The Forest of Secrets, Rosmontis' Gym, seemed like it didn't even have a formal lobby; the entire facility was outdoors. As the gazes of wild creatures bore down on him, Josh jabbed his knees into his mount's sides. "Raikou, can we go a little faster?" he asked Saber, the Manectric happy to pick up the pace.

As he approached the registration area, Josh was not expecting to find two Gym Leaders. As the second dematerialized into a Ditto, it all made sense. The Mauville Major Leader was particularly impressed with her Luxray; he wished he had brought his own. Saber masquerading as Raikou would have to do. "You stand before the Hero of Johto and Raikou's Avatar, Josh, the Committed!" he boisterously declared, raising his plastic, lightning bolt-shaped sword above his head for a pose before sheathing it and dropping the charade.

"I had to. It's that time of year," Josh laughed. "Great to meet you in person, Rosmontis. I am indeed Mauville Gym Leader Josh Devlin. Until after the assassination attempt that left me in the hospital for eleven days, I had no clue that Mauville City had a second Pokémon Gym! Had to check it out." Saber let out a bark of greeting toward the powerful-looking Luxray. "And Saber here isn't really a Raikou, sadly. I wish." The rider briefly tilted the electric Pokémon's mask up to reveal the face of a Manectric beneath. "Thank you for all the best wishes when I was in the hospital. It means a lot."

Josh carefully considered the choice Rosmontis offered him. He immediately dismissed the Ditto, and the Comfey would likely blend in with his outfit. Having eyes in the back of his head was the most appealing option. "I choose the Yanmega!"

Wait, back up a minute. Did Rosmontis truly believe Josh was an Avatar? Was his costume and obviously plastic sword that convincing? He had to set that record straight, right now. "I wish. I wish I was Raikou's Avatar," he lsughed, Saber letting out a bark of his own. His tone was obviously one of jest, so there was no way Rosmontis would believe he was actually serious about chasing Raikou, right? "It's October, and it's in the spirit of Halloween."

With that settled, Josh waved toward the young Leader. "Thanks for the best wishes and the good luck!" He tilted his head toward the woods' entrance, gently thrusting his legs into his mount's sides. "Come on, Sa--er, Raikou. Let's go!" It still warmed his heart enough to call his Manectric by the name Raikou when they were in costume, even if the charade had long since passed.

Ema's buzzing was loud indeed. It reminded him of his friend that he routinely spent time at the arcade with. She was a bit of a wild child in that she loves riding bug Pokémon, including a Yanmega. Even with earplugs, how she sat between their wings blew his mind. Wouldn't that just be deafening?

Suddenly, Ema stopped, her compound eyes staring toward a bush. Curiosity getting the better of Josh, he guided his Manectric toward the dirt mound, the electric-type sniffing around. Anything to keep that sensitive nose of his away from that awful, awful smell.

Saber reared in fright as the dirt mound he was sniffing exploded. "Whoa! Easy, boy!" Josh cried, holding on for dear life. From it emerged a tiny Rowlet, the grass-type enthralled with the Mauville Gym Leader's mount. "So cute!" he said in an unusually high pitched voice, at least by his standards. "Can you sit down for a little bit, Saber?" the rider asked of his electric Pokémon. The Manectric obeyed, Josh spreading his legs to let the ground lift him out of the saddle. He crouched down to pick up the excited Rowlet. "You want to come with us?" he asked of the wide-eyed Pokémon, picking the grass-type bird up and allowing it to roost either on top of Saber's yellow head or at the end of his saddle, whichever it felt more comfortable with.

An extra set of eyes at his beck and call, Josh mounted up once more, the Manectric following Ema toward the gurgling noise. The racer wanted to check out the source of the scent, but he felt exposing Saber's sensitive nose to such a pungent aroma would be inconsiderate. He paid careful attention to the Rowlet's mood, attempting to keep the speedy electric-type to a pace the wild was comfortable with. If the young Pokémon wanted to go fast, all the better!

The Rowlet's chirp made Josh smile. It seemed the Manectric's static didn't bother the small bird too much. Perhaps it was because the bird didn't actually have the Flying type? He hadn't studied Alolan and Galarian species too much, outside the Pokémon well-suited for racing such as Crash, his Boltund. If the young Pokémon was purely Grass-type, then being comfortable around the static made sense.

