Wes woke up the next morning surprisingly high-spirited, despite having been beaten within an inch of his life the day before. That girl... he told himself. It was odd, but just being around her seemed to invigorate him. He had spent some time with Rui going though his snagged Pokémon and helping her choose a team for herself, then had a few sparring matches between them to show her how a battle worked. By the time they were done, it was close to morning and they had spent the rest of the night sleeping.

After cleaning up his campsite and getting dressed, Wes made his way into the village. The guards showed him no problems this time as he walked up the path to the Elder's house. He wanted to say goodbye to Rui before he headed out again... at least that was what he told himself he wanted. Rui was nowhere in sight, though.

"She left on the bus an hour ago."

"Ahh!" Wes turned to see Beluh looking back at him. "Seriously, lady, don't do that."

"Lady?" The Matron looked insulted. "Don't you lady me, you dirty Rogue. I know your kind, going through this region thinking they own it, taking everything they see without thinking twice."

"I'm not like them, if that's what you're insinuating," Wes snapped back. "I may be a Rogue, but I do have something resembling respect when I feel people earn it."

Beluh leaned in close. "Look me in the eye when you say that." Before Wes could even say it, she was already staring into his eyes."Yes, as I thought. You've got the eyes of a Rogue who would sell out his own mother for a nickel," she derisively snorted, only to suddenly break into a small smile. "But you've got the heart of a knight who knows how to respect and protect a woman. In this place, that's important. It keeps you from becoming like those thugs from yesterday."

"So, I take it this is not about me doing anyting funny with Rui?"

"I don't know what kind of ideas you put into that girl's brain, but if she's going to fawn over you for it, then the least you can do is make sure she stays safe."

"I can't make any promises."

"Well, promise me." Wes's P*DA suddenly went off, giving him an excuse to not say anything as he answered.

Hey, sleepyhead!
If you're reading this, then I caught the first bus to Phenac. Justy's been giving me lessons, and he says I've got potential. He also says that he wants to talk to you about something, so I'll see you there.
~Rui

Wes looked back at Beluh. "I think you had better get over there and meet her," she replied. "It's not polite to keep a woman waiting."

"Thank you."

"Just remember what I said, Wes," she repeated just before he went out the door. "Don't lose sight of your heart. Arceus knows you're going to need it."

Phenac hadn't changed much since the last time Wes was there, though a few construction workers were spotted here and there repairing the damage from Cipher's attack. Waving to Dash as he arrived, Wes made a straight walk for the Pre Gym and stepped inside to see Rui and Justy in the ring. As soon as she saw him, the redhead waved with a smile, and Plusle hopped happily at her feet.

"I came as soon as I got your message..." Wes bluntly began. "Which brings up the question of how you sent it."

"TA-DA!" Rui pulled out a small device from her coat pocket. "Justy gave me my own P*DA, complete with Trainer Memo app. Now we can keep in touch everywhere we go."

Wes frowned. "Wait... who gave you my number?"

"I did," Justy replied. "She was very persistent, mind you."

"Dammit, Justy! You know I don't like people sharing my number without me knowing!"

"Sorry," Justy shrugged. "Anyway, she and I have been at it all morning. For someone who's never trained a Pokémon in her life, she's got a pretty good feel for the skill. And I don't think I've seen a Pokémon more happy to around her than this little guy here."

"Plusle's not mine, you know," Rui stated. "He's just tagging along on a friend's request."

"Friends... such a nice thing, I must say." The three of them turned to see Evice approaching them. "So, Wes, m'boy. How goes things?" he asked. "I heard how you saved Mt. Battle from those loathsome Snagems."

"It wasn't just Team Snagem, sir. Those suited goons were also there," Rui added

"Ah, yes, the organization with their so-called evil Pokémon. Heh... I suppose I should thank you for that, too."

Wes nodded. "They called themselves Cipher. Do you know anything about them?"

"Unfortunately, no." The chubby man frowned through his bushy mustache. "Word doesn't reach Orre very well, I'm afraid. If you're talking about the development firm, though, then I can't see why they would be doing this. They're only here to build the tower."

"I know..." Justy growled with contempt. It was no secret that the Orre locals hated that tacky tower.

"You can ask Duking in Pyrite Town," came Rui's reply.

"Duking may be a well-meaning man, but I'm going to need more than just his word before I can launch any investigations. And until he or Sherles brings me something admissable, my hands are tied. But don't worry, m'boy. I'm sure something will turn up." Evice turned to face Rui directly. "Anyway, I see you're a little busy with your Pokémon."

"Yes, sir," she replied.

"That's good. Girls like you need to be strong in a place like this. Anyway, I must be leaving Phenac for now. If you need anything, my Deputy Mayor Mr. Trest will be in my office to help."

