As Ken and Fennekin continued down Route 52 toward Pewter City another GS Transport truck was having a better go of it on elsewhere in Kanto. Truck #9 was headed northbound toward Cerulean City on I-Route 5 with driver Peter Biltmore at the wheel. The two secret cases heading for Pallet Town he picked up earlier sat alongside Peter's seat. The 750 Eeveeliner's hood ornament, a miniature metal Eevee posed like it was executing a quick attack, glistened in the sun.

Peter typically did not drive with any of his Pokémon out of their balls but today he was making an exception, deploying his Watchog to ride in the passenger seat on lookout duty for trouble. With a cargo this important he was taking no chances. A high definition dash cam had also been installed in the cab to record this trip. He reached for the radio as the truck reached its secondary destination, a dairy farm surrounded by fields filled with Miltanks.

"This is Squirtle 1 to dispatch, I'm down on the farm," Peter said. "I should be back on the road in about an hour to 90 minutes. I'll check in again on departure. Over."

"Roger, Squirtle 1," the dispatcher replied. "I've got Growlithe 2, Pidgey 4, and Abra 1 northbound out of Vermilion on a similar route. If there's any issue let me know and we'll reroute another truck."

"10-4," Peter replied as he turned his truck onto the farm's property.

Peter Biltmore was perhaps one of GS's best drivers and more undisputedly the best Pokémon trainer the company had. While Mack required every driver keep Pokémon for safety Peter was one of the many drivers who fell into the category of having already been an ace trainer before he started driving for the company. "Built Tough Biltmore," as he was nicknamed, was a borderline legend among Kanto truckers because of it and he had the hardware to prove it, being the only driver in the region with a Pokémon League conference win under his belt. It was years ago, but it was an achievement one never forgets.

Peter was a native of Saffron City and started training Pokemon at age 10 when he travelled to Pallet Town and received his starter, a Squirtle, from Professor Oak. In his early days he lived the dream of every trainer as he travelled through Kanto collecting gym badges before taking a shot at the Pokémon League at Indigo Plateau. His first attempt saw him fail to get out of the qualifying rounds but he didn't quit.

After the tournament young Peter and his Blastoise headed for Unova trying to find some aces in the hole and they did, capturing an Oshawott amongst others and leveling up his Pokemon by battling and challenging its gym leaders. Packing a powerful team now headed up by Blastoise and a fully-evolved Samurott he made it to the Round of 16 at the Unova League before returning to Kanto for another run at the Indigo Plateau Conference.

At the time Kanto trainers typically focused exclusively on Kanto Pokémon out of regional pride. His team featuring a powerful mixed region lineup bucked the trend and trainers who had never heard of a Samurott or a Zebstrika had a hard time defending against them. It allowed him to pull some powerful upsets as he won the league in his second attempt and picked up the nickname "Built Tough Biltmore" in the process. The victory earned him a chance to take a shot at the Elite Four but his luck ran out there. While he bested the first two members Agatha and her ghosts shut him down and he never got a shot at Lance or the reigning champion.

While Peter continued to focus on training hard, he was never able to replicate that early success. He landed endorsements and used the money to travel but while he turned in some impressive runs, finishing runner-up in Sinnoh and making it to the semifinals in Johto and Kalos, a second league victory always eluded him. In Kanto "Built Tough Biltmore" slowly became "Gets Beat Biltmore" after he got upset in early rounds three years in a row and his endorsement deals dried up.

While he recovered to place in the quarterfinals of a later tournament it was apparent that if he wanted to keep travelling and training he needed a more steady income. He went back and finished school but he didn't have to wait long after graduation for a new opportunity to arise when Mack called him up. He jumped at being able to keep traveling and he hit the road in his early 20s once he was properly trained to handle a truck. He proved apt behind the wheel and his "Built Tough" image started to return after he successfully foiled an attempt by Team Magma to hijack his truck while he was hauling a load of Max Elixir in Hoenn.

Peter became one of GS's top haul masters and now frequently got the call when the company needed to move valuable loads. For the past four months he'd been driving in Kalos and his reputation preceded him enough Team Flare never made any attempt on his truck. His skill in both trucking and training made Peter a very confident driver, but his lack of any serious challenge of late was starting to make him complacent.

This Cerulean City dairy farm was a newer one in the but with demand on the rise for Miltank dairy products of all types several had started to pop up in Kanto in recent years. This was Peter's first time carrying a cargo from this farm. The tanker his truck carried was refrigerated and Miltank milk was more stable than that of some other species, it would easily hold for the haul over Mt. Moon to Pallet Town where it would be made into cheese tomorrow once he dropped it off. With a hiss from the brakes Peter pulled in then backed his truck into the loading area.

"Watchog, guard those cases," Peter said. "If anyone so much as looks at them you let me know."

"Watchog," it replied.

Two farmhands, one male and one female, greeted Peter as they prepared to load the truck. Both wore typical farm clothing although it didn't have much dust on it. A Purrloin accompanied them.

