes, with an all-screen design on the front. The phones seem to be grouped by store size, with the larger options nearer the entrance and screens getting smaller as you get further away. They all use an impressively light, yet incredibly strong-feeling and rigid plastic. They are available with special back covers designed to produce all kinds of sensory textures; silk, wood, soft rubber and glass are just a few of the textures available.

Beyond that, there are various kinds of clothing stores. Some sell dresses, other formal clothes, still others athletic wear, and there's even a store dedicated to selling fursuits and all kinds of costumes. There's enough divers around to support a store dedicated to selling diving supplies, including custom-fit wetsuits and drysuits.

Finally, there's also a wide array of charming cafes. They all compete to have the most charming and inviting interiors possible, with thickly padded armchairs and bookshelves that help create a warm and inviting atmosphere. Quite frequently a robot makes its way through a catflap in the doors into the cafes, bringing outside food to patrons using their tablets with their kickstands, chatting with friends or enjoying boardgames.

Aria starts a little when one of the robots first emerges, barking a greeting at it and then tilting her head in confusion when it doesn't respond. Still, what's important right now is getting an actual phone. She looks through the various covers, trying out the various sensory ones. Is there a stone one?

There are several covers with a stone texture! Granite, limestone, sandstone, and even more kinds of stone.

She'll pick one that's slightly bumpy but not gritty. Size-wise she looks for one that fits comfortably in one hand.

"So I've got a bank account card, and I need to put it on my phone," she comments as she brings it to the counter.

"Bank account cards don't come with the NFC chip to let you just push them against the phone, so you have to enter them manually into your Singleton-card." He scans Nira's phone at the register before tapping a few buttons on it and opening what looks like a terminal window.

 "So, you write in the account number, and then the private key. And now your card is on the phone, so you should be able to pay because your card is on the phone." He guides her through paying for the phone using a terminal program on it. "And then, you should probably start the full setup process. Phones here have to be set up from scratch, to ensure they're as up to date as possible from day one." He explains how to write the short command that installs a non-terminal user interface for Nira's phone.

Nira can follow along with most of that, thanking the clerk as she follows along with the instructions before installing the interface. What does it look like?

It looks like a quite generic phone screen, with the wallpaper being a very simple and slightly mesmerizing image of a fiber optic cable glowing blue. There's a web browser, a notes app, a camera app, an app for holding various cards called Singleton, a searching app, a map, a timer and clock app, and a calendar app. All the different apps feature an extreme amount of options, and are controlled by a huge panel of buttons; scrolling down after opening the apps shows a bunch of buttons taking up most of the phone, to control app settings.

You can also turn on a special "Mode 2" in the apps that turn them ultra-minimalist, requiring to you learn gestures to use the apps instead of having tons of buttons.