This challenger Callan Young knew Josh's receptionist on a first name basis! She had to do a double take, freezing up for a couple seconds before searching the challenger's name in the Gym's registry. "There you are. Found you." Some thoughts of what this challenger could potentially do to Josh's confidence as a Gym Leader ran through Shelly's mind. He had just survived an assassination attempt at his Gym, then Melody of the Elite Four thrashed him in perhaps the single most one-sided beating the Leader had ever received, both as a Minor League Leader and as a Major League one. Now another member of the Elite Four was here to give him a third thrashing? What was next, Katherine Fairburne and MATIAS SILPH embarrassing Josh out of his position?

"Got you all registered. The Leader will see you now. You'll be at the main battleground under the Loop Cross aerial course." She gestured toward the back door leading to the sprawling facility designed for racing. "Oh, and congratulations on your induction into the Elite Four."

Provided Callan followed her simple directions, he would see Josh finishing de-gearing his Pyroar and Absol. The only piece of riding gear that remained on either one of them was the Absol's jet-toned saddle, which had a Mega Stone-sized hollow near where the reins were hooked when not in use. That hollow was filled with the ABSOLITE Josh had procured from deep within the Mirage Palace. "Callan?" Josh greeted as he undid the last few straps keeping his Pyroar's saddle in place. "Leader Josh Devlin. Nice to see you again after Lilycove! I just wish that could have gone a little better. These two are Twilight, my team's star combatant, and Aslan, one of the most versatile Pokémon I've ever ridden." Unfortunately for Josh, Callan was not here to race. He was here to coach his Pokémon through a fast-paced brawl.

Many of the rings marking the LOOP CROSS course had been retracted into the ground, leaving a regulation-size, well-mowed lawn that served as the grounds for their battle. There was plenty of room to run, and not a shred of cover to hide behind. Josh's Pokémon, whether battling or racing, were fast. Really fast. While he doubted a member of the Elite Four couldn't follow such speed, he at the very least didn't want to make it easy. After all, Melody Miro had made a dunce out of him in their recent encounter in the Gym!

The Leader made his way to his Trainer's Box on the far side of the field, his fans cheering for him as the scoreboard on the opposite side of the bleachers lit up. It displayed important information about the condition of the Pokémon in combat. Callan's fans were far more numerous; unsurprising, considering his following as a musician. Aslan bared his fangs toward Callan, and Twilight raised her sharp claw toward him, trying to anticipate when the challenger's Poké Ball would hit the ground. "You take my two Pokémon down before I take down yours, or otherwise impress me in battle, and the Hoenn League Quick Badge is yours. Challengers first." Josh crossed his arms and smirked toward the member of the Elite Four. "I assure you that it will be the only decision you will have time to think about in this battle."

The impressive Gym was one of the benefits to Josh being based out of Mauville; the city gave him an exorbitant budget on top of the League's budget. He truly went all out to make the Racing Grounds the best they could be. "Callan! Long time no see! Congratulations on your promotion into the Elite Four!" he greeted his now-superior in multiple ways; first, as a Ranger superior, and now as one of his bosses as a Gym Leader. "Thanks!" he answered as he at last finished de-gearing his Pokémon. Every time Josh did so, Aslan looked like a totally different Pokémon. "Hope you had fun at the Silph Cup! You ever want more of it, you know where to find me!"

As the TERAVOLT star introduced his team, concern grew on the Mauville Leader's face. In his studies of legendary Pokémon, but particularly the Johto Beasts, Josh had long since memorized the complete list of Pokémon capable of using the Sacred Arte of Extreme Speed. They were Arcanine, the Dratini line, Linoone, Lucario, Rayquaza, Togekiss, and, of course, Suicune, Entei, and Raikou. He was used to having the home field advantage, and with it the speed advantage. While there was a small possibility Josh would still have that advantage, it wasn't likely, what with the tremendous battle skills needed to attain such a prestigious title.

