"Pidgeot, thank you. Go back to rest for now."
Ethan Black smiled slightly at the Pidgeot beside him, then took out the Poké Ball that President Beckett had given him and returned it.
"Alright, everyone, come out!"
After withdrawing Pidgeot, Ethan Black released his other five Pokémon.
This time, his main goal in coming to this desert was to have his Cacnea complete its evolution.
His destination was several oases in the middle of the desert, where large stretches of cacti formed an environment filled with Grass-type energy—the place Ethan Black considered most suitable for Cacnea's evolution.
In addition to evolving Cacnea, Ethan Black also wanted to try crossing the desert on his own to reach the center.
This desert was an artificial experimental field created by the Pokémon Researchers Guild, and it also housed numerous Pokémon raised by humans. However, these Pokémon did not show much hostility toward people.
Therefore, the most dangerous thing wasn't the Pokémon, but the harsh desert environment, which gave him a certain sense of safety.
And if danger really arose, he still had Pidgeot as his trump card. The Pidgeot from the central headquarters of the Pokémon Researchers Guild were extremely powerful, and rescuing him from there would be an easy task for them.
"Sha sha sha!"
"Cac cac cac!"
"Sheell sheell sheell!"
"Zzzt zzzt zzzt!"
"Shuck!"
Hearing him, his five Pokémon each responded in their own way, showing that they were ready.
Ethan Black nodded, carried Shellder in his arms, let Shuckle settle on his shoulder, and asked Sandslash, Cacnea, and Meltan to follow him. Thus he began venturing into the desert, heading toward the cactus oasis at the center.
"Whew, even if it's just a small artificial desert, it's still huge!"
After walking for half an hour, Ethan Black was panting slightly. Walking on sand was much more exhausting than on other terrain.
"Looks like if I want to cross a desert, I'll have to catch a Pokémon to ride."
He thought with a bit of regret, since the Steelix he had seen wouldn't obey him. If it had, riding it through the desert would have been delightful.
"Come on, guys, we shouldn't be far from the oasis."
He took a deep breath, stretched a little, and encouraged his Pokémon.
Fuuuu~
As he spoke, a strong wind rose in the distance and swept toward them.
"There are even sandstorms?"
"This artificial desert of the guild is way too realistic..."
Ethan Black was surprised, although this sandstorm wasn't as strong as the one his Sandslash could produce, so he wasn't too worried.
When the cloud of sand was about to reach him, Shellder's Overcoat ability activated, suppressing the sand and preventing it from causing harm.
Surrounded by the protective halo of the ability, Ethan Black looked around: all he could see was a sea of swirling sand, with nothing else in sight.
"The Overcoat ability is very useful, but it only blocks the damage."
"According to the books, Safety Goggles not only prevent damage, but also allow clear vision even in sandstorms."
"If I could get a pair, it would be ideal..."
But those goggles were manufactured using the Overcoat ability, and there was no known way to produce them in the real world. The few that existed came from Secret Kingdoms and were mostly damaged and unusable.
Not even the central headquarters of the Pokémon Researchers Guild had a pair.
"Forget it, better to rely on my Pokémon."
"Sandslash, find the way and we'll keep going."
Sandslash nodded, scanned the terrain, and pointed in a direction, guiding them against the wind toward the oasis.
Shortly after, Ethan Black noticed that the storm was fading until it completely disappeared.
"That quickly?"
"Could it have been caused by a Pokémon?"
He looked toward the direction the storm had come from, intrigued.
Then, in the distance, he saw a sand tornado rising, spinning violently.
"Could it be a Pokémon?"
He gripped Pidgeot's Poké Ball in his hand and approached cautiously with his companions.
In half a minute he reached the tornado, which was whirling furiously, raising so much sand that it had left a crater in the ground.
"What kind of Pokémon...?"
From the strength of the tornado, it didn't seem like a particularly powerful Pokémon, but maintaining it spinning for three minutes showed great control.
Boom!
The tornado suddenly exploded, dropping a rain of yellow sand that covered the sky.
"Cough, cough, cough!"
Even though he was protected by Shellder, Ethan Black instinctively covered his head and coughed.
"Whew... that was dangerous."
He sighed with relief and looked toward the place where the tornado had originated.
"That is..."
Amid the sand, an orange figure appeared: a round head, enormous jaws, and a hard shell. It was the initial form of Flygon: Trapinch.
"A Trapinch!"
Ethan Black's eyes sparkled. Earlier, while flying over the desert with Pidgeot, he had thought about catching a Flygon... and now, right before him, was the chance.
(End of chapter)