War was coming.

With Josh likely being deployed to Sootopolis in the invasion to come as early as next month, he needed to get his reqs squared away with the Rangers first. He had requested all of his monthly patrol hours be scheduled for the first full week of May, not knowing exactly when his duties as a Gym Leader would send him off to battle.

After completing his short patrol shift between Fortree and Lilycove, Josh arranged for lodging for the next several days in the east-coast city, knowing he was going to be helping out a lot in the area this week.

In Lilycove's largest park, even those lodged in battles turned their heads to see not one, not two, but ten saddled Pyroar, the Ranger logo emblazoned upon their gear. Seated on the back of one of them, the only Shiny one, was the Mauville Leader and newest Champion - the last one before the Top Champion gave his life fighting MATIAS SILPH and his Patron. The glowing felines would have been difficult for Reinier Justice to miss...

Aslan let out a growl as he saw Reinier approaching. "Easy, Aslan!" Josh chided the Shiny lion. Many of the others were well-behaved, sitting a distance from them and looking as obedient and calm as a trained house Growlithe. Nala was almost unrecognizable in her normal form again, after having been pregnant for what felt like a long time. Nuka the Litleo was still back at Mauville City Gym, likely at play with the Luxray and other cat Pokémon there. It would take some time, but one day she would join the Rangers' Pride as its eleventh member.

Being one of the more tenured and high-ranking Rangers in the area, Josh couldn't dismiss Reinier's plight. Aslan walked toward them, stopping near them so Josh could have a face-to-face chat. "Elite Ranger Devlin or Champion Devlin, but please, Josh is fine," he introduced himself with his well-practiced statement. "What can I help you with?"

"Great to meet you, Reinier," Josh replied, extending his hand in an awkward fashion. The height difference there was from him being seated on a giant lion Pokémon made it difficult to exchange physical pleasantries, but he would still try. "It's... never dull around here. And it's been... dangerous of late. But if you're adventurous, it's perfect for you."

Josh was no stranger to finding lodging in Lilycove; after all, he had to during the Vital City Tournament at the beginning of the year. "There's one not far from the space they used for the recent tournament," he replied, "though it's on the other side of town. I can help you get there, if you want. If you don't have a water or flying Pokémon, though, you might have trouble getting to Mossdeep. Security out east is growing tight."

When Reinier mentioned the Gym Challenge, a faint smile worked its way onto Josh's face. "lam logan is the Gym Leader here. Good luck getting into his Gym without a partner, though; his Gym is all about team battles. And one more thing..." he trailed off, the smile growing.

It wasn't just Mossdeep; it was much of Hoenn's island archipelago. "Ever since the battle with Kyurem last January uncovered Area Zero, tensions have been... really high. Very powerful Pokémon have been captured there. Can't you feel it? War is coming. Soon. I would stay as far away from Mossdeep, Sootopolis, and Ever Grande as you can." Josh, of course, could not mention the invasion plans to a civilian. He could, however, skirt around those plans the best he could to try to get people who weren't trained for combat out of the way. "The towns on the west side of the mountain, like Petalburg and Rustboro, should be pretty safe. The closer you get to the east coast, the more danger you'll be in."

There were enough bad omens floating about Hoenn. And with Josh now in possession of a legendary Pokémon, even if it was just a shade of one, he had to be directly involved in the war. Plus, he was a Champion. Perhaps not quite on the same level of caliber as AQUA, but as close as one who wasn't an Avatar or League higher-up could be. He was committed to fighting. Not on the front lines, but as a supplier. Even so, suppliers would inevitably get caught in the heat of combat.

"I'm... also a Gym Leader," Josh answered with a slight smile.

Even the most skilled civilian trainers may not have been fully prepared for the realities of war. Josh had been in the warzone several times. Each time he served his time, he was under the care of Hoenn's finest medical staff for weeks on end. Not because he wanted to. He did not like war; as a trainer, he lived for friendly competition. It was because he was dutifully bound to do so.

"Even so... I wouldn't recommend it. Being a good trainer doesn't make you a good soldier," Josh argued. "Remember, they're Rocket. These are people not above aiming for you directly with Pokémon attacks. A Hyper Beam to just about anywhere on your body, and you'll be a forgotten pile of ash and molten bone. If you have the capacity to, flee Hoenn. It's serious."

At the remark of being busy enough without Gym battles, Josh laughed on the inside. Mauville Gym was slow all winter and spring, only having picked back up recently. Some of that humor came through on his facial expression. "Are you saying you wanna spar?" he asked Rainier.

Though he wasn't exactly prepared for a Gym Challenge-style match, given all of his Pokémon were the same species, Josh wasn't one to turn down a battle. "Alright, we can go a few rounds," Josh agreed to the match as he walked toward Kion and sat in the lion's saddle. "There's a lot near lam logan 's Gym that's perfect for a pickup match. You're welcome to saddle up with any of my Pyroar if you don't have a Pokémon of your own that can do so."

Regardless of how the two got there, Josh would go over expectations of the match on the way. "So how big of a match were you thinking of having, and did you want singles or doubles? All the Pokémon I have with me are these Pyroar - you would be battling them."