Josh's Eeveelution team was still healing, though they were in good enough shape to ferry Josh around Hoenn and take on relatively low-stakes tasks as a Ranger. He still had one Pokémon with him that didn't see action in the war in case things escalated, but he hoped it wouldn't come to that. It would be good for them to run around and let their trainer ride them, too; after all, they were regularly used for the Gym Leader's racing challenge!

Luckily for Victor Haas , Elite Ranger and Gym Leader Josh Devlin was on duty. Hearing the distress call, Josh spurred his own Espeon steed toward the author and their own psychic-type, an Umbreon bounding close behind. Both of them were the size of a small Rapidash, and wore riding tack much like equines would wear, as well. If Victor was caught up on Hoenn celebrity gossip or knew of Hoenn's Elite Rangers, he would have been able to instantly recognize the man riding toward him.

"Elite Ranger Devlin or Gym Leader Devlin, but please call me Josh. What's going on?" he greeted, the two Eeveelutions' eyes scanning their surroundings for trouble.

"Great to meet you, Victor," Josh verbally acknowledged the introduction, though he kept it brief after the traveler mentioned the Poochyena in bad shape. Guiding Janus near the dark-type laying on its side, Josh peered over to get a look at the small Pokémon somewhat obscured by wild grass. Those wounds did not look pleasant at all. "People need to show a little more restraint when battling wild Pokémon," the Gym Leader remarked as he whistled for his Umbreon. "Kamuy, MOONLIGHT, please."

The saddled Umbreon's yellow rings glowed brightly, healing light encircling the wild. While the light was ineffective, what with it being broad daylight, it was better than nothing. The Poochyena stirred, getting to its feet but still limping. "It always helps to keep one Pokémon with a recovery move with you. You never know when someone will need it. Or you." It was a lesson he had learned the hard way many moons ago...

"He should be fine now," Josh answered. The Ranger's concern was not whether the Poochyena would recover from its wounds. More worrisome was the prospect of whatever did this to the dark-type could still be nearby. With how tall some of the grasses around the deep end of 117 got, seeing even medium-sized Pokémon could be difficult. Not wanting to complicate matters for the traveler, he set the thought aside.

"We're right in the middle of 117," the Gym Leader pointed out. "Victor, are you headed to Mauville or Verdanturf? Probably would be best to get the little one to a Pokémon Center. You bring a Pokémon that can take you there?" That was another point Josh quickly learned about Hoenn: with how rugged the terrain was, having a Pokémon that could carry one by land, by sea, and by sky had indescribable value for even the least serious of trainers. "If you don't, I've got you covered."

There were too many trainers in Hoenn that did not realize the value of Pokémon-based transportation. It was economical, it was environmentally friendly, and most importantly of all, it was a fun way to build a bond with the Pokémon on one's roster. With most Pokémon needing to be fully evolved to grow large enough to bear a rider, it wasn't something that was particularly easy for inexperienced trainers to capitalize on, though there were a few exceptions. Ponyta was the most common; though the young horses were shorter than their trainers were oftentimes, their bodies were built for the task.

"It's something that, as a Ranger, I recommend getting ahold of as soon as you can. A Pokémon that can ferry you across land, another for the sea, and another through the air. Once you have those three, there's nowhere in Hoenn you can't go." The freedom was certainly liberating, one Josh fondly remembered the days that Saber and Pazuzu evolved. "I need to return to Mauville to get some paperwork filed back at HQ anyway. C'mon, Kamuy, wanna give Victor a lift back to town?" The Umbreon sounded a low-pitched coo before trotting next to Victor and crouching, letting the traveler comfortably aboard if he wished. "Is this your first time on a Pokémon? Controlling them is a piece of cake once they're obedient."

Victor's concerns were well-placed; taking care of as many Pokémon as Josh had was a full-time job in and of itself. The Gym had become so big that he pondered hiring a team of dedicated Pokémon caretakers. As independent as his team was, it would be nice to have a few people that could give them attention while the Leader was out and about, or otherwise busy.

Josh smiled as Victor mounted up, the Leader feeling the somewhat older trainer looked like a natural. "Grab Kamuy's reins with both your hands and try to hold them steady, like this," the Gym Leader demonstrated with Janus. "Think of them like cords attached to the handlebars of a bike. Pulling on them with one arm will turn him the same way. The way you control his speed is with how tightly you squeeze his sides. Use your legs to put pressure on his sides if you want him to go faster, and ease up on the pressure if you want to slow down. That's all there is to it!"

Rather than goad the two into going far faster than they were comfortable with, Josh gave Janus a gentle pat on the back of his head. "Keep pace with Kamuy, okay? Not too fast and not too slow." If Victor were to guide Kamuy, he would find the Umbreon quite obedient, as though the brown-haired trainer was far from the first guest to sit in his saddle. Perhaps the only unsettling thing about the dark-type was how low-pitched his cries were...

Though tense at first, Josh noticed Kamuy working with Victor much better once he relaxed and put trust in the dark-type. "It's really rewarding, trust me," the Gym Leader reiterated as he felt several more of his Poké Balls subtly moving on his belt. "You three want some fresh air, too, don't you?"

Josh let his left hand slide down the Espeon's reins to maintain balance before clicking open thre more Poké Balls: ones containing a Vaporeon, Jolteon, and Flareon that were roughly the same size as the others. All of them wore similar gear, though the Flareon was so short that parts of his gear were at a slightly odd angle. Did he have an entire rainbow of Eeveelutions trained to ferry people on their backs? "These three are Kairi, Blinky, and Clyde," Josh introduced the trio that kept the pace that Victor set. "Blinky I've known since before coming to Hoenn."

When Victor asked about how he got into riding to begin with, Josh smirked. "Oh, is this ever a long story," he warned. "Goes back to when I was just a kid, before I could even legally train Pokémon. The short version is I've been into Pokémon racing since I was young. Since I came to Hoenn a year ago, I turned my passion for it into a Pokémon Gym, and since then, Mauville has become the sports capital of Hoenn. If you want to hear the long version, I can indulge you, but it's... long. And quite the story." Maybe he would be able to share it all if Victor wasn't in a hurry to return to HQ and get the injured Poochyena the non-urgent medical attention it needed. If not, then perhaps a tour of Mauville Racing Grounds would be in order!

Kairi bumped snouts with Clyde as Blinky playfully ran wide circles around them both, eager to show to Victor how fast she could run. The Jolteon, true to her species, could clock amazing speeds, the burden of a rider barely slowing her down. Since the Champion traded Josh one of his three Zeraora for some Pokémon from Ultra Space, though, the Jolteon didn't get taken on as many adventures as before. It was something he resolved to fix, especially as the warmer weather came next Spring. Speaking of next Spring, the Gym Leader couldn't wait to get his impounded Beedrill back. He had heard that his rehabilitation had been going well, his aggression greatly curbed during his stay in the League penitentiary.

"That sounds like a great idea!" Josh nodded in agreement as Janus subtly picked up the pace, trying to goad Kamuy into going a little faster without a command from Victor. "If you're hungry, there's this sports bar near Mauville Gym, on the northwest side, called the Checkered Flag. My Gym regulars go there pretty frequently. They've got great steakburgers, and from what I've heard, good beer if that's your thing. I can't have beer, though; as it turns out, two hundred miles an hour and alcohol don't mix too well," he chuckled half-jokingly. "And if you're not hungry, we can always meet up at the Racing Grounds."