The breakneck pace Josh and his Vaporeon crossed the line at gave the Gym Leader and his aching core very little time to react and line up for each subsequent turn. That he was still healing from his wounds after Dewford didn't help, either; he had lost so much stamina that his legs and his gut felt like they would combust if he pushed himself too much. He had to give Genny a fair challenge, though, and the only way to get his stamina back was to keep pushing himself a little beyond what he was comfortable with, one race at a time.

"Keep the chain going, Kairi!" Josh cried as he kept jabbing his knees into the giant Eeveelution's sides repeatedly. The duo pushed each other to their limits as the water-type's QUICK ATTACK continued, leaning at such a sharp angle that Josh's left leg was almost completely out of the water as they took the first turn.

With the white flag waving above the starting arch, it was crunch time for the five swiftly-moving water Pokémon. With how far apart they were from one another, wake turbulence would be a near non-factor; it all came down to fundamentals, particularly endurance. Maintaining such a brisk pace was hard on all the racers, but especially Josh Devlin and his VAPOREON. They were traveling at such a high speed that the Eeveelution nearly turned sideways to get enough lateral thrust to swerve around the snake-like bends in the channel. It let him gain some time on ACE SHEEKE and his SHARPEDO, though the BARRASKEWDA in front of the Gym Leader gained even more time on the shark. ERON IUNIS was giving his all, having his eyes on stealing a win from under the Sea Bully.

Genevieve Cromwell and her VAPOREON may have been showing signs of exhaustion, too, the water-type unable to muster a Quick Attack to match the Gym Leader's. It may have been better; on the final curve before the backstretch's straightaway, she would be able to see a near miss. While it was unclear due to their distance, they had reason to believe the rival Vaporeon had grazed the outer wall. Perhaps even his stamina and reaction time had its limits.

All five racers, including ARAVAN ESCHER and the KINGDRA behind the challenger, were able to navigate the U-turns with little trouble. Only one real hurdle remained before the finish line, but was it ever a doozy of a hurdle...

Prompt: The only true obstacle remaining between teams and the finish line was the track's at this point brutally familiar S-curve on the backstretch. Having an idea for how to time commands to turn would not making the tight timing needed to properly execute them any easier. Compounding the difficulty of the turn itself was the mounting pressure that if a Pokémon made a mistake and wiped out on the whiplash-inducing curve, the end of the race was so close that there was not enough real estate remaining to make a recovery! It was the Drift Highway's great equalizer; no lead was safe!

Target Number: 135 (Reaction)

Special: Any TP lost as a result of a total roll that is more than 25 beneath the Target Number is multiplied by 1.5, rounded up.

As Josh rounded the backstretch to the narrow chicane, he got a glimpse at how far ahead the Sharpedo and Barraskewda were. There was no catching either of them without a mistake. If there was a turn that could induce such a mistake, though, it was this one. It was narrow and would require skillful, well-timed flicks of Kairi's tail to get through without slowing down. He briefly glanced back to see where the rival Vaporeon was - the challenger and Aravan's Kingdra seemed to be in a battle for fourth place.

"Forget them, Kairi - we gotta hold our position," Josh commanded as he tugged backward with both his hands. The Vaporeon responded by turning her tail sideways, creating drag that acted as a water brake. It might give the challenger a chance to catch up some, yes, but it would also make the probability of a race-ending crash slim. He would have to be content with his position on the bottom of the podium if his Gym Trainers were as skilled as he knew them to be. Having known them since before he became Mauville's Gym Leader, he was certain they had such skill.

The five racers each prepared for the dangerous, back-and-forth turn in their own way. The leaders trusted the raw capabilities of their SHARPEDO and BARRASKEWDA, not making any changes to their game plans despite their Pokémon showing signs of exhaustion. The brash ACE SHEEKE had pushed the shark to its limits, even the slightest nick of its fins against the turn's banks causing it to stumble. That and a burst of torque from the BARRASKEWDA's tail left the two coming out of the turn quite close to one another.

Josh Devlin 's and ARAVAN ESCHER's approaches of braking to get through the corners unscathed were a sign of resignation that they would be finishing at best in the spots they were currently in. As well-trained as the Gym Leader's VAPOREON and KINGDRA were, perhaps the much more nimble BARRASKEWDA was more physically adept at such a course.

Genevieve Cromwell and her VAPOREON were determined to make a move on the Gym Leader. Not slowing down one bit, the water-type pivoted sideways, generating some drag as she whizzed around the first half of the chicane. Tragically, the duo left their drift too late, the Pokémon careening into the bank. In the time it took them to recover, the KINGDRA whizzed past her. They were not uncatchable on the home stretch by any means, but it would take the challenger's Pokémon putting the metaphorical gas pedal to the floor to do it.

Prompt: The home stretch was all that remained, an official standing near the starting arch and waving the checkered flag. There was little risk of an accident on this straight sprint to the finish! Now was the best opportunity for the five Pokémon to give it everything they had!

