It had been about an hour or so when the guttural roars of the scrapheap of a motorbike slowly eased into sputtering growls. Hands easing up on the grips of the handles, Wes coaxed the bike to slow its breakneck pace as the sea of sand beyond was broken by a familiar shape.

Like a ship moored on a bed of coral, a few abandoned train cars stood, the rails that they'd run on long ago swallowed up by the shifting dunes. The winds wore constantly on the rusted, paint-flecked sides of the old train, and a wooden sign dangling from the broken down engine swung back and forth. Before the strange sight were parked an assortment of vehicles in varying conditions- though most of them were rather run down. The sandy-haired rogue finally brought his ride to a halt in front of a rather woebegone gas pump.

This was Outskirt Stand. Many decades prior, the people of Orre attempted to make a way to cross the desert in search of fertile lands on the other side. It did result in finding the oasis that eventually became Phenac, but further past there, it was just sand. Needless to say, railroads did not last long in the shifting sands. The engine that stood abandoned was not the only train to meet this fate in Orre, but it was definitely the most remote. Years later, it was rediscovered and reworked into a watering hole for the various hardy souls who made their homes and their living out past Phenac.

He was a regular here. The owner of this old train engine was a reliable informant of Wes', and in return, he frequented the place whenever he had needed to get away from the frustrations of Snagem.

With a shrill whistle through his teeth, his loyal Pokemon leaped gracefully out of the sidecar, stretching their limbs and arching their backs. He jerked his head towards the stand, and they trotted inside without further instruction.

Minutes later, having filled the tank on his bike and covering it with the tarp he kept in the sidecar, the rogue strolled into the stand himself.

His Espeon and Umbreon were both at the bar, seated on the stools no less, with a bowl of water and Pokemon food in front of each. The owner knew how to treat the two of them. Espeon looked up and greeted his master with a twitch of his forked tail, while the Umbreon merely continued to plow through his meal. Wes slid onto the barstool next to the hungry duo, crossing one ankle over his other thigh. He stretched upwards, his back making a satisfying series of pops before he pushed his shades up onto his forehead.

"Ah, there you are," came a deep, rough voice. A man with burgundy hair tied back under a green do-rag came in from the back room of the small establishment, carrying a rack of freshly washed glasses. "Knew ya couldn't be too far behind these two."

"Marcus." The snagger nodded once in greeting, which the man returned.

"Interesting bit a news ya just missed," Marcus said, a grin in his voice, but his face impassive as he wiped down the bar whilst Wes perused a menu- more out of habit than necessity for the both of them.

"Oh, really?" The young rogue kept his tone mostly indifferent, but a small smirk played across his lips.

"Really. Nearly caused a riot in here," he gestured broadly towards the rest of the makeshift diner. As Wes obliged in a quick glance around the place, it certainly did appear to be in much livelier spirits than usual. One man with shockingly pink-dyed hair raised a mug of beer in the bar's direction, a broad grin on his face.

"'Ey, Marc, how bout ya make everyone's meal on the house today?"

"Just 'cause some schmucks went and got their hideout blown up don't mean I have to stop makin' a livin', Willie," Marcus shot back. Willie shrunk back, mumbling into his mug.

"So how 'bout you, Wes?" the owner turned his attention back onto the rogue, a smirk playing on his face. "Whatcha been up to?"

"Mm, not much, really," Wes said, leaning back on his stool and crossing his arms. "Seems I suddenly have a lot of free time on my hands, though?"

"Issat so?" Marcus replied softly, eyes glancing over the shining metal surface that encased Wes' left arm. He picked up a tray of dirty dishes and started towards the back. "Yer a smart kid, Wes, I'm sure you'll figure out somethin' productive to do."

"Always do, Marc, always do."

Wes' meal arrived shortly and it passed in overall silence. Marcus was one of the few people whom Wes was willing to start a conversation with, but that didn't change his quiet nature. Pleasantries out of the way, and the two didn't have much more to say to each other for the time being.

He preferred it that way, anyway. He wouldn't waste his time on idle small talk, and anything of substance to be discussed definitely didn't merit being discussed while there were extra pairs of ears around.

It wasn't until he heard the sound of an approaching vehicle that his silent lunch was interrupted. Not more than a minute later, the door swung open. From the corner of his eye, Wes immediately could place that fiery atrocity of a hair-do followed by the bizarre beanie of the two that tromped in.

"Shit, I'm starved."

"Well, Boss told us we don't gotta meet him where he had to go. So we got time to pig out 'fore we gotta go back to Phenac."

"Yeah, his 'goods' can wait a bit longer, I reckon!"

