Mount Chimney was a place Josh hadn't visited in quite some time; the last time he had visited the boiling crater was with MATIAS SILPH as part of the VALOR Initiative. It was the day that kickstarted his chase into what it had become, and truly made him aware of just how much power Avatars had. Without Groudon's powers, the Elite Four member would have melted. While there was an obstacle course he would have to navigate as part of the timed challenge with Wiley, his towering Furret that Oliver would eventually see, that was his secondary training objective. His primary objective would be to harden his hands, arms, legs, and thighs against six of the wildest roughhouses on his team, rodeo style. That, of course, would come later.

As Josh came in for a landing on Tiamat, the blue-uniformed Elite waved to Oliver. "Nice to see you again, Ollie! Her name is Tiamat," he introduced the Dragonite, dismounting. While she wasn't anywhere as close as friendly as Resheph was, she was at least civil around the other Ranger and his team. "I'm only planning on making one run for the course though; I actually came here to strengthen my riding muscles." He sent out and introduced the rest of his team, including something truly wild that Oliver may not have been expecting: Wiley, a Furret in riding gear. She was almost as long as a typical Dragonair. While the design of her saddle meant a rider would have to be quite hunched over, it looked functional! "These are six of the roughest Pokémon I've got, and if I can get my eight seconds with each, I'll call it a big success."

---

Oliver Shrakes

{WC: 282}
{PC: 1}

NAME          SPECIES        STATUS
Tiamat        Dragonite      Good
Kokusho       Hydreigon      Good
Simba         Pyroar         Good
Braver        Arcanine       Good
Verte         Flygon         Good
Wiley         Furret         Good

Tiamat huh? She seemed a bit standoffish to him, but he was also someone new to her. Ollie's Dragonite, like usual, just let it slide. What can you do? Sometimes just gotta let'im warm up to you. Josh mentioned just running through the course once, and then work on his riding muscles. Even showing off the six Pokemon he had planned on using. Including probably the largest Furret he had ever seen. "I'll keep a timer for it. But do know this route is quite long, so I don't know if you'll have time for all six of them. If you're ready though, let's get started." If he planned on doing that, then they better get going!

The first leg was up the trail at an incline. Oliver set an easy for now. If Josh wanted it increased, they could do that. Dragonite followed the red and black haired man on the ground, looking to work them legs as well. And uphill was a lot more difficult to pull than level or going downhill. And so the jog began up the Rocky Steps. Hopefully Josh wasn't going to fall behind, or will say something he was struggling to keep up.


Josh Devlin

The incline would be perfect for Josh's newest recruit, Wiley. He had learned a lot about how to handle a Furret from Techu, Aki Kumori 's Furret, but he still anticipated it to be quite a rough one. The Leader climbed on and leaned down, making it easier to lift his legs into the normal-type's highly specialized harness. "Alright, let's run, Wiley!" The Former Alpha's running stroke caught Josh off guard, bouncing him about in the saddle more harshly than a big cat like Simba or Aslan.

The two hitting the incline didn't make things too much easier; Josh felt like he was sitting upright astride his Furret, able to feel every powerful stride. Keeping his legs off the ground was the hardest part; if he relaxed them while they were climbing, they would almost certainly drag on the ground and pull him off his highly unusual mount! With every sharp bound, his legs felt like they were going to give out.

As stressful as the climb was on his legs, the real test was at the top of the slope. Having room to run, Wiley's gallop became more pronounced through his acceleration, Josh letting out a grunt as the long-bodied Pokémon kicked up loose dirt with a sharp swerve. His upper leg started to thump, but the Gym Leader was still in position. Just like Techu, though, Wiley had a similar trick up his sleeve. Rather than using AGILITY that Josh was used to, he made a sharp U-TURN that made his rider's knuckles turn white, then followed it up with a second U-TURN in the opposite direction, his long body flexing like a whip. The switchback bucked Josh off and sent him rolling down the course, Wiley proud to have unseated him. "Whew," the Leader sighed, catching his breath after that one.

---

Oliver Shrakes

{WC: 303}
{PC: 2}

NAME          SPECIES        STATUS
Tiamat        Dragonite      Good
Kokusho       Hydreigon      Good
Simba         Pyroar         Good
Braver        Arcanine       Good
Verte         Flygon         Good
Wiley         Furret         Good

Oliver watched the Furret's gate, and took note on how it moved. Poor thing was so low to the ground that Josh had to work just keep himself from dragging on the ground. Well, if the rider was determined...