With that, the trainers took their positions, Josh's team slinking toward Callan's as the two trainer's boxes rose and the crowded erupted in noise, primarily cheering Callan on. The vast majority of fans in the bleachers were Callan fans. With the cameras rolling, the two locked horns with one another.

YOU ARE CHALLENGED BY ELITE FOUR CALLAN!

"SWORDS DANCE, Twilight!" Josh shouted at the same time as the challenger. The Absol's horn-blade reflected light as crisp as a mirror. It was sharp enough to slice through anything now - sharp enough that one might not realize they've been struck until after it already happened. Perhaps it could even make a dent in Fury's metal armor.

The elite trainer's opening gambit was one of the most common in the entire Doubles format. It was common for a reason - it was effective. The moment Tsuki's loud YAWN spread with great aural virulence, Josh knew he was on borrowed time. Being on borrowed time was one thing he did best. Callan had given Josh an opening, and it was one he wasn't going to let go unpunished. "Aslan, FLAMETHROWER toward the Lucario!" Aslan charged toward Fury, embers flying from his paws. Though the battleground was vast, it would not take long for the racing-trained Pyroar to cross it. He set his sights on the fighting-type and exhaled a line of yellow and white fire in an attempt to singe and burn the formidable foe. Even Josh was yawning now; the yawns of his Pokémon were contagious!

Fury readies Swords Dance.
Fury's physical attacks improved by 2 ranks!
Twilight readies Swords Dance.
Twilight's physical attacks improved by 2 ranks!
Aslan readies Flamethrower.
Tsuki readies Yawn.
Fury felt drowsy.
Aslan felt drowsy.
Twilight felt drowsy.

The eyelids of both of Josh's Pokémon were growing heavy, but so were the Lucario's. The fighting-type was about to go to bed and not be a major threat for quite some time. It left the Umbreon free reign, but how much could an Umbreon do by its lonesome? He heard Callan's command to execute a move he had never even heard of before. What the young Leader saw blew his mind. A sparkling whirlwind wobbled toward Twilight with speed the increasingly sluggish Pokémon could not outrun. Her eyes opened wide in pain, the intense light staining her white fur red. It also had the effect of unshackling the Lucario from the chains of drowsiness. This was bad. Very bad.

"Aslan, NOBLE ROAR!" The lion lacking the energy to run, the normal-type instead bellowed an eardrum-beating roar intended to snap Twilight out of her sleep and lower morale among Callan's Pokémon. The noise had the opposite effect on the Absol; both of them closed their eyes and looked like they were about to fall over in their sleep. He peeked at the scoreboard, noticing a column that usually wasn't there. That was right - the challenger had agreed that Mega Evolution was allowed. It was time for Twilight to show what she was capable of in her highly advanced form that hadn't been used since his trip through the Mirage Palace. It was Josh's only move to prevent the battle from ending this very moment.

Josh pinched the first two fingers of his right hand together, moved the hand over the KEY STONE embedded in the racing glove on his otther hand, and opened the two fingers to a width of around an inch. The two glowed with sinister domes of light that exploded outward after he uncrossed his arms and raised them skyward.

The MEGA EVOLVED Absol's cry echoed loudly, raucous cheers coming from the gallery. "Twilight, QUICK ATTACK!" But this wasn't just one Quick Attack. He didn't like doing this so early in the battle, but it was now or never.

The THOUSAND CUT JOUST.

The dark-type, given a second wind from her angel-like appearance, tucked in her tufts that resembled wings, and built speed by running along the battleground's edge. "Now!" At the Leader's command, she turned toward Fury, tearing the grass beneath where she turned to shreds with her sharp claws. She sprinted barely to one side of the Lucario, trying to tag her with a high speed passing rake attack. That was but the first pass; she pulled a sharp about face, tearing apart more grass underneath her and lunging toward Tsuki, repeating the process with the other on the way back. While the move didn't have the raw speed it did with Blinky, Josh's Jolteon, the extra power, fueled by her Swords Dance, meant Callan's Pokémon had fewer chances to interrupt or otherwise thwart the blistering fast attack.

