To say he was impatient would be an understatement; a hand settled against Sepkat's flank to soothe the bristling Liepard with every moment they stayed out. It wasn't that he was uncertain about being out at night, but rather with the emergency side-gate being located where it was, without much foliage or trees to block it—Matus felt as though he could be seen from any angle. It set every nerve of his on edge, and only the years he'd spent training Sepkat up to the feline she was had him understanding the similar feeling in the dark-type.

Sila, at least, was a calming force. Just gently drifting around in little circles and twirling about this way-and-that in an effort to draw the pairs attention to him, instead of on their surroundings. For the most part, it was working. At least before the quiet clicks and softer thumping of approaching steps. Drawing the trio's attention back towards the gate they were waiting at to take in Josh's arrival. An appraising look given over both the man and Absol—before barely noticing the darker pelt of the Luxray standing just a few paces back.

"You ain't usin' the Luxray in this race, are ya?" he doubted that was the case. But still, it was worth questioning when the very presence of the Electric-type had Sepkat bowing to her full height—a rumbling snarl in the feline's throat giving away her offense that it could even be a possibility that the absol she'd lost to before wouldn't be her true rematch.

Sila, on the other hand. Would ignore the hostility already in the air; drifting forward like an oversized blimp to nudge gently at Josh's shoulder—clearly looking him over for any signs of still-present injury. The Togekiss wasn't above putting a stop to this before it even started if nobody was at their tip-top condition!

---

Josh Devlin

Sepkat — Liepard — OK
Sila — Togekiss — OK

Matus' Liepard was even bigger than he remembered; Josh had never gotten a close look at the colossal specimen. Sepkat's gaze met Josh's even with him astride Twilight! He had since captured what he thought was a big Liepard, but this one still towered over his own! He didn't dare reach out to pet the Liepard; from their encounter north of the Gym, it was evident Sepkat did not want any affection at all.

Sila, on the other hand, looked like he wanted attention. Josh gave the Togekiss a gentle pet as he examined the Gym Leader for wounds. It looked like he was all healed up and ready to go! "Oh, not at all," Josh answered him. "Like I promised, you and Sepkat will get your rematch against Twilight." Sepkat's snarl spooked the Leader; that Liepard looked vicious, with the strength of a Pyroar and the speed of a Luxray, she was more dangerous than any predator Josh had ever enlisted to his ranks.

"Alright buddy, so here's how this is gonna go down," Josh gave the last explanation of his former Gym Challenge he would ever speak. At least until he was a Gym Leader proper. "We line up behind the checkered line near that arch. The display underneath that will count down 3, 2, 1, GO. On GO, we start. No Quick Attacking or the like during the first lap of the race. After that, they're fair game. Whoever completes three laps first is the winner." He was about to give the signal for the official to light up the countdown display and get the race started when he remembered one more thing. "And no false starts this time, got it?"

You will have 8 ranks to distribute among three skills. No more than 5 ranks can be assigned to any one skill.

• SPEED: This represents how fast your Pokémon can travel. Each rank of Speed adds 10 to all your rolls.
  
• ENDURANCE: This represents how well a Pokémon can navigate difficult terrain, and affects how often a Pokémon can use its Boost during a race. Every two ranks of Endurance lets you use a Boost move an additional time per race. Each rank of Endurance reduces the Target Number of Endurance-based Obstacles by 10.
• REACTION: This represents a Pokémon’s cornering ability. Each rank of Reaction reduces the Target Number of Reaction-based Obstacles by 10.

In the OOC notes of your next post, please note your Pokémon's distribution of skills.

You do not need to roll after your first post, but you will need to [ roll ] twice at the end of every post mid-challenge. This roll will be modified according to your Pokémon's skill ranks.

Example: If a player rolls a 60 on a post involving running down a straightaway as fast as possible atop a Pokémon with four ranks in Speed, their effective roll will be 100.

The Leader's next post will include a "mod post" that depicts the course's first Obstacle: a prompt that presents a challenge for the racers to overcome. Each Obstacle will include the following information:

Target Number: This is the number the racers need to roll at or above to overcome the Obstacle without penalty. While it is uncommon, an Obstacle can have multiple Target Numbers.

Intended Skill: This is the Skill that will apply to the Obstacle. It can be Speed, Endurance, or Reaction.

Example Obstacle: The track starts out with a bang--a sharp, 135-degree left turn mere tens of meters from the starting line. The width of the turn itself makes recovering from a misjudged angle easier, but the track quickly narrows up again afterward. A guardrail on the outside keeps Pokémon from sliding off the course, but there is no such guardrail on the inside, and there’s a shallow stream that looks time-consuming for non-Water Pokémon to climb out of!

Target Number: 85 (Reaction)

After the players make their rolls, the Target Number is deducted from the player's roll, and the difference becomes the player's Track Position (TP) for the round. 100 TP corresponds to roughly one second of time differential. The race will consist of three laps, with three Obstacles per lap. After the ninth Obstacle, total Track Position will determine finishing order.