"We're fine, thank you." But Evice didn't hear Wes as he left the Gym.

About a minute later, Justy spoke up. "Man... talk about no help at all," he said. "You'd think he'd be a little more concerned after what happened here a few days ago."

"His concern isn't getting anything done." Wes turned to leave, but was stopped when Rui grabbed his arm.

She looked up to him with a worried expression. "Where are you going?"

"Dakim said something about a lab, and I'm heading out there to try and find it."

"By yourself?"

"Well, that was the intention." Wes trailed off. "But it does get lonely out there... and I could use an extra set of eyes."

Rui was taken aback. "Wes," she quietly spoke, "you don't mean..."

Wes tossed the pair of Go-Goggles into Rui's hands before putting on his shades. "Strap 'em on."

Rui didn't know what to say... except for "Let's go!" And soon, the two heroes-to-be were on the Rumbler and speeding out towards the open desert. As they vanished over the horizon, Justy watched from the south gate with a smile.

Back at Eclo Canyon...

"You dolts!" Gonzap roared at his Snagems as they cowered before him inside what was originally their hideout's garage. "You idiots! You cretins!"

"Hey, we didn't know what was going to happen!" a random Snagem moaned.

"We don't even know what cretins means," another one added.

They had returned to the hideout at sun-up. The International Police had apparently finished their investigation due to finding nothing of interest and were now following other leads. Even though the place was a wreck, it was all they had and so they came crawling right back.

"Look, Boss, no offense, but that Wes is something else," Wakin spoke up in an attempt to defuse his boss's anger (not like it would help, as he knew Gonzap best) "He's not like the average chump Trainer. The guy doesn't hesitate to play dirty like we do."

"And I was hoping that you'd play dirtier." Gonzap marched over to the stairs so he could get in an elevated stance and continue demoralizing his grunts. "NOW how are we going to get out of our debt to Cipher without that Snag Gauntlet? Anybody have any ideas?"

"Boss! Cipher's here!" called out Biden from nearby. "Their Peon Commander is with them and he's not happy."

"How much so?" To answer Biden's question, machine guns started blazing loudly and bullets pounded themselves into the already-wrecked walls. The Snagems dropped to the floor in cowardice, but Gonzap stood his ground as Skrub marched forward, flanked by four gun-toting Peons.

"Honestly, don't you think we're miserable enough already, Skrub?"

"That's Commander Skrub to you, sand-boil," Skrub snapped back from the height of Gonzap's chest. "We practically gift-wrapped that Rogue for you as a favor, and you couldn't even dispose of him. Now Dakim is... gone and we've been forced to ramp up our time-table. To this end, we need more Pokémon, so we need you idiots to get to work."

"We don't even have Snag Machines."

"Doesn't matter. We'll take whatever you've got on you. We'll even let you use your generous donations to help pay off your debt." Skrub waved to his Peons. "Frisk 'em!"

Waving their guns, the Peons forced all the Snagems against a wall, then began to pat down their pants. Poké Balls were quickly found and pulled out of their pants.

"We won't take all of them, of course. Can't leave you idiots completely helpless, after all," Skrub added. "Of course, we'll be back tomorrow to collect, so if you can't get any more by then... I'd hate to think how you would ever survive out here." He laughed cruelly. "The once-mighty Team Snagem, reduced to cowering in the middle of the desert, unable to so much as even lift a finger with no Pokémon on them."

"You can't do that! We rule this desert, not you!" Gonzap looked like he was going to explode in rage, but the sight of those guns held him back. With a long and hesitant grunt, he slowly spoke. "Look, let my boys keep at least a few Pokémon no matter what and..." He winced. "I'll give you Skarr to do as you wish."

Skrub now looked surprised, despite his visored helmet obscuring most of his face. "Is that so? I understand you love that old bird-type, but if that's what it takes..." Gonzap bowed his head. "Tell you what... I'll let your men keep all their Pokémon for now and give you a week to get your assets in order. In return, you give me the Skarmory as a down payment."

"Deal..."

Soon, the transaction was complete and the Peons were leaving the Hideout. Watching them go, Gonzap nudged Wakin to come close. "Take Biden with you and follow them. I wanna know where they're going with my Skarr."

Wakin smirked. "Yes, sir."

"Have you found it yet?" Rui impatiently said (for the fifth time over the past hour) as she looked over the endless sand-dunes.

"Look, I know you want to help, but this isn't like Johto," came Wes's reply. "There's no convenient Routes, just sand and rocks. You could hide anything out here and no one would be the wiser." Putting down the binoculars, he glared at Rui. "So you'll have to forgive my lack of progress," he semi-sarcastically finished.