Even when the duo went past him, Oliver didn't increase the pace that much. Especially since it was likely that at the top, Wiley will try to buck Josh off. When he got up there, sure enough, one U-Turn later saw the man go flying. And rolling far enough that Ollie put his foot at the man's shoulder/side to get him to stop. With a goofy smile, the red and black haired man shook his head. "You have a problem, friend." Okay, his turn.

Approaching the Furret calmly, he patted the thing on the head, and scritched behind the ears. Then Oliver hopped on. And off Wiley went. Even using the same maneuver to try to get him off. But no matter what the Pokemon did, Oliver hung on. The Furret had to use a combination of U-Turn plus another move to make the cadet slip off. And even then, Ollie landed on his feet, even if stumbling back. "That's not so bad. Ready for part two, Josh?" He grinned at the gym leader. Part two would have them going through the tunnel right there, and go up, then down, then up again to a larger cavern that led to the outside again.

Josh Devlin

Aki had warned Josh how rough and tumble the Normal-type could get, and he clearly couldn't handle it yet. Today's humbling experience with Wiley was progress, though, even if the end result was him flyin toward Ollie's feet. "Is it, though? Is it really a problem?" he sheepishly defended himself. Ollie did have a point, though; Josh had dozens of Pokémon like this at his Gym. Was it truly necessary to have this many trained for such a purpose? Even a large-scale disaster wouldn't need so many Pokémon helping out. Perhaps it really was an obsession of his.

Next, Josh watched Wiley do the same thing to Ollie, who had a bit more luck with the Furret's swerving. When the duo was done, it almost looked like he fell off of his own accord, rather than the Furret truly bucking him off. "You're talented," Josh complimented Ollie, his Furret dancing and grinning from giving his best rodeo showing. He seemed proud to be able to dislodge both of them with his swerving.

Once Josh had rested from the sudden swerving and his legs felt better, he swapped out the Furret for Simba, his freshly-saddled Pyroar that was younger and much more of a free spirit than Aslan was. The rough terrain, along with the lion's flexing back, would test Josh's strength rather than his dexterity. "Alright, let's go!" he cheered, racing into the tunnel.

---

Oliver Shrakes

{WC: 236}
{PC: 3}

NAME          SPECIES        STATUS
Tiamat        Dragonite      Good
Kokusho       Hydreigon      Good
Simba         Pyroar         Good
Braver        Arcanine       Good
Verte         Flygon         Good
Wiley         Furret         Good

Most likely, yes. But Oliver wasn't going to confirm that. Instead, the red and black haired punk ranger just bowed extravagently. He was awesome, what can he say? The Furret was no slouch either, and it did to a dance around them with a happy grin on its face. It actually looked quite cute. Josh switched over to a Pyroar. The fire lion stretched, and Josh got on, racing to the tunnel. Shaking his head, Oliver followed at a brisk pace, his Dragonite following after them.

The tunnel led them up for a couple dozen yards, then circled down. And then back up again, but for much longer. While he couldn't see Josh, he could hear him and his Pyroar. And it sounded like a wild ride. Eventually going up and into a large room that was much better lighted, Oliver witness the last part of Josh's ride. Once the man was taken off of the massive Pokemon, Oliver approached him. "That's two down. At this rate, you'll still have two left for a trip unless you plan on going all the way to Lavaridge with them." The next one was a short tunnel, then scaling the side of the mountain again. And through a small maze of tunnels to end up on the other side. It'll make speed far less important, and value precision and quick turning more than anything.


Josh Devlin

Josh let out a grunt at every peak and trough that Simba charged through. While the lion wasn't nearly as good at bucking as Wiley was, he didn't need to be. Josh was used to Aslan's high speed and more rapid running stroke that kept him a little more stable. What Simba lacked in speed, he more than made up for in strength. Rather than seemingly hovering above the saddle like he did with the shiny Pyroar, he was bouncing around more harshly than he was used to. This was the reason humans did not often ride big cats despite their awesome speed: the strength and endurance needed to make being astride one worthwhile took a lot of time and practice to develop.

At the end of the tunnel was a mazze or turns that really put Josh's iron thighs to the test. While he wouldn't have to worry about the Pyroar's bouncy, almost violent gallop, the imbalance of force between his two legs with every turn felt like he was being pinched on the side he was turning into. The turns weren't whip-like as they were with Wiley, but the added inertia from his mount's much greater weight made holding on with every swerving turn harder.