At the subtle assurance, Sepkat had marginally quieted. Though the feline still stood to her full height—the glare remaining focused on Josh's face, even as the gym leader turned his attention towards Sila's own attentions, and then towards her rider.

"Yeah yeah, no head start, everything all 'official like'." Matus grunted, reaching a hand to lower Sepkat's head down—attempting to stop the Liepard from glaring at Josh the entire time. "We'll behave as long as the pair of you do." Well, at least he wasn't crossing any fingers when he said it. Just stopping a massive cat from possibly trying to take a bite out of someone. "Now lets get this started so you can accept your loss already."

Once Josh had acknowleged the Togekiss' worries, and confirmed that he was perfectly fine. The Fairy would turn to drift away again; attention now caught by the lingering Electric type with a softer chirrup of greeting.

---

Sepkat - S/D/C — OK

Josh Devlin

After each posting round, a prompt describing the upcoming section of the track will be posted. These prompts may highlight different sections of the course on each lap. You will react to the prompt, then [ roll ] twice.

The course starts out with a lazy U-turn over a wide angle. It's not sharp, but Pokémon with poor handling capabilities would have difficulty holding the long, uphill turn. The difficult part of the opening was below; about fifty feet down was the next part of the track, and it had a very narrow landing zone. There was only room for about three Pokémon to run alongside each other at the bottom.

Target Number: 105 (Reaction)

Special: Missing the Target Number by more than 30 will instead result in a flat -150 TP penalty from the racer landing out of bounds and suffering an OFF COURSE penalty.

Settling into Sepkat's saddle felt as natural as breathing; leaning into the Liepard's stride without sparing a second thought towards how the feline was moving. Sparing the bare minimum he needed to ensure the protective-goggles were properly set on his face, the man would turn his attention towards the overhead screen. Adjusting his hold on the reigns to carefully cover Sepkat's ears against the squealing of the speakers. Even if unnecessary, there was still the caution to make sure the Liepard was in her top-condition for the rematch.

Once the last image of the Raikou flashed, Matus would lean himself forwards; preparing himself for the moment the last image disappeared and the siren sounded, longer and louder than before. His own prompting wasn't needed for Sepkat to race off—Not with how the feline had been clawing at the ground and jostling about at the line, waiting for the moment she could break into a sprint. The instant the bulk of white had sprinted from the line—the Liepard would follow, only the tug at her reigns keeping the Liepard from breaking into a Double Team.

They were following the rules this time. Sepkat would just have to save her energy until she could truly let loose. The Absol might be a bit quicker on those sharper turns than she was, but memories of the first race would tell the ease that the other dark-type could tire if Josh was reckless about it.

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---

Josh Devlin

Josh was not a very merciful course designer; while the beginning was not the titular Surface Slide section. the leap down to the narrow section of track six stories down was the single most punishing obstacle on the course. In a Federation race, missing this jump would mean elimination from the race. He had Twlight hug the inside of the track as much as was feasible without banging her claws against the track's curb.

This was already more intense than the Gym Leader expected it to be, and the after-dark racing conditions didn't make things any easier. The pressure of racing under the lights, despite there not being an audience, weighed on the racer more than any of his Minor League challenges during his entire stay there. Even his race against Champion kyle lopez didn't put the kind of pressure on him that this did. Furthermore, it was apparent that the Drift King was giving this race absolutely everything he had.

Knowing they could risk landing on top of each other, Josh briefly peered to his side and back to confirm where Matus and Sepkat were before. If they were too close to one another he would let Sepkat pass Twilight before making the leap. Yes, the race was important to try to win, but he had to make sure no one got hurt above all else.

After watching the two take off, Blitz started talking to Sila, bragging he could run just as fast as those two. He was trying to goad the Togekiss into a race of their own, now that the two trainers and their swift ride Pokémon were far enough away they they wouldn't interfere with the more important race going on.

The two were neck and neck as Twilight used her superior grip to beat Sepkat to the inside line. Sepkat, despite the disadvantage, could keep up just fine despite having to cover more distance. The Absol and Liepard were neck and neck coming up to the six-story drop. Valuing the racers' safety over winning, Josh's decision to hold back had an unintended consequence.

The Leader and his Absol just barely made the jump to the lower half of the track, Twilight's rear legs tripping over a rock marking the beginning of the bottom section. She bucked in an effort to maintain her balance, testing Josh's own. The two managed to recover, but only just so, letting the Drift King and Liepard build up quite an early lead.

After a long but narrow straightaway, the course slowly rises in elevation, testing the riders' ability to hold a long, uphill right turn. This wasn't the most stamina-intensive turn, but it would set the stage for what they would have to do toward the backstretch. The resl test of the teams' skill was when the course stopped rising. There was an almost whiplash-incuring curve just after the two emerged from a short tunnel: a semi-blind U-turn to the right, followed by a second one back to the left. Full right-rein followed by full left-rein tugs might alone be enough for slower Pokémon, but for faster Pokémon, some braking may be needed.

