The Fortree Leader seemed to be in total disbelief. It was just like Josh was, too. "Your reaction was basically my reaction when I got the letter," he replied with a big smile, the memories of the moment flooding back. "It's really funny how it all came together. Remember what we talked about after the match and at your house? You see, originally when I came to Hoenn, and at the time I challenged your Gym, my goal was to defeat all the Gyms, challenge the Elite Four, and make a stand in the annual Pokémon League tournament here. Then the Cloud stuff happened, and I found a much greater calling in life."

With no other Pokémon to watch, Josh could direct his full attention to Alex. "Not too long before going into the Cloud, I found out about kyle lopez 's Minor League program, and applied for a Gym there. Then after the Cloud thing happened, I gave up the Gym Challenge and applied to be a Ranger. When my Ranger enlistment got accepted, I went online to cancel my application for the Minor League program, and it had already been approved. So I had to scale back my involvement as a Ranger and as a semi-pro Pokémon Racer. I was working three part-time jobs. I loved what I did, but it was so much." Even if Josh was only taking challenges at most one or two days a week, he was still working five to six days most weeks across everything he did.

"It helped that all three positions were effectively contracts; you could work as little or as much as you wanted. Then one day, absolutely out of the blue, I got this letter from Commissioner dahlia goode 's office about some Gym Leaders having left Hoenn's ranks and asking if I wanted to be promoted. I had never even applied for being promoted into the Major League. And that day, I turned my racing career into a hobby and became Mauville's Gym Leader...well, Gym Leader-elect. I don't actually take the position until the 10th. I'm not planning any real changes between my current Minor League Gym and the new one." It was quite the tale; Josh had come to Hoenn intending to collect Badges, yet he would be on the opposite side of that arena, handing Badges out. He didn't think he had the social or leadership skills for the position, but if the Commissioner thought so, he couldn't exactly refuse.

When Alex asked him about his mount, Josh raised the reins in his hands so they would be clearly visible to the Birdfather. "I've been ready! Let's fly!"

[attr="class","wildtemp"]

[attr="class","wildbgsaf"]

[attr="class","wildtitle"]A WILD LILEEP APPEARED!

[attr="class","wildshiny"]

[attr="class","wildpkmnbox"]

[attr="class","wildpkmn"]

[attr="class","wildtab"]

[attr="class","wildtabox"] FEMALE	[attr="class","wildtabox2"] SUCTION CUPS
[attr="class","wildtabox"]CONFUSE RAY	[attr="class","wildtabox2"]CONSTRICT
[attr="class","wildtabox"]ACID	[attr="class","wildtabox2"]ANCIENT POWER
[attr="class","wildtabox"] ---	[attr="class","wildtabox2"] ---

[attr="class","wildtag"]Josh Devlin Alexei Ivanov

[attr="class","wildnote"] WHAT WILL YOU DO?

[attr="class","wildtemp"]

[attr="class","wildbgsaf"]

[attr="class","wildtitle"]A WILD FERROSEED APPEARED!

[attr="class","wildshiny"]

[attr="class","wildpkmnbox"]

[attr="class","wildpkmn"]

[attr="class","wildtab"]

[attr="class","wildtabox"] FEMALE	[attr="class","wildtabox2"] IRON BARBS
[attr="class","wildtabox"]INGRAIN	[attr="class","wildtabox2"]CURSE
[attr="class","wildtabox"]MIRROR SHOT	[attr="class","wildtabox2"]ROLLOUT
[attr="class","wildtabox"] ---	[attr="class","wildtabox2"] ---

[attr="class","wildtag"]Josh Devlin Alexei Ivanov

[attr="class","wildnote"] WHAT WILL YOU DO?

Alexei Ivanov CAUGHT THE WINGULL!

With Kyouya's return, the two Braviaty were airborne, their strong wings letting them gain altitude quickly. Josh felt like he was being squeezed downward into the cocoon saddle Slider wore. He was happy he had all his flying Pokémon regeared; while it was expensive, it would prevent any untoward accidents from happening...at least while riding solo. If he made plans to go flying on the same Pokémon with a friend, he could always strap on the old gear beforehand!

