After his conversation with the new Mauville Leader, it should have been no surprise that the lobby's décor was full of purples, yellows, and cyans, with a grey, storm cloud motif in the ceiling. Also unsurprisingly, the Gym was crowded; Josh had a lot of challengers on his hands. Hoennians had flocked to the new Mauvilla Gym for its unique challenge of a Pokémon race, perhaps found in no other Gym in the world. Many challengers had their own personalized gear, wearing visor-equipped helmets similar to the one Alex had seen before Josh had even become a Minor League Leader. And now? The young one had his own Major League Gym, and he was inundated with a long waitlist. He even got challengers from out of region regularly.

"Alexei?" Shelly, one of Josh's receptionists, called the Fortree Leader's name from the front desk. "Paperwork all filled out? Make sure you indicate whether or not you give your consent to having the match recorded." She checked the forms, and everything seemed to be in a row. "The Leader will see you now. Take the first right, followed by the first left, then your course will be straight ahead. Good luck, and remember: with great speed comes great responsibility."

If he followed Shelly's directions, Alex would have no trouble locating a rather elaborate setup: the main feature of the course was its two right triangle-shaped loops. The first loop was composed of a giant tube that cut across the ring course composing the second. They would be flying through the tube in the first loop of each lap, and dodging the tube during the second, hence the course name Intersection. The second loop in particular had a ring pattern that would require racers to slalom around the tube or suffer big time penalties for missed rings.

"I figured you would bring none other than that Braviary of yours," Josh greeted the Fortree Leader, flanked by his four birds. "You might recognize some of these Pokémon, but I'll introduce them again. Bladestorm," he gestured toward his Skarmory, who snapped his beak closed with a loud metallic clang, ready to race; "Goose," the male Unfezant that was a recent catch, not long ago trained to carry a human in flight; "Pazuzu, the second Pokémon I ever caught," he gestured toward the Pidgeot; "and Slider, the Braviary I'll be riding," he pointed toward the red-feathered avian who let out a screech of his own.

"Alright, this is how it's gonna work. There's a series of numbered rings on the course. We'll be flying through those in order. While missing one won't end the race, every missed ring will come with a time penalty. That goes for me too!" He pointed toward an arch with a digital display across it. "That's where we'll be starting from. That display will count down 3, 2, 1, GO. On GO, we take off, and it's on. No moves that make your Pokémon go faster can be used during the first lap of the race. No Aerial Aces, Tailwinds, or anything like that. After the first lap, use 'em as much as you can handle. Beat us to the finish line after three laps, or otherwise prove you can keep your cool under pressure, and the Hoenn League Quick Badge goes in your case. Just because the roles are reversed now doesn't mean I'm going easy on you, though! I'm giving this everything I have!

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 next 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 Points (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 Points will determine finishing order.

Josh smiled when Alex caught on. He was amused when he found out the Birdfather's courses used a rating system similar to official Federation courses. "It's just a coincidence; the course pool is based on the challenger's badge count. You have enough badges for me to assign you something that's a little up there. But if you can handle a challenge like the one back at the Aviary, then this should be easy for you. To complete, that is. But don't think for one minute you're taking home the gold." Even before the race started, there was no shortage of trash talk.

Josh climbed aboard Slider, his own Braviary, the other three flying Pokémon lining up at their positions on the starting arch. "Yep! Think of the first lap as a warm-up. The next two times around, it's gonna be a lot faster." He laughed at Alex's comment about the weather. "There isn't a cloud in the sky," Josh smiled, pointing toward a picturesque blue sky. "Can't ask for better weather." Admittedly, it was a touch windy, but nothing like what he had to put up with at Alex's place.

Once the five Pokémon had lined up, three still images of a sprinting Raikou faded into view on the scoreboard and starting arch's display, overlaid atop a "GET READY" prompt. As the first of three images began to fade, a low-pitched horn sounded from the display's speakers. A second, then a third. When the last image disappeared, the "GET READY" changed to "GO", followed by a longer, similar yet higher-pitched sound. Josh jabbed at his Braviary's sides, Slider and his other Pokémon sending dirt and loose grass beneath them flying as they took off.