It was a good thing Aslan was asleep and didn't see this; otherwise, he would have bugged Josh about learning how to do that for weeks.

Fury readies Detect.
Fury protected itself!
Aslan fell asleep!
Fury fell asleep!
Twilight fell asleep!
Tsuki readies Sparkly Swirl.
It's super effective!
Fury recovered from an ailment.

The empowered, valkyrie-like dark-type tucked her "wings" in as she charged through Callan's two Pokémon with the speed of a race car. While each blow did not do much on its own, each subsequent triple cut added gash to slash. Josh's small section of the crowd erupted in applause and whistles, never getting tired of seeing the blistering fast technique his Gym was known for. Then, Callan called for EXTREME SPEED from Fury.

The move was one of Josh's greatest assets. In a foe's hands, though, it was his worst enemy. One of the reasons Josh's Traditional Battle BAR was so high was challengers using the move to defeat Josh's speed advantage. One point of advice he had received was to look for Rock-type, Steel-type, or Ghost-type ride Pokémon. Those, however, were few and far between.

Fury's high speed strike was the difference maker; the Absol steadily lost speed after the fourth strike, making Tsuki's FOUL PLAY much easier for the Umbreon to time. The two traded blows, though the Dark-type attack landed right on top of where Fury's strike was.

"Absol is unable to battle." were the head judge's words.

The two had worked together to defeat the greatest combat Pokémon Josh had on his entire roster. If he was to go to war with Team Rocket, Twilight would be the Pokémon he'd do it with. To be overcome like this was both a great accomplishment on the TERAVOLT star's part and a bitter defeat for the Leader. Furthermore, Aslan was still snoozing. If Callan was good at reading facial expressions, there was just one phrase that fit. Dejected, the Mauville Leader withdrew his fallen Pokémon.

Just finish me off.

Fury readies Extreme Speed.
Aslan is fast asleep.
Tsuki readies Foul Play.
Twilight has fallen.

Josh held Aslan's Poké Ball in his right hand, trying to time his withdrawal of the Fire-type for the moment just after Fury's CLOSE COMBAT hit. Unfortunately for the sleeping Pyroar, the Leader's timing was quite late, a drumroll of heavy punch impacts the only thing he could hear over the crowd's roar.

"Pyroar is unable to battle. Victory goes to the challenger, Callan Young !"

Josh's dejectedness turned to internal anger as he heard a cacophony of boos, and from his own section of the gallery at that. The Trainer's Box platforms sank back into the ground, the Mauville Leader suffering the most decisive and brutal defeat he had taken since becoming a Gym Leader in the first place, even in the Minor League.

The blue-looking racer walked toward Callan with his eyes only half-open, almost like he was sleep deprived. "I'll feel better once we get this post-battle ceremony over with. I'll try to get through it as quickly as I can." He cleared his throat.

"As expected from the newest member of Hoenn's Elite Four," Josh started the closing ceremony, though it was easy to tell he was not his normal self just from how much his tone was obviously faked, "you were able to see through some of the fastest Pokémon in the world. You achieved victory even through the power of Mega Evolution, despite not using it yourself." He procured from his pocket one of his Gym Badges. "I bestow upon you, Elite Four Callan Young , the official Hoenn League Quick Badge."

The moment Callan was done celebrating, Josh crossed his hands and started clashing them with one another, the gesture for "time out"; it was a signal to stop the stream and recording. "Please," he moaned to the TERAVOLT star. "Can we...get some time alone? In my office, perhaps?"

