Of course the first thing their new companion would do was hit on them. At least they had all formally introduced themselves to one another prior to their dangerous work. "I thought I told you before we came here, Dei. I appreciate the sentiment, but I am single and not looking," Josh replied, his tone perhaps a bit terse. The idea of intimate relationships clearly struck a chord with him.

From the last time he had been to The Border, Josh knew how important it was to keep his entire squad out of their Poké Balls and near him. Even his yellow-and-blue SYGNA SUIT and Manectric alone weren't able to protect him from the spirit of Chien-Pao without loss. It was only with the help of many others that he was able to survive his encounter with the real thing. As frightening as the creature was, the fear of his own failure was what drew him back to it -- and to this realm as a whole.

It would take a lot of convincing and even more combat skill, but he wanted to bring that snow cat into a Poké Ball.

His saddled Pokémon team was assembled, by far the most unusual a Zeraora that preferred running on all fours instead of upright, and a Xurkitree that took a feline shape reminiscent of the legendary Pokémon Raikou. Neither of those were the Pokémon he was seated on, though. The Gym Leader was on his Manectric, Saber, the INFINITY ENERGY flowing between the duo, JOLLY emotions shared between the two uniting in efforts to put one of his biggest demons to rest. Not his obsession with Raikou - that was already bottled up once more.

It was SHAWN RICHARDS.

The Interim Gym Leader's life taken from him that tragic day, his soul would almost certainly be restless.

Feeding his entire squad from the stash of DOPPEL BONNETS Josh had stockpiled, all of his Pokémon would be ready to go flying across the realm's land at surreal, almost legendary speeds. Perhaps Raikiri would be able to even match the Johto Beast's speed with the help of the speed-raising herb he had consumed. "We won't cover much ground on foot. Let's ride." From left to right, he introduced his team of six, starting with the Manectric he rode. "Saber, Blitz, Blinky, Raikiri, Jiujiu, and Crash. They're all reliable and will see us through." The squad of six electric Pokémon may have led the others to believe Josh was an electric Gym Leader when, in fact, he was not. If Kaz or Dei needed help getting on any of the Pokémon -- even his Zeraora or Xurkitree, he would temporarily dismount to help.

Josh's temper was quickly growing short with Dei's continued hits. "Stop. Dei, just... stop." Jiujiu was enigmatic, sensing the presence of a guest on the thick wire representing Raikou's thundercloud. Grabbing onto the flats of the Ultra Beast's spikes was how Josh rode Jiujiu, as well; with the great speed the electric-type possessed, reducing drag to avoid being blown off the unusual Pokémon was important. "At least we have something in common!"

Of course Kaz would hop on Raikiri's back. Who wouldn't pass up the opportunity to ride a legendary Pokémon... or something close to it? Likewise sensing the guest in the form of the ex-Elite Four, the thundercat sounded a powerful purr that may have rattled him... almost like being on a revving motorcycle.

When Dei brought to Josh's attention that the bridge seemed to be shrinking, the Master of Faster squeezed his Manectric's sides. "We gotta pick up the pace, big time! Hold on tight, everyone!" Channeling the INFINITY ENERGY of his suit, the Pokémon racer's mind drifted to JOLLY thoughts of his next big race later this summer. His suit's SYNC STONE glowing, the Manectric took the lead. "Jiujiu, use DOUBLE TEAM! Saber, Raikiri, use QUICK ATTACK!"

With that, the three electric-types and their riders disappeared into the blur, the bridge collapsing as they sped across it, the multicolored sky perhaps turning into a flashing blur as spires and other natural formations within the realm of the dead whipped past all three. The thirteen year old bond between Josh and his Manectric, powered by his SYGNA SUIT, let the two keep pace even with the mythical feline whose speed could exceed that of even some of the fastest legendary Pokémon around.

Raikiri's speed mid-QUICK ATTACK may have given poor Kazimir Wynter blisters from how unbelievably fast it was. The thundercat, in that state, would have been able to keep pace with many legendary Pokémon known for their high speed. The trio needed every bit of speed they had, Jiujiu bouncing @deimos around as though the Ultra Beast was a true feline. "Is everyone okay?!" Josh asked, borderline shouting as the bridge crumbled behind them, his heart still racing from the amount of speed the three needed. He had to push his Sygna bond quite far for the Manectric to be able to keep up. The energy discharge drained both of them significantly.

Scanning his surroundings, Josh noticed Jiujiu's saddle was empty, the Xurkitree's cables wavering far more than usual. "Umm... where's Dei? I don't see him anywhere." With a focused look on his face, he gripped Saber's reins tightly. "Saber, use MAGNET RISE. We need to find him." The Manectric began to levitate with electromagnetism, using it to fuel a limited version of flight. It wasn't true flying, but it would serve well enough for the Gym Leader to perform an aerial search.

Once they had crossed the disappearing bridge, Josh heard Kaz calling out to him. Kazimir Wynter reining Raikiri around in various directions looking for Deimos let Josh and Saber at last catch up. That Zeraora was just too fast. Was this what Josh's challengers felt like when he put the metaphorical pedal to the metal in the last lap of a Pokémon race? He, too, took a look around, trying to find their partner. The flirtatious one should have been seated on Jiujiu, but the feline wireframe did not have a passenger.

It wasn't until @deimos reappeared, on the ground and badly bleeding, that another familiar face appeared in front of him. It was the translucent body of SHAWN RICHARDS, the Interim Mauville Gym Leader that perished at the hands of dorian westcliff . Even in the afterlife, his back was badly burned and mutilated by the SCORCHING SANDS that buried him. "Deimos, are you okay?!" the Master of Faster cried, calling for his Jolteon's help. "Blinky, make a WISH for Dei's recovery!" Though it would take time, perhaps not until they left the rift, the WISH would relieve the pain, if not undo the injury to his arm completely.

With that handled, Josh next directed his attention to the spirit of his closest and most talented co-worker at Mauville Racing Grounds. "It's Dorian, isn't it. You want me to avenge you, don't you?" he asked. "That's going to be awfully difficult. I'd need to track him down first. But what can I do for you here?" He listened to the spirit's voice, a voice that only he could hear. "That's going to take a long time for us to do, and these two don't have Sygna Suits protecting them. They'll get sick if they stay here too much longer. We'll be back for you, though! Promise!"

Turning toward Deimos and Kaz once more, Josh relayed what he heard. "I don't know if you can see him, but that's Shawn Richards. He was my Interim Gym Leader when I was suspended, and he died protecting my Gym. He wants to pass on, but half his soul is stuck elsewhere in The Border, and he wants me to find it. I have a Sygna Suit, so I'll be fine, but we need to get you two out of here before the atmosphere here poisons you. Let's start looking for a way back."