About voltaic cells and why 2 batteries won't short together
Current travels in a loop.  Voltage is the potential to provide current with some current loop.
When we refer to a &quot;short or short circuit&quot;, that means a shunted voltage with a very low resistance connction that forces all the current to return to the battery in that loop.
It does not mean as you have shown in your image, a &quot;short-distance connection&quot; which is just in series between two batteries while there is no current flowing in a loop.