Target Number: 110 (Reaction)

Truthfully, some bit of this course reminded him back of the mesa, where their first confrontation had been held. Some hit of nostalgia—despite how Matus knew he'd never stepped foot on this course before—was welling up in his chest, serving only to have him loosening his hold a margin on the reins.

He could feel the pounding of Sepkat's heartbeat in her neck, where his hands half-rested in his hold on the reins. Though seeing the straight-stretch ahead, and the sharper curves to follow, had him making up his mind. "You know what to do." Words almost lost to the wind, though he knew the Liepard would pick up on them—had picked up on them from the acknowledging flick of an ear in his direction. While not quite to the level of using Double Team, the Liepard didn't hesitate in putting on more speed; fully embracing the straight-line ahead of her.

A glance would be spared back towards Twilight and Josh—a wince of his own barely restrained at watching the near-crash the pair had shared. Despite the obvious rivalry, and the way he'd run that mesa before; the race wouldn't be fun if someone got hurt, especially if it was the one he was trying to have a rematch with. He wouldn't have hesitated in turning around to check on them if he needed to. Sepkat might have been a little fussy, but he knew even the feline had concern for them in the way she risked a glance back. Making sure they'd made the jump. But seeing the ease they recovered, Matus could breathe a little easier.

The larger curve, he shouldn't need to try and lean against, trusting Sepkat's tendencies towards the curves like that. Truthfully, it was the smaller, sharper ones that had him a bit concerned. The feline was quick, yes. But her sharp turns were a little lacking. Two short, sharp tugs to the reins would give across his meaning.

Sepkat would have to slow down into the smaller loops. Even if it meant giving up some distance to their opponents. He'd rather lose the race than have them both wiping out—Entirely out of concern to the Liepard, of course. Matus could give less of a care if he ended up with a few bumps and bruises... or broken bones, from a little crash. It was part of what got his blood pumping after all.

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Of course, away from the race happening at that moment, Sila would turn his attention properly onto the Luxray. Lowering a wing from where he'd been preening to mull the thought over. "You're quick. I don't doubt that. Its in your nature. But how long can you hold it? If you had wings, would you be able to fly and glide for hours without breaking? Would you need to rest more often?" A curious question in his own soft chiming chirps.

"I trust you're quick. But I don't know if you're quicker than her. You might hold out a little longer. But my sister could catch up again quick."

---

Josh Devlin

If Leader Devlin's Surface Slide course was known for one thing besides the titular section near the end, it was known for very long turns. In his designs for the Gym, he drew inspiration from other courses throughout the world, and this one came from Oreburgh City in Sinnoh. Of course, the long tunnels were out of budget for a Leader fresh off promotion from the Minor League, but he improvised with some shorter ones that allowed him to accurately recreate the Sinnoh course's long, sweeping turns.

Josh's Absol was one of the big reasons he had chosen this course to rematch the Drift King on; these sharp turns Twilight would be able to slice right through, but she would struggle with holding the titular Surface Slide section. That was something Sepkat's drifting would allow Matus and his Liepard to excel at, provided they were able to stay on one level of the course and not slide down to the other!

The semi-blind turn at the top of the hill took even Josh by surprise. He oversaw the construction of the course, and even he had underestimated how quickly it was coming! He tugged to his right with a borderline yanking motion, swinging all the way to the outside trough of the following turn before more fluidly pulling her into a not-quite full left turn. Her claws were so sharp that despite the curve's severity, he felt it was possible to overshoot.

"Can't say," Blitz answered Sila, relaxing after interpreting that the Togekiss really wasn't interested in a race. "Master and I haven't raced much; only here, and not big time. It's always Saber, Aslan, or Blinky. I wish he would pick me more." It was true; Saber was special to Josh, and he enjoyed being on his Pyroar and Jolteon a lot. Unlike his trainer, the Luxray wasn't particularly verbose. "Can't believe your sister's holding him off."

Both Matus' and Josh's Pokémon navigated the intense turns well! Had there been a crowd, the two would probably have gotten a roar. Even the spotter gave the two a short round of applause as he saw the two of them manage the turns well. Twilight crested the first corner well, but Josh's abundance of caution on the second allowed Sepkat to make a move and maintain her lead down a straightaway intended to give competitors a breather before the course's titular Surface Slide section.

The next Obstacle was the course's titular one: the course took the two through a brief underpass followed by a shallow, but long, uphill turn that would take the two in a complete circle. Furthermore, the course was split into two narrow lanes by a steep slope that was easy to slide down if a Pokémon ever drifted too wide. The top lane was by far the fastest one, but with it only being wide enough for three Pokémon, the rider and Pokémon would both need the strength to hold such a long turn and avoid taking the very slow outside line!

Target Number: 110 (Endurance)

Special: If a Pokémon's roll falls short of the Target Number, 3 Track Points instead of 2 will be deducted for each point the Target Number is missed by.