During his [[Knuckles' World Tour of Mobius|journey back to the Floating Island, Knuckles the Echidna found himself crossing the Great Mobian Prairie with his heavy chest of documents. Unfortunately, stepping into the Zone co-incided with a massive Apterix stampede, with Knuckles only just escaping under a boulder in time. Unfortunately, local wrangler Chito blamed the assault on Rooster's life on Knuckles, dragging him to Backwater on a pterodactyl.