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. For the first lap, the Leader's rolls will be capped at 120 before modifiers.

The opening stretch of the course consists of two long straightaways separated by a gentle 90-degree right turn with a large #1 ring in the center. It was easy enough to fly through that a racer would almost have to be deliberate about missing it. The size of the ring made it easy for multiple Pokémon to fly through it at the same time. This would be a wonderful opportunity for Kyouya, Slider, and Josh's other Pokémon to build up speed. The only issue with the ring was its fairly low elevation; the birds would need to pull back up to make it to the entrance to the giant, translucent tube coming up!

Target Number: 90 (Speed)

While technically in his element, Josh sure didn't feel like he was. The roles had been reversed, but the number of flying hours the two Gym Leaders had were on different orders of magnitude. The one advantage Josh had was he knew the course quite well. There would be plenty of time to get up to speed. He was okay with ceding a little airspace to the challenger to make sure he didn't miss a ring this easy. Every time penalty could make the difference between winning and losing.

Josh chuckled when he heard Alex hissing at Kyouya to hold back his Tailwind. Slider had to hold his back too; he fully expected when boost laps came around that there would be a fight over the exact direction of said Tailwind. He would have preferred Resheph for a course like this, but the Mauville Leader could never resist the allure of a mirror match to show challengers his superiority with a variety of ride Pokémon. Slider began dueling Kyouya for the lead as the giant tube approached.

The five birds entered a right roll to navigate through course bounds, the first and easiest ring to fly through looming ahead. Though Josh's Pidgeot was a clear favorite, having crested the inside of the curve the cleanest, Goose and Kyouya were in a fierce battle for second place. Josh's Unfezant, despite being the smaller and less intimidating-looking bird, was not giving up a bit of ground to Alex's Braviary, the two flying alongside one another. Bladestorm's wing barely clipped the side of the checkpoint; thankfully, the leading edge of his top wing wasn't quite as sharp as the blades beneath. It was a concern for Alex when he raced at Fortree, too.

Slider, on the other hand, was struggling to find a good line; a sudden gust of wind threw the two wildly off course. The resulting correcting command caused the red and purple bird to waste a lot of movement getting back through the checkpoint. It cost the two almost as much time as they would have lost simply skipping the ring. They lost even more time when Slider's talons squealed against the corresponding foot race track beneath, sparks flying from the high friction. He had to flap his wings vigorously just to make the tube's entrance!

The five Pokémon and two Gym Leaders came to the first part of the course's titular Obstacle: after a long section of a wide tube that gave them plenty of room to fly, its path began undulating wildly: three ups and two downs in alternating sequence. If the two riders were paying attention, they could see themselves flying above and below holes in the surrounding foot race course. The peaks and troughs crested in such a way that there was no straight line that took them through all five: rapid altitude changes would be needed. Furthermore, the tube's shape had a small amount of lateral movement to it, too, making each twist different! How would the racers handle the potential vertigo?

Target Number: 115 (Endurance)

Every hair on Josh's body stood on end when he saw sparks flying from his Braviary's talons while narrowly avoiding a crash landing. "Pull up! Pull up!" the Leader cried as he frantically raised his mount's reins, Slider flapping his huge wings with equal vigor. The two just barely slid into the tube, where they were able to relax for a while. While the translucent tunnel was a bit cramped for birds to be flying through, there was plenty of room for Josh to make attempts to pass the competition...if he wasn't so far behind.

Then, the first half of the titular Intersection came. Josh had practiced this part of the course many times with Pazuzu, his Pidgeot. Slider's lower speed and greater maneuverability made the dizzying peaks and troughs in the wildly-undulating tube feel a lot less stressful to navigate! If anything, the most difficult burden was on the rider, having to stretch his arms to properly manipulate Slider's reins and guide the Braviary through the roller coaster-like ups and downs. "Nice and easy, Slider - no contact. Slow down if you have to. Just no contact."

Alex and Kyouya navigated the undulations brilliantly, the Braviary nearly shaving either his own head or his rider's head during the troughs and nearly scraping talons against the tube's floor during the peaks. But there was never an actual collision. The two passed over Pazuzu handily and fiercely battled Goose through the tunnel that wound in all three dimensions. Ultimately, Kyouya's superior turning won out on the last curve, Alex able to see the starting arch beneath him and to his left as he took the lead, though the arch was on the outside of the tube.