Ema taking Saber a bit off the beaten path, the Manectric suddenly reared, startling the "Avatar" on his back. Before the mount and rider was a field of nettle-covered weeds and vines that would be positively impossible to walk through, even with thick, leather boots. The low, undulating ceiling made things challenging as well, leaving him unable to use his larger flying Pokémon.

Thankfully, Josh had brought the perfect flying Pokémon for the job! He dismounted the electric Pokémon and spread his arms for the Rowlet to jump into. If the grass-type was able to safely descend, he would withdraw his Manectric for his Dragonair, Resheph. The serpentine dragon, with the ability to hover and make precise undulations with her body, was his best bet for crossing. He helped the grass-type find the most comfortable spot on the Dragon-type's back, which was probably at the end of her saddle, before backing her up a good distance.

Keeping the nettles in sight, Josh took a deep breath. "Alright, little one, hold on tight! This is gonna get fast!" The racer firmly gripped Resheph's reins. "Resheph, use your AGILITY!" A relxaed coo later, the Dragonair whizzed toward the maze of foliage, her speed-boosting technique not only propelling her faster, but making it easier to react to sudden twists and turns. The danger was in Josh getting flung off; in his haste, he was unaware he had failed to snap his cocoon together, leaving him at risk!

When used properly, speed was an incredibly potent weapon, perhaps more potent than the strength needed to throw powerful punches and kicks like a Machamp. Perhaps more potent, even, then the fully harnessed mind of an Alakazam. Speed was also a potent shield. What better defense was there than to avoid getting hit in the first place? Josh had commanded the Dragonair to race above the nettles as fast as she could, and it was working...for a time.

Thick, green nets of vines dropped down from the canopy, the rider skillfully weaving his dragon around them. While Josh had superior reaction time from being used to flying at absurd speeds, the human reaction time had its limits, and this one showed that limit. The two found themselves ensnared in a net, Resheph's tail bound. There went his original plan! He was going to use his Pyroar to burn off a small section of the vines and nettles around him, giving him space to land and fight. That wasn't happening now, though! With Resheph unable to use her AQUA TAIL, he had no way to contain the fire!

He needed more information on what was behind the forest's sudden and harsh reaction to him speeding on through toward its core. And fast. Otherwise he would wind up picking thorns out of his racing suit--and the skin underneath--for a long and painful time. His legs may have been bound, but his arms were not! He pitched Janus's Poké Ball toward the direction where the eyes were most complicated, the saddled Espeon emerging from within. "Use your DAZZLING GLEAM, Janus! Not to harm, but to illuminate!" The psychic-type's forked tail stood straight up, his forehead gem glowing in hues of red and white. From it came a bright light that Josh hoped would identify what was causing the woods to lash out at him and give him an idea of how to handle the predicament he was in.

The blinding light of Janus' DAZZLING GLEAM freed him from the clutches of his now-identified assailants: a large horde of Tangela. His first instinct was to raze a path through them all with Aslan; the Kalosian jungle king would have little trouble doing so. That was what the old Josh would have done without hesitation. Once the flames had scared the Tangela away, cleaning them up would have been fairly simple, having Resheph's AQUA TAIL to fling water over a wide area. He had once done exactly that alongside paxton concordas , the two putting out a fire at Petalburg Campground. Aslan's FLAMETHROWER was far too dangerous to use over such a wide area and cause a repeat of this, particularly on official League challenge grounds.

That plan wasn't going to cut it here.

His training as a Ranger gave him valuable insight. While Leader-rank trainers were known for their exemplary conflict resolution skills through Pokémon combat, his experience as an environmentalist bestowed conflict resolution skills on the coin's flip side. After he stepped back and thought about it, the battle had already been won. He had Ema. The Yanmega knew the forest well. If anyone knew a way through the swaths of rattled Tangela, it was the buzzing bug. Josh withdrew his Espeon and hopped back onto his Dragonair's back. "Follow the Yanmega! Carefully!" Josh commanded, leaving the reins hooked to the end of her saddle and leaving the precision flight entirely in the dragon-type's control. Any Tangela who wandered too close would be meant with a strong dose of THUNDER WAVE to keep them at bay.