Rui sighed with a smile. Wes likely wasn't going to ever drop his hard-ass personality, but at least she knew that in her case, he wasn't really trying to be nasty. Still, this was getting boring, and Cipher was still out there.

A sudden ringing sound made her turn towards Wes. "It's my P*DA. Hang on." He pulled out the device and checked his messages.

Wes,
I've been keeping up with your recent escapades since I acquired your services, and now I feel that it's time we met face-to-face. Go to The Under and visit the Junk Shop. Once there, look for Perr. Bring the Snag Gauntlet and your friend, too.
~Nett

Rui took a look at the message. "Who's Nett?"

"Apparantly, he's the one who hired me to infiltrate Team Snagem, or so the messages claim," Wes answered. "I've never heard of The Under, though. Perhaps Cail does..."

Back in Pyrite Town, Cail was taken aback as his Machoke and Kirlia were knocked out by Wes's trademark Ebony/Ivory combo. "C'mon, Wes," he complained. "Keep this up and I won't even be able to eat."

"Stall me like this again and you won't even have teeth to eat with," Wes threatened. "Now what do you know about someplace called The Under?"

Cail smirked. "Alright, alright! Looks like it's storytime for ol' Cail." Recalling his Pokémon, Cail began. "During the mining days, there was a major earthquake that buried a portion of Pyrite Town underneath layers of debris. They rebuilt over it, thinking the old area was gone forever. However, it was later found to still be intact, and so the miners used it as a secondary town to reduce time going between the surface and the mines. Many stayed there and started families, even after the mining operations ceased. It's a very exclusive area, or so I've heard. You gotta have the right connections."

"And what are they?" Rui asked.

"Hell if I know," Cail shrugged. "I imagine Miror B.'s goons might, but they all skipped town once he fled."

Wes smiled. "Don't worry. I know of two that likely haven't left yet."

Pyrite Police Station

"Aw, what do you want now?" Folly groaned as Wes glared at him and Trudly through the bars of their cell. "Come to take what little dignity we have left?"

"Like you had any to begin with, but enough small talk." Wes taunted. "Tell me how to get into The Under."

"Oh, that place," Folly said with a poor attempt to sound dumb. "Heh... no clue. Trudly?"

"Nope. Nothing. We don't know-"

"Of course not, you mutton-heads!" called out a voice from the cell next to them. "You never know anything. Right, Reath?"

"Yeah, you tell 'em, Ferma!"

Wes and Rui turned to see Miror B.'s other Peon pair Reath and Ferma sneering at them. "Great," Rui moaned. "Like you two are any better than them."

"Don't give us that. We're under police protection."

"Yeah! We give the cops what they want, and they make sure Nascour doesn't get us."

"Nascour?" Wes paused. "You mentioned that name before when we fought, didn't you?"

Reath narrowed her eyes. "He's the boss of Cipher and he is downright mean. When he heard that you wrecked Miror B.'s racket, he swore that he would find him and us and the morons there and slice us all up."

"But like we said, as bad as our punishment will be, yours will no doubt be much worse," Ferma coldly added. "We're likely not even safe here. Nascour has eyes and ears all over Orre. He'll find us. He'll find you."

"Not if we find and catch him," Rui confidentially declared.

"Good luck. No one ever sees him in person and lives." Reath could tell that the heroes weren't leaving without what they want. "But since you two lovebirds have a death wish already, you might as well try. Go back to Miror B.'s building and use the freight elevator."

"Sherles confiscated the key from us. Ask him for it," finished Ferma.

Sherles and Johnson approached. "No need, I heard. Here you are, Wes," he said as he handed the key to him. "Consider this an act of faith for how you got rid of Miror B."

"Thank you, sir," Rui curtly said. Wes just nodded as they began to leave, leaving the policemen and the perps alone.

"As for you two girls," Sherles continued, "the International Police have agreed to take you into protection in exchange for everything you have on Cipher. I trust there are no arguments?" Reath and Ferma shook their heads. "I didn't think so."

Folly suddenly spoke up. "Hey, uh, sirs, we've been here a while. How come they get a break and we don't."

"Because unlike you two, we know stuff and are willing to use it," Ferma taunted.

"But we've been running stuff for Cipher longer and were never told a thing," Trudly complained.

"Shows you what you know, idiots," finished Reath. The boys simply sat down and crossed their arms bitterly.

It didn't take Wes any time to find the elevator, having found it in the lounge of Miror B.'s hideout. "C'mon, Wes, let's go!" Rui called out as Wes put the key in the console and gave it a twist. The elevator shuddered, then slowly began to descend the shaft.

"Into the fire, I guess," Wes spoke. He had a feeling that wherever they were going now, it was going to be even worse than Pyrite... hard to believe as it was.