The challenger's Braivary narrowly held the lead coming out of the tube, though he could not shake the Leader's Unfezant and Pidgeot; they were hot on his tail! The Skarmory was catching up, too, taking full advantage of his high speed along straight flight paths! Though they were not charging Air Cutter, the metal wings still made a resonating sound much like a tuning fork as she flew as fast as she could while holding her Agility back. Josh and his Braviary were slowly catching up, but the near-crash was a costly, nearly irrecoverable mistake.

After two long straightaways separated by a single ring marking a 90-degree turn, the second half of the titular Intersection came into view. The racers now had to weave around the tube they had just flown through as it intersected the course five times! Furthermore, there were trees marking course bounds, and there were "mandatory" arrows marked on the outside of the tube! The first pointed right, and they alternated in succession, forcing the flying-types to fly around the five sections of tube that cut across the course, slalom style! Missing a mandatory would result in a steep time penalty!

Target Number: 125 (Reaction)

Josh and Slider had no problem making the next ring; it was a large and easy target. With him being so far behind, it felt like a time trial. All that had the potential to change on the incredibly difficult series of turns that gave the course the star rating it deserved. Slider had the stamina to navigate them, but not at the speed he was currently flying! Anticipating this, the home Leader reined the large Pokémon, a command to engage his natural air brake: spreading his wings to create drag.

Then, the curves came. They were much more navigable at the reduced speed, though the whiplashing bank angles were still disorienting despite Josh's practice with Alex before. These curves might have even given the Birdfather a hard time! Of course, he had no way to know, what with Kyouya and his rider so far ahead. There would be plenty of time to zoom ahead of him. After all, boost laps were coming, and fast. That would be the true test of Alex's skill with his flying-type. The speeds he was going at were already high, and they were about to get far, far higher.

Josh's braking strategy served him well; while he gave up a little ground, it wasn't much. The rest of his Pokémon took a similar approach, spreading their wings to create just enough drag to take the rapid-fire turns at reasonable speeds. It seemed to work for all of them, the Pidgeot and Skarmory keeping a close third and fourth behind the Unfezant and Kyouya.

Alex handled Kyouya with precision that looked like an art form, much like one would see watching an instructional video intended for skilled racers looking to kick their game up to the ultimate level. He was the first to cross the starting arch, the rest of Josh's Pokémon that were flying solo in close pursuit. All except the Braviary he was mounted on. That costly mistake near the beginning of the race really hurt him, and throughout the first lap, he just could not make up any ground. It was still early, though; boost laps were coming, and anything could happen.

You Got Boost Power! Speed-increasing moves, such as QUICK ATTACK, TAILWIND, and EXTREME SPEED are now allowed. Kyouya will be able to use such speed-increasing moves up to three times for the rest of the race. Speed-increasing moves will grant you ADVANTAGE for the posting round, meaning you will [ roll ] four times instead of two for that post and ignore the lower set of rolls. Please separate the first two rolls from the second two rolls with a delimiter of some kind. For the second lap of the race, the Leader's rolls will be capped at 140, before modifiers are applied.

Beware! Taking tight turns and stamina-draining Obstacles at high speeds can result in dire consequences, and may impose DISADVANTAGE, meaning the lower of the two rolls will be taken. If the lower of the two rolls would still pass the Obstacle, Track Position for that Obstacle will be calculated based on the higher of the two rolls.

Josh was behind after the first lap. Far behind. He could tell when he felt a TAILWIND blowing behind him, from what most likely was Alex's screaming from spurring his Braviary to the higher speeds that boost laps offered, and mandated if he wanted to win. One nice thing about being behind a Tailwind user was Josh could also have Slider ride the same slipstream. He even had multiples to choose from, as Pazuzu also shrieked, summoning a TAILWIND of his own as he crossed the arch. Bladestorm's wings started their tinny hum as he entered a burst of AGILITY, while Goose was still trying to edge out the larger bird with a QUICK ATTACK of his own.