It was a bit harsh, but nothing he couldn't handle; after all, Twilight made far quicker turns, and he was used to the Absol. Simba had other plans, though; once he had emerged on the other side of the tunnel, he dug his claws into the ground and slammed on the metaphorical brakes. The rider found his face buried in red for, his hands clasping the reins for dear life as Simba reared like he was going to pounce. Taking the cue, Josh dropped the reins and also buried his hands in his Pokémon's fur, Simba slamming his front paws down and standing on just those two as he kicked his rear ones up. The rider let out a cry as he felt his mount's immense strength push against his lower body in a strong bucking motion.

Standing on all four legs again, Simba let out a proud purr. It was not one of celebrating his own strength like Wiley had done, but of how much Josh had grown physically to be able to stay mounted after such a strong shift of body weight. He lifted his hands up in triumpy, letting out a victory cry. Now he could say he withstood the romp of a bucking Pyroar! And he still had other Pokémon left! Which would be suited for the fiery mountain's next obstacle? He dismounted Simba and sent his Arcanine out to hop onto next, seeing he was getting close to the peak. The tip top of Mount Chimney would be a better place to let his flying Pokémon loose.

---

Oliver Shrakes

{WC: 472}
{PC: 4}

NAME          SPECIES        STATUS
Tiamat        Dragonite      Good
Kokusho       Hydreigon      Good
Simba         Pyroar         Good
Braver        Arcanine       Good
Verte         Flygon         Good
Wiley         Furret         Good

Oh? He succeeded in staying on. And his comment went completely ignored as Josh returned the Pyroar and took out Arcanine for the last leg of the journey. Mostly? He did still have two flyers left. "The last leg to the top prefers precision and turning over raw speed. So be careful." He pointed at the short tunnel that was the beginning. The black and red haired man would expect him to just blow past him when he started sprinting towards it. Once out, he would turn sharply so he wouldn't fall off and go up to his left. The incline was steeper than the previous one, but he still kept a fast pace, not quite sprinting this time.

Once he was up, Ollie again turned left to the beginning of the hardest part, a maze of tunnels. Taking the first few steps in, the ranger cadet went to his right, then left, left again, right, going on past an opening, right, and so much more. Not every turn had another place to go to, not every opening lead to the way out. It did have markers showing you the way, but if you're too fast or just outright oblivious, you'd miss them by a country mile. Oliver didn't really need them since he studied the map well enough to navigate without any help. He just wondered if Josh went on ahead of him or if the adreniline junky slowed down enough to make the turns and see the markers showing you the right way. Well, he'd keep his ears out and wait to see if he had any luck in getting out...

Josh Devlin

As Josh climbed on Braver's back, he could feel the Arcanine was really fired up, which would make following Ollie's warning that much harder. "I wish I would have known that!" Josh replied, a little frustrated he already used his best Pokémon for this obstacle. "Then I would have used Simba for this part instead!" Too late for that now. With it obvious Braver wanted to run, controlling the big fire-type would be difficult.

Once Ollie was a good distance ahead, Braver bolted after him, Josh pulling back on his reins with both hands in an effort to moderate his pace. "I know you're excited, but not so fast!" Josh was able to slow his mount some, but it was still faster than he was comfortable with, given the terrain. With what got into him, if he didn't keep pressure on the reins, the Arcanine would go into a full EXTREME SPEED, which would spell bad news when they hit that slope. His hands shook as the force Arcanine put on his hands through the reins began to pinch him, threatening to forcibly open the rider's closed fists.

The steep slope hindered the Arcanine's speed significantly, slowing the duo to a pace at which he could see the markers in the tunnel maze. While the turns weren't overly harsh for most Pokémon, Arcanine were not adept at turning at all. Josh grunted through most of them, having to pull the reins taut just to get Braver to turn sharply enough.

The end of the tunnel maze took them to the end of the section, where predictably, Braver started bucking and heaving. Unlike with Simba, whose combination of agility and strength he could handle, and Wiley, who tried to dislodge him with only U-TURNs, the Arcanine thrashed purely with strength. The strength of the first leap took him by surprise, getting a shout out of Josh. The second threw him off balance, and the third resulted in a violent buckoff on par with a Tauros. He slowly sat up, a bit more shaken up than he expected to be.

One-for-three on overland rides was not good.

