The Spacelord's presence was awe-inspiring, even if Josh knew about them ahead of time. The pink dragon was regal, their presence overwhelming to those not regularly in the presence of the gods. While Josh's legendary companion wasn't quite the same, Swift bore equal significance to him.

"You might remember the emails I sent you and Eva Morales about Area Zero, then the one I sent... a week before kyle lopez died," he shed a tear as he undid the latches keeping two Cherish Balls on his belt. Clicking their release switches, next to the Knight of Thunder materialized a Gouging Fire and Walking Wake. "I want to learn more about these three, but we can't exactly use them discreetly. Rocket could be around any corner. That's why I came to you and your testing grounds by your lab. To see what Raikou, Entei, and Suicune -- in their Hoennian forms -- can do."

The Raging Bolt Josh was seated on was the only one wearing a saddle; from the moment they were let out of their Poké Balls, Entei and Suicune were less mild-mannered and well-behaved than their electric counterpart. It looked like they could start sparring at any moment, watching Palkia and Illeana with wary eyes. "And there's one more thing, too. Something else I emailed you about." The scientist may have already been aware of it, a RAINBOW FEATHER prominently pinned to Josh's outfit...

They were the names Josh had come up with for the paradoxes' resemblance to the Beasts he revered. "I haven't heard of them popping up in other regions, though. They look like the Beasts and sound like them. I don't know what else to call them, though," the Johtonian exhaled. "I had the pleasure of riding two of the three Johto Beasts before Kyle passed. The feel is strikingly similar."

The idea of a quick sparring match made Josh smile; he hadn't seen the Alchemist's battle prowess since right after he had become Mauville's Gym Leader. "Long as you two don't overwork yourselves, let's do it. One at a time, though; I don't think I could command more than one of them at once. It takes so much concentration to command a Pokémon like that."

Raikou the Raging Bolt stepped forward, the saddled paradox the first to attempt to impress both of them with his great speed and electric attacks. Before they were to start, one other question came to mind.

"Have you flown with Palkia yet?" Josh asked as he slid down from the long-necked dragon and onto the ground.

So they were temporal or spatial anomalies? There sure were a lot of possibilities to consider, and Josh would trust the scientist's words. He couldn't quite give up his own theory; they looked, sounded, and acted too much like the Beasts for him to do so. "If there's anything else that Raikou, Entei, and Suicune can do to help you with understanding them better, don't be afraid to ask. With how low Gym challenger volume's been, I have more freedom than I'm used to in scheduling."

The Spacelord's upset expression, both facial and with their tail, is all Josh needs to hear. If Palkia wouldn't even allow their Avatar to be a passenger on their back, there was no hope Josh would be able to ever sit between the cosmic dragon's wings.

It was worth a try, though.

"Alright, we're coming at you at the speed of a Beast!" Josh cried, ready to see just how his Raging Bolt could hold up against one of Hoenn's most powerful deities. "Raikou, EXTREME SPEED!" he ordered, the long-necked Pokémon zooming toward Palkia in a THUNDERCLAP that looked just as fast as the move Josh had mistaken it for.