The azure sky cleared of clouds, which wound toward the morning sun like a leisurely river.
Cracks crisscrossed the barren yellow plains, densely covering the ground.
Beige mounds rose one after another, stretching as far as the eye could see.
Yet a closer look revealed a murky yellow river hidden within this wilderness, its surface calm and seamless.
Plop, plop, plop... Suddenly, bubbles rose across the once-calm river, as though it had begun to boil.
With a pop, one yellow bubble swelled, then abruptly burst when it reached its limit.
"Kee~~"
With a shrill cry, a loach-like Pokémon with blue fins and a gray body flashed into view before diving back into the murky current.
Moments later, bubbles burst in succession, and countless peculiar heads poked above the river's surface. They had blue whiskers and tiny black eyes, their mouths were hard to make out, and black "WW"-shaped markings ran along their bodies.
Almost in unison, they swayed their heads, communicating as though humming.
Countless pairs of tiny black eyes fixed on a black-and-white police car speeding toward them.
The vibrations in the ground traveled into the water, where the sensors on their bodies picked them up clearly.
Inside the police car, Chinami glanced sideways. "What are those? There are Water-type Pokémon even in a place like this?"
Generally speaking, Pokémon with bluish coloring tended to be Water-types. Although judging types by color was hardly scientific, the method had its merits.
"Barboach. Dual Ground- and Water-type Pokémon."
Dian glanced at the cracks across the plains. "Looks like we're on the right track. It's somewhere nearby."
The place where Trapinch gathered to undergo their winged rebirth was a canyon forest with clear waters and verdant mountains.
Although Dian couldn't pinpoint its exact location, he was certain from the surroundings that schools