A Gym Leader? Josh was the only person in Hoenn that went down the dual paty of being both a Gym Leader and a Ranger. "It is, but it's also a lot of work," the Master of Faster answered. "And in more ways that one. Gym Leaders are different in Hoenn than other parts of the region. They're closer to political figures than purely Pokémon trainers." The Lilycove meeting brought that to light; though they didn't discuss as many region-altering issues as the AQUA Initiative did, it gave him a taste of what it would be like. He was liking the political aspects of it less and less.

"Being a Gym Leader is more than a career. It's a way of life. To even think about being a Gym Leader, you'll need a theme and a lot of Pokémon that fit that theme. Because Hoenn's Pokémon League permits the Gyms to be challenged in any order, you'll need to have Pokémon suitable for trainers of all skill levels." Josh had a hundred Pokémon roaming his property, and sometimes he still felt like he didn't have the right ones for challengers.

He couldn't stand there only talking forever, though; they had a missing trainer and Pokémon to find. Clicking a Poké Ball open, a vicious-looking Houndoom materialized next to the Mauville Leader, his trainer quick to climb atop the saddled dog and grab his white steering horns. "Komainu will help us track down that Haunter. If you need a ride, let me know. I still have some of my Pyroar with me."

The Shiny male that Zachary sat in the saddle of was Aslan, the king of Josh's pride. He may have been able to feel more muscle power from the larger lion with every stride. Every time Josh rode him, he could feel a surge of adrenaline coursing through his veins; he wondered if Zachary felt the same. "What kind of Gym would you want to run?" he asked. "It's important that you're not treading on the themes of any active Gym Leader."

The Master of Faster leaned into the wind; Komainu had to put on quite the pace to keep up with the big cat. Even so, he still managed to carry on conversion with Zachary. "You don't have to beat the Elite Four to become a Gym Leader. As long as you've proven yourself reliable to the League, are a strong trainer, a good educator, and have good leadership skills, that's all you really need. They even have a Minor League program meant to help foster those things. I only had two Hoenn League Gym Badges when I became Mauville's Gym Leader." Josh had been in Hoenn for only two and a half months before becoming Gym Leader. It didn't take a lot of time, but it did take proven reliability.

As Zachary pointed out the smoke and spurred Aslan forward, the lion reached by running perhaps faster than his rider was expecting. "Komainu, faster! TRAILBLAZE!" With powerful strides that seemed to make the very grass part around him, the Ranger, Type: Null, and client sped toward danger...

Josh and Zachary seemed to have similar approaches to raising Pokémon. The duo valued the relationship between trainer and Pokémon in ways other than battle. If the Mauville Gym Leader had his way, he would make a racer out of Zachary... even if it was just a recreational one.

No sooner than Dizzy's reunion with Zachary took place did a Haunter, aggressive around Dizzy but placid around Happy, complicate the rescue. Seeing that Zachary seemed to have the wild under control, Josh called out, "I'll make sure she's okay." With that, she approached the young girl.

"Elite Ranger Devlin, but please, call me Josh. I'm here to help get you back to the mainland." The moment he saw Aleph getting aggressive, the Gym Leader clicked the button on Sidewinder's Poké Ball, the Dragapult putting himself between he and his Type: Null. "Aleph, not now, please."

While the battle was going on, Josh was busy making sure the young girl was safe. Aleph approached her, causing her to back into a corner and sweat out of fear for her life. As he was to reach for the Type: Null's Poké Ball, the normal-type crouched next to her and let out a sound that was a mix of a cat purr, a dog whine, and several others Josh couldn't quite pick up on. Why was Aleph so docile around her and not Josh? What was he doing wrong?

All he could do was shake his head. What a pain in the ass raising a legendary Pokémon was. Was the hassle really worth the power a Silvally would bestow upon him? Of course, he had no way to know of Aleph's evolution: the species was not well understood.

Instead, he scooted back as far as he could in Komainu's saddle while still being able to reach his horns. While the Gym Leader wasn't happy about the Houndoom carrying a guest, given how mean-spirited he could be out of nowhere, he had little choice. A Pyroar would be way too rough of a ride if they needed to flee quickly. "There's no need to be afraid of Aleph," Josh said to the young lady, gesturing toward his Type: Null as Komainu crouched. "Hop on with me. I'll take you to the docks where we can get you home."

Once she was secured, they would ride toward Zachary to see how he was doing with the Haunter.

By the time Josh, the missing trainer, and Komainu could arrive, Zachary seemed to have the situation under control. He was able to barely see the successful capture. With their efforts put together, their mission was mostly complete. "There's just one more thing we have to do before we can call this a wrap and return to Ranger HQ," the Elite advised. "That's get her home. Though she lives in Fortree, Lilycove would be closer. I'm willing to fly her out to Fortree tomorrow, but she really needs some rest," she gestured toward the young woman that looked like she could pass out at any moment.

Provided Zachary had no further business on the island, Josh and his Pokémon would lead him to the north dock. "Do you have a Pokémon that can swim or fly?" he asked, withdrawing the rest of his team. "I'm not sure Sidewinder can carry all three of us at once."

The Pokémon Center that Zachary's Pokémon would get them to was the closest one, though it was not near a town. It was the one by Hoenn's Safari Zone, almost directly north of the mountain. Even so, it was still a long distance. Braver could Teleport, but only over much shorter distances, with one exception: Phantom Road, located directly above Mount Pyre itself.

More importantly, they were now over the mainland, with plenty of highways to get to the nearest town. Lilycove City, while not close, was their best bet. With a direct path over land to the large city, it was Josh's responsibility to get them home the rest of the way. The Gym Leader slid off Komainu's back and got on Vitani, not trusting the strong, tough, and mischievous Pyroar to be gentle on the child. He instead invited her to sit astride Aslan.

"Thanks for the help, Zachary," Josh gratefully replied. "I should be able to handle it from here. You should be getting your check in the mail in a couple weeks. You're more than welcome to follow me back to Lilycove if you want." Regardless of whether the ghost trainer would come along, Josh's smile would be beaming from watching the enthusiastic young trainer hold the reins of a giant Pyroar. He looked like he was having so much fun being bounced up and down by the golden lion's flexing back.