The League is a monument to the wrong. A shrine of corruption and falsehood and inequity and sin and all that is evil within modern civilisation. It must be torn down. And to do that, examples have to be made of its faithful, no matter how naive they might be.

Josh Devlin is nothing more than a figurehead. A gym leader. A public face. A role model for the young and the foolish, the sorts of people who'll hear their personal hero tell them to eat their vegetables, take their vitamins, and say their prayers, and do so without a second thought. What will those people think when they see their precious icon beaten and broken? Brought within an inch of his life, and discarded onto the streets of Mauville City like common trash?

You intend to find out.

"Walking Wake, Draco Meteor."

"▂▂▃▃▄▄▅▅▃▃▄▄▅▅▅!"

A warped howl fills the air, and out from the heavens, stars begin to fall from the sky upon the Raging Bolt rider.

---

Josh Devlin

The screeching sound of a DRACO METEOR wave was distinct: he had learned of its warning signs from battles both with and alongside Andrea Vaneau . With Michael Navidson 's many dragons. Other talented trainers, too. For the few familiar with the "Hoennian Beasts" as Josh called them, they would have known Raging Bolt to be tough but the slowest of the three in terms of raw speed.

Not Josh's. His gave up a significant amount of toughness to mimic the raw speed of his Johtonian counterpart as closely as possible. Not used to such speed after only occasionally having ridden Kyle's Sacred Ash Raikou that was now his, he lost control of his ultrafast steed, On pure instinct and without the control of an expert rider, a volley of celestial projectiles surrounded Josh and his mount, the boy bracing himself as one fell far too close for comfort.

Raikou the Raging Bolt roared. in far more pain than would be expected from such a legendary creature. Was this paradox Pokémon part dragon-type? Josh didn't have time to ponder that now, his head pounding from the waves of draconic anger rippling through him. His skin felt like it was burning upon holy fire, and not the refreshing kind the Great One exposed him to.

Hissing and breathing deeply, Josh reined his elextric steed around, both Raikou and Josh looking for the source of the Draco Meteor attack. He started in the direction of the familiar-sounding howl. A Hoennian Suicune...?

From up high, you have a grand view of the chaotic aftermath of your attack. You watch intently as her rushes about, struggling to steer his steed out of harm's way. His Raging Bolt seems faster than yours, but frailer, too. That tracked. From the brief skim you did of Team Rocket's intel on him, maximising speed seemed to be his MO.

Or, to put it bluntly, this was his gimmick. And while it might've worked against the average gym-goer, it wasn't going to work against you.

"Aqua Jet, now."

Another distorted snarl burst out, and the Walking Wake surges forth upon a road of rushing water. There is no deception, there are no feints. Its path is as straight and narrow as such an unruly move can be, speeding like a bullet to make direct impact against both Josh and his Raging Bolt at once.

Meanwhile, you put one foot in front of the other and start the long walk down from the treeline upon the hill down to the battlefield proper. The ambush is over. Now? It's time for the fight to begin.

---

Josh Devlin

Indeed, it was the cry of a Walking Wake -- in Josh's eyes, a Hoennian Suicune. The ancient water-type zoomed toward the Champion and Raikou at the speed of an explosive volcanic eruption: a speed few Pokémon had any hope of outrunning.

Fortunately for Josh, he was astride one of the few Pokémon that could.

"Extreme Speed, Raikou!" Josh ordered, bracing himself for the whiplash-inducing force his partner's acceleration would expose him to. The move that Josh thought was his Raging Bolt's Extreme Speed was, in reality, THUNDERCLAP: a wicked, lightning-wreathed charge not dissimilar aesthetically to the Z-Move he developed. It would be a shame that the paradox could not learn that same technique.

At their terrifying closing speed, it was unclear which of the two paradoxes was faster or which would strike first. Were the Walking Wake to remain standing in the midst of the high speed attack, Josh would steer Raikou away from the ancient-looking foe, using the Raging Bolt as a means to remain mobile. One more solid attack, and he would be a sitting Ducklett. Against a Pokémon so fast, it was asking for trouble.

Clicking the button on another one of his Cherish Balls, Suicune the Walking Wake now ran alongside Josh. This Pokémon, unlike the electric-type, wore no riding gear; was the crystal-bearing Pokémon not trained for it yet?

The two Pokemon clash with intense speed, and both are sent skidding from the force of the impact. Had it truly been Raikou and Suicine battling it out, then the lightning might have beaten out the rain.

But they aren't, are they? No, draconic ancestry runs deep in the blood of these Paradoxes, raw and savage and primal and fierce. Even the forces of nature are but trifles to them. Instead of falling, both Walking Wake and Raging Bolt alike stand tall. Yet, his has lost its fighting spirit, while yours is eager to finish its hunt.

Perhaps the gym leader knows that, too, as he reaches for another Pokeball and sends out a Walking Wake of his own. The two stare each other down, yellow eyes regarding each other with suspicious and disdain. Two predators, competing against one another to be apex.

Yours is the first to move.

Waters fills its mouth from the edges of its teeth to the back of its throat. It overflows, pouring through its fangs and trickling down its chin. Then, the water is superheated, boiled and boiled until it is so searingly hot it cannot remain as it is. Then, with a breath of contempt, your Walking Wake releases a Hydro Steam, aiming to scald enemy, trainer, and mount all at once.

---

Josh Devlin