Well over a full second after the Skarmory fired his Agility, Josh and Slider crossed the line. "Slider, TAILWIND! Go go go!" He lurched back in the large Pokémon's harness from the added speed, glad his partner was strong enough for him to use the reins as support. Slider spread his wings wide at the end of the straightaway; they would have certainly crashed if they took the upcoming twists at Tailwind-fueled speed.

The moment the fowl five crossed the arch, every single one of them switched on the afterburners, turning the course's giant tube into a wind tunnel. Bladestorm caught Pazuzu's, then Kyouya's, TAILWINDs in succession, the Steel-type surging forward and making Goose pick up the pace as well to defend second place. Josh was still in last by a long shot, but it was to be expected he be outdone by the Birdfather in his element. He was not only being outdone by Alex, but also by the rest of his Pokémon! Perhaps he still had a lot to learn from the Fortree Leader, after all.

It was taking every bit of TAILWIND Kyouya had to maintain the lead. While Goose didn't have the sustained blast of speed the slipstream offered the Braviary, the Unfezant was much more practiced at intense, but shorter, bursts of speed. All it took was Alex and Kyouya losing focus for a split second, and a rather swift member of the Braviary's rival species would take the lead and possibly never give it back.

Though the two racers and their Pokémon were by now familiar with the workings of the titular Intersection, the added speed from being on boost laps made navigating the tube's up-and-down undulations much more taxing! Depending on just how fast the competitors tried to take the turns, the timing on them could feel completely foreign compared to their experience on the first lap! The threat of vertigo would be greatly increased, unless of course the racers felt the need to slow down. But could they afford to give up the time and position?

Target Number: 125 (Endurance)

Josh's heart was racing just as fast as his Pokémon were. Though he was used to boost laps feeling totally different on every course, there was something about being up against someone who truly knew what they were doing in the air. He wanted to see how Kyouya and Alex were handling things, but he could not. Josh and his own Braviary were just too far behind. Until he could see them without them disappearing around a corner seconds earlier, it was just him against the course, just like a time trial. Exactly his own element.

Given how far behind he was, Josh badly wanted to have the Braviary keep up the TAILWIND through the rapid elevation changes, The issue wasn't Slider's maneuverability; it was his own stomach! The added speed made him a little dizzy even coming out of the tube's first turn! As much as it aggravated him, he had to slow down. He pulled back on his mount hard, descending to get the Flying-type out of the TAILWIND and even dropping his speed a little more to ensure both of them could handle the sinusoidal elevation changes.

If there were any Pokémon that could take advantage of the slipstream Kyouya had to duck beneath to keep he and his rider stable, it was Bladestorm, the Metal Menace. He was tough, he was fast, and most importantly, he was competitive. Not afraid to risk the entire race to keep the Leader on his toes, he took advantage of his riderless state, cutting the corners so sharply that he certainly would have taken Josh's head off if his trainer was in his saddle. He didn't have to worry about that, though! He let out a taunting cry as he surged ahead of the blue Braviary coming out of the long tube.

Goose, Pazuzu, and Slider, not possessing the Skarmory's maneuverability, had to be content observing one another navigate the gut-wrenching turns from one another's distance. There was still plenty of track to go, and even an entire lap! While it looked bleak for Josh, there was still time for him to recover from his early mistake. Though he wasn't fully aware of it, raw speed was far more his element than it was Alex's. He just had to take full advantage of it on the final lap.

After leaving the tunnel and navigating the outside portion of the Intersection for the second time, the course had one last brutal curve to send their way. It was a brutal, uphill S-curve that would have been blind if this was an overland course. The two mandatory rings made it arguably more challenging in the air.

The first was narrow and along a right turn, meaning the birds would have to fly with a high bank angle to soar through it. The second was much more circular, giving them freedom on how to approach it. The problem was the course curved back sharply to the left, and there was a large tree not far from where the ring was! If the racers didn't start their left turn before passing through the second ring, the probability of a crash was high!

Target Number: 120 (Reaction)

Special: Missing the Target Number by 30 points or more will result in a flat -150 TP penalty due to going OFF COURSE from crashing into the tree.