Hideo got a Telepathic *ping* from his Beheeyem, the psychic-type walking off. He stowed away his phone, assuming that notification was him being told someone was here.

And sure enough, he was right: his Beheeyem brought someone over, asking about the taxi service. “Yup!” he exclaimed, raising his hand to wave. “Elga there’s right! We’re giving rides. My Dragonite here is more than capable of flying people through the region.” Said Dragonite raised his hand, waving just like his trainer.

Though the only indication they were doing taxi service was the carriage; neither Hideo nor his Pokemon wore anything that indicated they were actually workers.

“Need a ride somewhere? You can do payments through the app, or you can pay at the destination.”

Rae Rançon

There was a brief frown from Hideo at the mention of Slateport. It wasn't a place he wanted to be returning to any time soon; he wanted to save it for his last trip on his gym circuit, if he even had to do it as his 8th badge.

But he was quick to bring his smile back. "Slateport's an easy enough route! I know the way there as well as the back of my hand!" Heck, he even knew a lot of the city itself. "And we can get there nice and quick! My Dragonite here's faster than he looks!"

The mention of his age did give him pause, but he didn't let it get to him.

"Nah, I can handle it! You're not the first person I've flown around. My Beheeyem does a lot of the navigating anyways." It'd be a little hard for Hideo himself to direct a flight, after all.

Maybe he'd listed his age as a few years higher than what it was. But that wasn't an issue: his Dragonite had done this before, and he could easily do it again.

It was just a matter of waiting for his passenger to enter. His Dragonite would be notified by the Beheeyem after the doors were secured, and it would take the carriage in its hands, lifting it up into the air.

Rae Rançon

Hideo nodded. “Yup! Works for me!”

He could hear her enter the carriage, and once his Beheeyem told him she was properly seated, he closed the door, securing it tight. “Alright, Elga, let him know!” he said, the dots on the Beheeyem’s right hand blinking as the message was sent. The Dragonite stretched his body for a moment, before taking hold of the carriage, his wings flapping as he gradually brought the box into the air.

“It takes him a moment to build up speed,” Hideo said, casually lying back in his seat. The Dragonite flew forward at a gentle pace, the carriage slightly swaying.

But this wasn’t going to just be a gentle flight; his passenger was in a rush. “Let him know to pick up the pace,” Hideo said to his Beheeyem.

Another quick set of blinks, and there was a brief pause in the flight as a bright light enveloped the Dragonite. Hideo grabbed onto an armrest in the carriage. “You may want to grab something.”

As if on cue, his Dragonite shot forward with his Dragon Rush, the carriage tilting as he flew forward at a great speed. Fortunately, his passenger was tilted down; it was only Hideo that had to worry about possibly falling forward, but that was taken care of by his Beheeyem, who Psychically ensured the boy stayed in his place.

“So, do you go to Slateport often?” Hideo asked, trying to inject a bit of levity in their rush.

Rae Rançon

Hideo and his Beheeyem were able to comfortably stay in their seats. It wasn't the first time they'd had his Dragonite go at this speed, and they could stay like this for the rest of the trip. While they were going quite fast, the carriage didn't sway, providing a stably-tilted ride to Slateport.

His Beheeyem didn't inform him of their passenger's distress.

"Nimbasa?" Hideo parroted. "I dunno where that is, but it doesn't sound like anywhere in Hoenn." Which meant she wasn't from around here. "Well, we get plenty of people from other regions. I actually know a decent number of people from Kanto!" Though with what he heard was going on there, it was no surprise people were wanting to leave that region. "So do you get to go to a whole bunch of other regions for your games?"

A little chat would help occupy time, as apart from that burst of speed from the Dragon Rush, the rest of the flight would be uneventful; any wild Pokemon in the sky knew better than to get in the way of a rushing Dragonite.

In due time, they'd arrive at the designated landing zone for air taxis - a couple minutes walk from the stadium. Once Hideo felt the carriage touch the ground, he was up, heading over and unlocking the carriage.

"So, will that be cash or credit?" he asked, a small smile on his face.

Rae Rançon