Wes surreptitiously slid his left arm towards his opposite side under the guise of itching at a scratch to keep the Snag Machine out of view. Years of being a rogue allowed him the practiced ease of keeping his face completely neutral with his golden eyes trained on his meal while observing them with his peripheral vision.

The two cronies, thankfully, seemed lax- nigh oblivious, actually- guffawing about some joke or another. They didn't so much as glance at Wes as they loudly slouched towards a booth further back in the hollowed train engine. Even if they weren't from Snagem proper, they appeared to be far more at-ease than what should be necessary. If they hadn't heard the news yet about the Snagem Hideout…

"Espeon. Umbreon," he murmured to his companions. The two Pokemon, having long finished with their food, perked their ears up at his quiet call. "Wait for me outside. Don't draw attention."

Without a second of delay, they jumped down from the barstools, Espeon briefly stretching, before the two nudged their way out the door. Despite the ease of their motions, he could tell they were on high alert, and would notify him immediately if the situation turned sour. If any Snagem members showed their faces, he'd make sure to leave a generous trail of sand and exhaust in their faces.

Still, he delayed. He knew better than to draw attention to himself, and finished his greasy, albeit delicious meal at a leisurely pace before slapping a few bills down on the counter. He nodded at Marcus, who returned his silent farewell, and the rogue quietly made his exit.

The first thing he saw was the rusted jeep that he knew belonged to Fireball and Beanie inside. What surprised him, however, was the fact that Espeon was staring at it intently. The lavender Pokemon was unmoving, ears upright, the gem on his forehead glowing slightly.

Glancing back at the diner, Wes carefully made his way closer to the Jeep.

"What's caught your attention so much?"

Espeon's tail flicked, but aside from that, his attention did not waver. Umbreon had joined his comrade, and although his nose twitched, it was clear he was unsure of what had captured the Psychic type's interest so thoroughly.

He crept closer to the vehicle, glancing in and seeing nothing but a bunch of trash littering the front seats. However, the back seat held a different story.

A full sack was nothing new. Knowing their "business deals" with Gonzap, it was likely full of freshly-stolen Pokemon. But would they really just leave their valuable loot unattended like that? They really were idiots.

Wes's piercing eyes widened slightly. He swore he just saw the burlap bag… twitch.

His eyes narrowed. Had those cronies resorted to stealing Pokemon outside of their balls? That seemed even more stupid, a Pokemon could easily claw or bite their way through.

At this thought, he glanced at his Espeon, who was now staring him straight in the eyes. Through a mixture of Synchronize and psychic ability, Wes could clearly see the image that Espeon was imprinting onto his mind.

A figure, completely blank in features, but completely, unmistakably human.

"'EY YOU!"

The sudden noise made him step away from the jeep automatically as he whirled around. Though in a moment of dread, he'd anticipated the owners of the dented car, the person whom had hailed him was instead the absurdly pink-haired rider he'd heard Marcus call 'Willie'.

Relaxing, Wes frowned at the unwanted arrival, who was obliviously grinning as he jogged over to the rogue.

"Saw ya talkin' it up with Marcus earlier. Wanted to get a chance to meetcha. Name's Willie," he spouted with a thick southern drawl as he cheerfully extended his hand. Wes just glanced at it indifferently before returning his gaze to the man's face.

"Aw, c'mon, it's not gonna bite," the rider cajoled, raising his hand enticingly further. "Whatcher name, stranger?"

"I don't have to answer that. Stranger," he replied coolly, crossing his arms.

Willie finally gave up on trying to shake his hand, instead holding both of his up. His grin remained, however.

"Alright, I gotcha, I gotcha. Yer one a them tough guys, huh? Tryna keep up that loner reputation, I understand."

He decided he wasn't all that fond of Willie and his inability to take the broadest of hints.

"Great. Glad we got that figured out," Wes replied before turning to leave.

"Ah, hold yer Ponyta, guy, I ain't finished witcha yet!"

But I certainly am.

"Actually, it was yer Pokemon that gone an' caught my attention. Ain't no way yer gonna just leave me here without a battle, tough guy!"

Wes glanced back over his shoulder at Willie. He looked at Umbreon, who alone looked ready to take on anything. Espeon's look was more along the lines of 'if we must'.

Finally, he relented with a curt nod.

"Great! Just ya wait, yer gonna be wowed by my pair of Zigzagoon!"

He had to be joking.

(~)

Sorry for the wait, things have been rather hectic for me leading up to and since the holidays and new year. Hope it went well for everyone.
The next chapters won't take as long as this one, I was just mentally stuck a bit here. But I am more eager about the next few, so they'll likely be up in just a couple weeks.

Later!

-Akira