"Match?" Josh guffawed. "They don't call me the Master of Faster for nothing!" Elise's comment goaded the Jolteon into showing just how fast she was, her paws sparking with an electric discharge. With a more open section of Route 121's trail coming up, Blinky roared a crackled cry before drastically speeding up, kicking up a big dirt cloud every time she swerved. Josh was worried the tight turns would put too much pressure on her artificial claws. They were designed to last for a lifetime under normal use, but the surgeon that had performed the operation advised Josh that they wouldn't hold up forever under the stress of racing. Given hos often he raced her, she would likely need to repeat the surgery several times in her life. "You should see how fast she is when she QUICK ATTACKs! It honestly feels like you're riding a lightning bolt!" As good of an analogy as that was, it wasn't entirely true; he had ridden a living lightning bolt before in the form of Raikou. It was a day he would never forget.

"There is no shortage of great dragon-type ride Pokémon," Josh agreed with Elise. "I have a nearly complete collection of commonly ridden dragons at my Gym. Far as Ghost-types go, you've only really got one option, and that's Dragapult." He didn't consider Drifblim to be an option without the ability to control wind, and he didn't know Houndstone existed yet, but those may have been options she was aware of. "I've got a Dragapult back at my Gym if you ever want to rein one up and give it a try, but I do have to warn you of how fast they are. They're absolutely not a good idea for a beginner rider."

[attr="class","wildtemp"]

[attr="class","wildbgsaf"]

[attr="class","wildtitle"]A WILD GOLURK APPEARED!

[attr="class","wildshiny"]

[attr="class","wildpkmnbox"]

[attr="class","wildpkmn"]

[attr="class","wildtab"]

[attr="class","wildtabox"] GENDERLESS	[attr="class","wildtabox2"] IRON FIST
[attr="class","wildtabox"]ASTONISH	[attr="class","wildtabox2"]MAGNITUDE
[attr="class","wildtabox"]FOCUS PUNCH	[attr="class","wildtabox2"]DYNAMIC PUNCH
[attr="class","wildtabox"] ---	[attr="class","wildtabox2"] ---

[attr="class","wildtag"]Elise Calcifet Josh Devlin

[attr="class","wildnote"] WHAT WILL YOU DO?

[attr="class","wildtemp"]

[attr="class","wildbgsaf"]

[attr="class","wildtitle"]A WILD WOOBAT APPEARED!

[attr="class","wildshiny"]

[attr="class","wildpkmnbox"]

[attr="class","wildpkmn"]

[attr="class","wildtab"]

[attr="class","wildtabox"] FEMALE	[attr="class","wildtabox2"] UNAWARE
[attr="class","wildtabox"]CONFUSION	[attr="class","wildtabox2"]ODOR SLEUTH
[attr="class","wildtabox"]ENDEAVOR	[attr="class","wildtabox2"]SIMPLE BEAM
[attr="class","wildtabox"] ---	[attr="class","wildtabox2"] ---

[attr="class","wildtag"]Elise Calcifet Josh Devlin

[attr="class","wildnote"] WHAT WILL YOU DO?

Elise Calcifet CAUGHT THE DUSCLOPS!

"Awesome!" Josh replied with a hint of a grin. "Sidewinder, my Dragapult, is about as beginner friendly as the species gets. I can't promise you he's as beginner friendly as a Rapidash, but he'll be as good of a learning experience as you can get with them." He stepped back to watch her freshly caught Pokémon do battle with a wild Golurk, impressed with the control she had over the one-eyes apparition. "You must have a lot of experience with Ghost-type Pokémon. You should be fine."

After the battle, Josh set some expectations for a meeting. "Unfortunately, a lesson would have to be after my Gym hours. I'm really busy with riding classes and challenges for the next several weeks, but I'm sure we could go flying together one late afternoon or early evening." He took his right hand off Mystic's reins just long enough to rest his hand on the bottom of his helmet briefly. "Early evening might be better as Dragapult are nocturnal."

[attr="class","wildtemp"]

[attr="class","wildbgsaf"]

[attr="class","wildtitle"]A WILD SABLEYE APPEARED!

[attr="class","wildshiny"]

[attr="class","wildpkmnbox"]

[attr="class","wildpkmn"]

[attr="class","wildtab"]

[attr="class","wildtabox"] MALE	[attr="class","wildtabox2"] KEEN EYE
[attr="class","wildtabox"]SCRATCH	[attr="class","wildtabox2"]QUASH
[attr="class","wildtabox"]FAKE OUT	[attr="class","wildtabox2"]ASTONISH
[attr="class","wildtabox"] ---	[attr="class","wildtabox2"] ---

[attr="class","wildtag"]Elise Calcifet Josh Devlin

[attr="class","wildnote"] WHAT WILL YOU DO?

[attr="class","wildtemp"]

[attr="class","wildbgsaf"]

[attr="class","wildtitle"]A WILD GRUMPIG APPEARED!

[attr="class","wildshiny"]

[attr="class","wildpkmnbox"]

[attr="class","wildpkmn"]

[attr="class","wildtab"]

[attr="class","wildtabox"] MALE	[attr="class","wildtabox2"] THICK FAT
[attr="class","wildtabox"]PAYBACK	[attr="class","wildtabox2"]BELCH
[attr="class","wildtabox"]ODOR SLEUTH	[attr="class","wildtabox2"]PSYWAVE
[attr="class","wildtabox"] ---	[attr="class","wildtabox2"] ---

[attr="class","wildtag"]Elise Calcifet Josh Devlin

[attr="class","wildnote"] WHAT WILL YOU DO?

Elise Calcifet CAUGHT THE GOLURK!

Elise seemed enthusiastic enough, but Josh was still a bit worried for the inexperienced rider. "I just have to stress how fast Dragapult are, and them being Ghost-types gives them speed and agility unlike almost any other dragon. I'll make sure to bring him when we next meet, but I just want to make sure you're not in over your head. How fast they are makes them so hard to control." It seemed like she had an extensive history with Ghost-types; perhaps she'd be able to commune with him on an axis he didn't.

"Wow, the time really has flown, hasn't it?" he asked rhetorically after Elise indirectly pointed out the setting sun. "I'm really gonna have to floor it to get back to Mauville before dark." Had Josh really drawn the princess into the racing community? He didn't expect a royal to be so interested so easily. "I've got a lot of them that roam my Gym freely. Might have to give you a tour someday! See ya 'round!" With that, the duo parted ways.