"Howdy partner, my name is Robert and this is my partner Ellee," said the male. "Welcome to the Refresh Family Dairy Farm."

"Good to be here," Peter said. "Are you the titular Mr. Refresh?"

"I'm afraid not, he's going into town to get some supplies," Robert replied. "We'll hook you up and get you back on the road might quick though. We're glad to have you drop by, this here is some high-quality milk and it's always good to see it hit the road. You ever had a glass of it raw?"

"I can't say I have," Peter replied.

"It's mighty fine, really goes down smooth when it's all natural like that," Robert said. "Why I tell you what, I had a great glass of it this morning…"

Ellee was already hooking up the tanker to fill it while Robert kept talking. She calmly hooked up the milk and started pumping while her motormouth partner continued to dominate the conversation. Purrloin purred and rubbed against Robert's leg, attracting Peter's attention for a moment. Ellee checked the number on the side of the truck cab, this was Truck #9 just as they were expecting. She took note of the Watchog casually sitting in the truck, it wasn't looking out at her yet and she planned to keep it that way, turning back before the Pokémon started to see her as a threat.

Ellee calmly walked back over and unhooked the loading hoses now that the tanker was full. As she did she calmly pulled out a pocket knife and put some small cuts in any exposed brake lines she find. The damage would be mild and almost unnoticeable until it was too late, the truck's air would leak out slowly and when it did the driver would have no choice but to stop. This guy wouldn't even know there was an issue until he was well on his way to Pallet Town and likely somewhere isolated where their partners could pounce. She put on a big smile as she walked over to the pair. Robert was still talking.

"…and I tell you that Ekans was as big as a freaking Graveler. I kid you not."

"Before you talk his ear off it's worth noting you're full up and ready to go buckaroo," Ellee said.

The look of relief on Peter's face at that announcement was palatable.

"It's been an honor to meet both of you," Peter said. "I hope you have a pleasant day."

"Keep on truckin' son," Robert replied.

Peter quickly climbed back into his truck and started it up. He put it in gear.

"Watchog, anyone try and get inside the cab?" Peter asked.

"Hog," it replied.

"Roger," Peter said as he reached for the radio. "Dispatch, this is Squirtle 1 and I'm back rolling. I'm going to take a rest for a few hours at a truck stop and red eye this load to Pallet afterward overnight."

"Roger, Squirtle 1," the dispatcher replied. "Safe travels."

As Peter drove off the farm's property a trio of sinister smiles crossed Robert, Ellee, and Purrloin's faces.

"That city slicker fell for it hook, line, and sinker," Robert said. "You slice the lines?"

"Oh yeah, he'll be out of air and out of brakes well before he reaches the Oak, the cheese makers, or anyone who can help," Ellee said.

The pair quickly wiped off their farm clothing to reveal a pair of black Team Rocket uniforms. Robert pulled out a cell phone from his pocket and placed a call.

"Yeah boss, it's Robert and Ellee," Robert said. "The GS driver is loaded up and rolling toward Pallet. We got the brake lines. That truck is going to be in more trouble than a Heracross in a vat of thick molasses really quickly... Uh huh... Well no, I have no idea why a Heracross would be in a vat of molasses. It was an expression... Okay, I guess it is a bad expression. Look just get the road crews ready and we'll rendezvous with the team in Pewter City."

The trio smiled as they walked behind the barn to a waiting red convertible. The top was up as they climbed out and left the farm with a peel out.

Back on Route 52 Ken, Fennekin, and Truck #2,013 were starting to make up some of the time they lost earlier to the tire issue. Fennekin looked out at the window as trees flew past while Ken had his truck running as fast as the law would allow. The rookie driver was starting to get a hang of driving on gravel and it was looking like they would make it to Pewter City in time. Those empty Poké Balls Mack gave him earlier clanked together they rested in a storage space atop the truck's center console while Fennekin's ball had been placed in a cup holder for safe keeping.

The road remained flat but the terrain around them was starting to get rougher. Ken's eyes were focused straight ahead on the road, scanning for any possible obstacle Route 52 could throw at them. As he rounded a corner one came into view about a mile ahead, a large gray object in the middle of the road. Slowly he backed off the throttle and began applying the brake. The object became clearer. Ken initially thought it might be a large boulder and was almost relaxed when he realized it was a sleeping Rhyhorn. The Spikes Pokémon was blocking the road but there were probably ways they could make it move safely. That advice Mack had given him earlier about Rhyhorns only reinforced the need to be careful about how they went about it.

"When I get back to Celadon City I'm going to the game corner or buying a ton of lottery tickets," Ken said. "With how our luck has gone today it has got to whip back around soon."

"Fen Fennekin," Fennekin replied.

The truck came to a stop.

"Well, this is going to be fun," Ken said sarcastically as he and his partner prepared to face their next challenge.