Totem

The mountain range beside Verdanturf Town blocked the road between the two populated areas of Verdanturf and Rustboro.

The indigo ridges resembled the spines of enormous beasts, lying hidden in the clear blue light of dawn.

Above the mountains, a giant Pidgeot circled to the sound of rushing wind.

Terrance clung to Pidgeot, enduring the discomfort of the air currents as he looked down over the entire range.

This is incredible!

It was his first time flying so high, and the exhilaration he felt was easy to imagine.

There was no time to enjoy it. Terrance dared not forget his task, and once Pidgeot slowed a little, he said, "There should be four of them. Look carefully."

Pidgeot had excellent eyesight, so Terrance would have to leave the job of finding them to him.

"Be careful and stay at this altitude."

When trainers rode flying Pokémon in the wild, low-altitude flight was the one thing they had to avoid. If they strayed into another Pokémon's territory, they would be attacked outright, making it extremely dangerous.

Although Terrance was a newcomer just starting out, his essential survival knowledge was far better than that of the average novice trainer!

Time passed bit by bit as Pidgeot and Terrance searched the mountain range carefully from one end to the other. Suddenly, a group of purple figures flashed into view, bringing them to an immediate halt.

"Those are-"

Whismur and Loudred!

Terrance's eyes flickered. It seemed they had found what they were looking for.

"They came this deep into the mountains..."

"Leave them alone. Find the others first." The next moment, Terrance told Pidgeot to go around the group.

His main purpose on this trip was to make sure Tetsuya and the others were safe. As for the truth behind the Rusturf Tunnel incident, he would leave that to the professionals.

"Roar!!!"

"Roar!!!"

"Damn it!"

Terrance didn't want to stir up trouble, but things didn't go his way.

An enormous roar rang out. If Pidgeot hadn't slowed down and steadied himself in time, they might have fallen from the sky!

From high in the air, Terrance looked down and saw a huge creature among the Whismur. The sight of this Pokémon made his pupils contract.

"Is that the leader of the Whismur colony Master Katsumune mentioned, Exploud?"

"That size... it must be at least two meters tall..."

Exploud was like an enormous source of sound, roaring furiously from the ground. Even with his ears covered, Terrance could feel the violent vibrations.

"As expected of the noise Pokémon whose roar can carry ten kilometers. Pidgeot, let's retreat for now."

Terrance frowned, unsure why Exploud was so aggressive. This was bad. Its roar alone could affect the flight of Master Katsumune's Pidgeot, and with its size as well, it was probably more than an ordinary trainer could handle.

If Tetsuya's group had the misfortune to encounter it, along with all those Loudred and Whismur, things would be disastrous.

This Exploud gave Terrance a special feeling, just like when he had seen the ruler of Mt. Chimney, Altaria, Swablu's mother.

It was strong, beyond comparison with ordinary Pokémon.

A Pokémon like this was bound to be one that had come from a colony or a particular region and emerged victorious after countless struggles in a natural world where only the fittest survived. It was exceptional in strength and every other respect.

Ever since the Pokémon League was established, Pokémon like this had given it the greatest headaches. Ordinary trainers were no match for them. Whenever the League wanted to urbanize and populate certain places through a series of development projects, encountering resistance from such Pokémon would make matters extremely troublesome. It often took the gathering of many Ace Trainers or the use of technology to achieve its goals.

By now, however, the cities and towns where humans were mainly concentrated had reached saturation, and the development of the wilderness was no longer given the importance it once had. Many Totem Pokémon had already been defeated or caught by League trainers, or had left their homelands. Powerful Pokémon remaining in the wild had become very rare.

As each region modernized, the strength of wild Pokémon might continue to decline.

Pidgeot and Terrance left in a hurry. The sound Exploud made was sure to carry a long way, and Master Katsumune's group could probably hear it too. The rest was their job.

Meanwhile.

"Did you feel that?" Beside a cave, Tetsuya sensed the vibrations around him and hurriedly spoke up.

The expressions of Sōsa, Koki, and Agaku also grew serious, and they nodded.

"Looks like we have a lead." Tetsuya smiled faintly, a little excited. They had failed to seize their chance when they felt that vibration in the morning, but this time they weren't going to let them get away, no matter what.

"Let's hurry."

The group set off again.

As long as they could find the cause of the incident or resolve the Rusturf Tunnel incident, they could make a name for themselves and become known to nearby trainers. That was an extremely enticing prospect for any trainer who had only recently set out.

If they became famous enough, they might even earn titles of their own...

Trainers with titles enjoyed unimaginable benefits, both among the public and in official circles.

So the group was extremely attentive, earnest, and careful.

About five minutes later-

"Guloo~~~~~~~~~~!!"

"Guloo~~~~~~~~~~!!"

A chorus of piercing cries came from one side of the mountain path, as shrill as a jet engine. Countless voices overlapped, making it easy to imagine a group of creatures crying out together.

"Those are Whismur!!" Tetsuya, the team leader, spoke gravely and seriously, though his tone was somewhat tense now.

Ultimately, they were just a few curious trainers exploring the unknown together. No one could say for certain what would appear or what would happen.

"Come out, Grovyle, and get ready to fight!"

"Persian, you come out too!"

"Roselia-"

"Nincada!!"

In the narrow space, each of the four called out a Pokémon and stared fixedly at the few Whismur that came bouncing out ahead of them.

"Good, there are only a few Whismur. I'll take care of them," Sōsa said.

A trace of disdain flashed in Sōsa's eyes. A weak little Whismur could never stand up to his Persian.

The others also looked at them with contempt... Pokémon like Whismur seemed completely harmless. All they had to do was watch out for their piercing cries and avoid being disturbed.

"All right, finish the battle quickly," Tetsuya said to the others with a nod.

Just then, something made them instinctively look up. Sudden darkness enveloped them as a black shadow flashed across the sky, accompanied by a loud howl of wind.

Then came a youthful voice-

"What a hassle... Beautifly, use Sleep Powder."