Target Number: 0 (Speed)

Special: None

By the time Josh had rounded the corner, the Sharpedo and Barraskewda in front of him were already in the air. He couldn't focus on them, though; if his timing wasn't right, he would fall short on the jump. His Pokémon would have to swim against a nasty current, costing enough time for the Kingdra and even the challenger's Pokémon behind him to make last-second passes.

Swallowing, Josh tensed his wrists as he readied the command for Kairi to floor it. If he didn't, he wouldn't be able to keep up with what would assuredly be a Dragon Dancing Kingdra behind him. "Kairi, let's go! QUICK ATTACK!" he shouted, flicking the Vaporeon's reins. After a brief dive beneath the surface, Kairi powerfully swished her long tail, launching her into the air. She was ready to cross the finish line with a big splash.

The smaller water-type's whirling tail was humming from how fast it moved out of water, it and the shark neck and neck in the race's final moments. As swift as the BARRASKEWDA was, ACE SHEEKE's SHARPEDO put on the afterburners after the redhead dug his heels into the blue predator sharply, finishing in a clean first place, with ERON IUNIS not far behind.

Genevieve Cromwell and her VAPOREON battled the KINGDRA in front of them fiercely, the challenger's Pokémon slapping the water behind her extra hard using her flexible and powerful tail. The duo gradually made up time on the DRAGON DANCING competitor in front of them as the Gym Leader coasted to a third-place finish on his own VAPOREON's QUICK ATTACK. The challenger and the blue-haired trainer were the only two left to finish.

Josh turned around to watch the final few seconds of the race, impressed with how much of a fight the VAPOREON was putting up. Keeping up with a KINGDRA whose speed was enhanced by DRAGON DANCE was no small feat. Had they had a little more track to work with, they would have made the pass. Alas, they had run out of real estate, the challenger finishing the race in fifth place.

[player]https://fi.zophar.net/soundfiles/nintendo-gamecube-gcn/f-zero-gx/228%20-%20Hurrah%20for%20the%20Champion%20%28Winning%20Run%29.mp3[/player]

NEW THEME SONG! Hurrah for the Champion - F-ZERO GX ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK

Cameras flashed from the stands as the top three finishers stood on the podium. Ace in particular was proud of his Sharpedo by not only beating, but smashing, the course record. He lamented that Genevieve Cromwell could not join him on the podium. Once the brief ceremony had ended, Josh led the challenger back toward the Gym's rear entrance.

"You have solid fundamentals," Josh half-complimented, "but there are still things I noticed that need some work. Do you mind seeing me in my office upstairs?" Provided the Ranger agreed, Josh would withdraw Kairi before leading her up the elevator to the third floor and into his office. With, the amount of Raikou memorabilia was mind-boggling. In a corner was the crown jewel of the collection: what appeared to be a custom-made, Ride-On Raikou stuffie that may have beckoned Genny to sit on it.

Josh turned his monitor around, pulling up a recording of the race. He fast-forwarded to the second lap, where Uzi tried to blast forward in a constant Quick Attack chain for the entire lap. "You have great fundamentals, and you clearly have a budding relationship with your Vaporeon, Genny," he started. "There was one glaring thing that caught my attention, though, and that was pacing. You don't seem to have a good grasp on your Pokémon's limits, which is really important. Even if something goes wrong, you can't panic."

The Gym Leader opened a drawer in his desk, pulled one of his Gym Badges out, and set it on the desk in front of him. "Ever since the end of the race, I've been unsure about whether I should give you this. I have to admit, your performance had a lot of highs to it. But overall it was... really borderline." Exhaling deeply, he shook his head. "I tell you what. If you can commit to a follow-up appointment where we spend some time working on your pacing and getting to know your Pokémon's limits better, I'll give you a Badge. But I won't sign off on the paperwork making it official unless you follow through. I want to give this to you. I really do. But I want to see a better understanding of level-headedness first. Is this something you can agree to?"

The trust was there, and that was the important part. The race was competitive for a long time, but either Genevieve lacked the focus, Uzi lacked the stamina, or a myriad of other factors that could be addressed. It would take time to figure out. Once the Ranger had done so, Josh was confident she would walk away with a win next time. Maybe even a new course record.

Turning an offered Badge down, though? Such humility. It was a sign that she truly understood what her shortcomings and wanted to work on them. She held herself to a higher standard than even Mauville Gym set out. People like that were exactly who were needed on the Gym circuit. One day, she would be a Champion. One distant day. Josh was sure of it.

"That's okay by me," Josh replied. "If anything, it gives me time to unveil something truly special for you, were you to bring your Vaporeon back here," he teased his first utilization of the RAINBOW ROAD since having the secret course built. "We'll get this ironed out. When I'm done with you, I'll have to use my best Pokémon to even stand a chance against you!" He stowed the Badge at her request. "Follow the signs to get back to the lobby. Looking forward to seeing you again, and to your next challenge."