The so-called Padawan, as Alex seemed to think, likewise ignored the two Grass-type Pokémon that grew into mere specks on the grassy surface as the two got to altitude. "How high up you taking me? I didn't know bird Pokémon could fly this high! I've only ever taken my Dragonair up this far!" Josh asked the Fortree Leader, a little nervous about taking Slider up to such thin air.

"We already passed it," Josh answered. "Not too long ago, but we did pass it." He wanted to go down just a little, but if the higher altitude was good for learning maneuvers, he was cool with it. Plus, having some altitude in the bank would be helpful in case of an accident. That cocoon saddle was going to make sure he didn't become separated from his mount, at the very least. "Neither have I. I've never thought about it; to me, a lot of riding a Pokémon is instinct. And most important of all, trust. There are some Pokémon that will only accept the bridle of trust. Thankfully, I haven't had to deal with one of those yet; I very much prefer the tactile control holding a Pokémon's reins offers. Most Pokémon are intelligent enough to be controlled without them, though."

Josh raised his voice a little; he already noticed the need to speak up due to the thinner air. "Sounds like experience is the best teacher," he agreed, reining Slider to a stop so he could hover alongside Kyouya. "I do have a fair bit of experience, but only really know the basics. You got any intermediate-level advice, I'm all ears!" Slider squawked, excited for Josh to learn the fun stuff.

It sounded like Josh just needed to go flying more often. He loved riding a running Pokémon at high speed over land most, but perhaps he should take to the skies a bit more than he currently did. After all, that seemed like the fastest way to get used to thinner air...and turbulence. From his match at Fortree's Gym, he certainly had a ton of issues with turbulence. "Sensible," he agreed. He was already starting to adapt to the colder air. It wasn't uncomfortably cold, but it was a bit cooler than he was used to.

"No kidding," Josh agreed. "Most Pokémon that can fly this high are dragons. I should tell you about the time I let loose with my Dragonair's Extreme Speed above Hoenn. It might have been the most fun I've had in my life. I should let you try it sometime." He looked around to almost completely empty airspace. The skies of Hoenn were their playground. "Alright, how about we get this 201-level flying course started?"

Josh's helmet had the nice benefit of keeping the whipping winds out of his ears, making it a little easier to hear. "Given the much higher speeds of flight and its three dimensional nature, that makes sense. That's been the hardest thing to adapt to." It was a big reason why Josh's aerial races were the easiest to win at his Gym. They were not his forte, like the foot races were. Hopefully today's crash course would help fix that problem.

"I would say 'barely competent,' Alex," Josh answered. "One of my toughest aerial courses has a few instances of two rings stacked right on top of one another, and the only way to fly through them both efficiently is...well, that," he pointed to what Kyouya just did. "Some of the rings I miss most on my courses are ones that you have to make steep bank angles to fly through. Banking steeply is so scary because it's just easy to spiral out of control. Could probably use a refresher on both."

"Of course," Josh affirmed; he had done many sharp drifts on his Absol's back in the racing circuit before. It was the big technique that separated competitive amateurs from truly recreational racers. "Sounds simple enough. I'll have to follow you around a bit to practice, but it at least seems simple in theory." Sudden height adjustment, barrel rolls, and sudden braking, not so much. He recalled his flight with Isaac Merlo , but there was one wrinkle there. That was with a Dragonair. This was with a bird.

"I've only done that with my Dragonair, and I imagine that doesn't count," the Mauville Leader answered, chuckling at the end. "It's probably completely different with a bird that needs to fly a minimum speed to maintain lift. Dragonair kind of...just hover. Have you flown on a Dragonair before? It's the most liberating feeling I've ever experienced." Indeed, flying was far more complicated than Josh expected it to be. But if he wanted to be successful his Gym in the Major League instead of the Minor League, he would need the help.