By the time Josh and Callan had made it to his office in the northwest corner of the building, the Leader had recovered emotionally. "It's... it's about my battles," the fresh Mauville Leader replied, pulling up his battle records. "Maybe you could tell during the one we just had." While technically it was a breach of protocol to show them to Callan in this way, the member of the Elite Four had supervisory access to them anyway. After he had loaded his battle records, he swiveled his list of most recent fifty battle challenges. Fifty? Had he already taken that many challengers in his short tenure? There was a disturbing trend, though.

The record of his losses was four times as long as that of his wins.

"I've been getting roasted by FERNANDO SILPH about this for the last week or so," Josh moaned. While the term "roast" was a bit of an exaggeration, it conveyed the Slateport Leader's concerns about the big shoes the racer had to fill. "Obviously this number is way out of line for a Gym Leader. You would know, I'm sure; you were a Gym Leader before you got promoted. This is going to sound embarrassing coming from a Gym Leader, but...I need help." It sounded absurd. Gym Leaders were paragons of Pokémon combat, hand-picked by the League. Yet he was coming to a former Gym Leader for help with the most basic of his duties. Was making him a Gym Leader a mistake?

Next, he showed the TERAVOLT star a recent coaching email. "As I'm sure you know, Meteno is coming. I've been tasked with activating the beacon in the desert, and I doubt Team Rocket will let that happen quietly." He let out a sigh that turned into another moan. "Which is why I wanted to come to you. Between touring with Teravolt and your duties as a member of the Elite Four, I'm sure your schedule is swamped. But is there a day, one day even, where our schedules align and you could help me with any of this stuff? It could make the difference between success and failure out there. Plus, they might start holding my job over my head. I love being a Gym Leader and I don't want to lose my position." He did his best to try smiling. "Plus, if I'm going to befriend Raikou, I need to learn how to fight a foe as fast as Raikou. I will never give up on that."

The Council member's scathing words may have also reached Callan, as they were in the same group chat all Gym Leaders were part of. Though they weren't directed at him personally, the Slateport Leader's choice of words made it feel personal. "Thank you so much, Callan. I know how difficult it is, what with both of our plates being full."

During his time in the Minor League program, Josh had repeated the answer to Callan's question many times. "Director kyle lopez told me every day I saw him that a successful Gym Leader is a paragon of Pokémon battles and a self-motivated beacon of leadership and responsibility, but most importantly, a good teacher."

He closed his eyes but continued to speak. "And until today, those words never really sunk in. Whether it be how to battle against a specific type of Pokémon, a specific quality of Pokémon, or even teach a broad lesson that will serve the trainer well, both as a Pokémon trainer and life as a whole, a good Gym Leader ultimately wants to impart challengers with knowledge." He opened his eyes again, a proverbial lightbulb turning on.

"Which brings up a point. If the point of a Gym Leader is to be a teacher and not win battles, then why is the rate at which a Leader awards their Gym Badge to challengers such an important metric of a Leader's performance?" It was a daring point to make, and went against how Gym programs had been run across most of the nation for years. It certainly wouldn't go over well with conservative members of the Council, nor conservative members of the IAPL. "That metric would make more sense for someone in your position as a member of the Elite Four. Win or lose, a Gym Leader's role is to pass on the knowledge of their Gym. I get it's important to only award Badges that you feel have truly absorbed that knowledge. But I think raw challenger victory rate should be reconsidered as a key metric for Gym Leaders' performance. If you aren't comfortable with it, then pick a day for me to come down to League HQ and I can tell the Council in my own words."

"I think we should try to schedule this sooner than later," the defeated Gym Leader urged. "Like I said, the more I can be prepared to fight on the front lines during Meteno, the better." One of a Gym Leader's responsibilities was defending not only Mauville City, but the Hoenn region as a whole, from existential threats. "We can battle here, at Lilycove Gym, at League HQ, wherever is convenient for you. And Callan? Thank you so much for listening to me vent. I know it's hard. I really do."

"Oh, one more thing," Josh remembered to ask just as he was about to leave his office. "When we battled, did you feel you learned something from our battle?"