---

Oliver Shrakes

{WC: 357}
{PC: 5}

NAME          SPECIES        STATUS
Tiamat        Dragonite      Good
Kokusho       Hydreigon      Good
Simba         Pyroar         Good
Braver        Arcanine       Good
Verte         Flygon         Good
Wiley         Furret         Good

Oliver laughed at the response. Well, only one way for a Pokemon to get better. It's fine if they were a specialist, but it should also be a testament to how well trained it is to be able to know when to dial down that specialty for something else that's not its primary strength. As expected, however, the Arcanine went past him. Even though he had waited to catch his breath some at the end of the maze, he powerwalked up to where the dark haired man was. And the Arcanine was bucking wildly just like the Pyroar earlier. And got taken off much more violently. One for three. "Thirty-three percent is failing. Ground mounts wise, total fail. Overall is still up in the air. Get it. What's next?"

Oliver looked over the various peaks. Technically, their run was over. Unless they headed down the easy path down towards Lavaridge town. "Lavaridge is just past the easy slopes that would be good for sheer speed. Alternatively, we could give our flyers some wing muscle via the peaks or darting around close to the ground. I'll leave it to your choice this time." His Dragonite looked pumped to exercise his wings a bit. Small, sure, but they packed quite the punch.

Josh Devlin

"Arceus, Braver is a strong one," Josh panted, the Arcanine taking it as a compliment and letting out a howl. He interpreted the laugh as an indication of the absurdity of a Gym Leader not being able to control their Pokémon. "Nah, Oliver, this is all premeditated. I asked them to try to buck me off. You see, my Hydreigon, Kokusho, has a problem with that under normal circumstances. There are days when he just gets enjoyment out of sending me flying, and one of my other Pokémon has to catch me. That's part of the reason I'm trying to train myself to get better with them." Her dancing partner came to mind. "Have you met this greenhead, Shalin Nariya ? Long haired, real chipper. She's a master at this sort of thing."

Noticing Oliver's Dragonite, Josh withdrew Braver for his own Dragonite, Tiamat. The female waved to the other Ranger's before helping his trainer stand. "Given how likely my Flygon and Hydreigon are to unseat me, a run along the slopes sounds like a great way for them to stretch their wings. How do you feel about an EXTREME SPEED duel?" he asked. "Think you can handle it?" The incredible speed was still harsh on Josh, and didn't get much less harsh with every run. After all, it was the fastest speed any common Pokémon had to offer.

---

Oliver Shrakes

{WC: 221}
{PC: 6}

NAME          SPECIES        STATUS
Tiamat        Dragonite      Good
Kokusho       Hydreigon      Good
Simba         Pyroar         Good
Braver        Arcanine       Good
Verte         Flygon         Good
Wiley         Furret         Good

Ah, so he got the purpose of this semi-wrong. Though when he mentioned the greenhaired lady, Oliver did pipe up. "She'd have to be to stay on Caprice the way she did to reclaim her. Plan on taking lessons from her?" He joked a little bit. When Josh returned his Arcanine and brought out Tiamat, his own Dragonite waved at her. Who waved back. Awww...were they warming up to each other? That was cute. Looking down the easy slope for a speedrun, Oliver did speak again. "Remember, mine doesn't know Extreme Speed, even if he damn near flies close to it in straight lines. I wouldn't mind a race, but I doubt I'll win if you plan on using that move. Still, we'll give a good showing." Dragonite nodded enthusiastically in response. He may not win, but he would be maybe two seconds behind. And he already had his riding gear on for Ollie to ride him, so why not?


Josh Devlin

When Oliver mentioned Shalin's nonsense with her Kantonian Ninetales, Josh threw his hands up. "She's crazy. Like...really crazy. Back when we were still in Johto, she once told me she would try riding her Yanmega by his wing when he got really strong. Do you know how crazy that sounds? Yeah... no thanks." He shuddered at the idea of that demented girl performing such a feat.

"Your Dragonite still doesn't?" Josh frowned in disappointment. "That's what I was planning on training with." As if to show Oliver how excited she was to expose Josh to the ultrafast move, she flapped her wings so fast that they hummed like an insect's. "Whoo!" Josh cried as he felt the reverberation from the hummingbird-like wingbeats. "Even from a standstill, that's a rough one!"

"Heh, don't sell yourself short," Josh chuckled. "It's not just about what your Pokémon's capable of. You gotta be able to handle your mount's speed, too. And even without EXTREME SPEED, Dragonite get pretty wild." With that, he counted the duo down, ready for the two dragon-types to dive down the mountain slope.

---

Oliver Shrakes

{WC: 185}
{PC: 7}

NAME          SPECIES        STATUS
Tiamat        Dragonite      Good
Kokusho       Hydreigon      Good
Simba         Pyroar         Good
Braver        Arcanine       Good
Verte         Flygon         Good
Wiley         Furret         Good