After a few tense minutes of getting him stable, the nurses left Josh's room and allowed Yuina Higashi to enter. She would be greeted by the smell of the Gym Leader's body odor as he breathed, the poor guy covered in sweat from the shock.

Were she to enter, Josh would greet her with heavy breaths. "Hello... sorry you had to see that..." he huffed, a familiar saddled Togekiss occupying much of the floor next to him. "Thanks for dropping by. Means a lot."

"...Ultra Space, I know," Josh finished Yuina's sentence for her. They had both been there. Both suffered inhumane physical and mental punishment, and his Dragonair's life had nearly been stolen from him. "I need a vacation when I get out of here. But I don't think I'll have the chance. You can feel it coming, can't you? War..."

Being a Gym Leader, Josh knew war was coming, and soon. It would be a preemptive strike against Rocket, on their home turf. He had initially planned on keeping Swift under wraps, but fate had other plans. It may have worked for the better.

"...But we can try," Josh tried to keep things positive. "Have you been to Joyland before?'

Yuina seemed to be able to feel the war coming, too, particularly with the weight of a legendary Pokémon at her beck and call now. "As much as I'd like to agree with you, Yuina, we have everything to fight for. As many of the League's decisions there are that I disagree with, they do a good job keeping Hoenn a free region. You understand that if Ever Grande falls, Rocket will likely turn Hoenn into a totalitarian state, right? Just like Kanto was." Josh paused to let his point sink in. "With how many psychic Pokémon Team Rocket has in their hands, and legendary Pokémon at that, they could put a Hyper Beam through your head for even thoughts of resistance, no matter how hidden you keep them."

The war had been going on for six years and only continued to escalate over time. It was clear both sides were willing to fight tooth and nail for their ideals... no matter how many deaths it took. Deleting the other side was the number one priority, it seemed. Even if the victors would not have a region to return home to.

"Joyland is a theme park in Ever Grande City. Johanna Joy runs it. Used to be the Gym Leader there. They've got a carousel with sculptures of every legendary Pokémon big enough to ride. You could even saddle up The Original One, Arceus Himself, if you wanted to!" he teased.

Time and time again, The League proved they could work with Rocket only when both their existences depended on it. It was survival instinct at its finest. Outside those instincts, both sides were ravenous and feral. And Josh had been dogmatized that the League were righteous. The Champion's lashing out was due to his own weakness, unable to resist the allure of Elisabeth Fiorelli 's Patron. And only she would ever know the truth.

"Yup - it's actually the same one, in Ever Grande," Josh clarified. "When it was touring Hoenn, I made sure to get on the legendary carousel at least once every day I went. There's probably more there - I've been hearing rumors of an attraction based on a Venusaur's vine. Doesn't that sound really fun to go on?" It was all too similar to what Shalin Nariya did with her Sygna Suit; Josh wondered if she was behind the design...

Josh, though he had been under Wo-Chien's influence in his act of vengeance, may have come off to Yuina as quite violent in his worst moments. It was one part of his electric personality that he did not like, but he could not completely erase it. For in that part of his personality was his true power. Power he could control if he set his mind to it.

To those not used to high-octane thrills, getting flung around like a whip, even at speeds safe for the average person, had to have been daunting just to think about. "Tell you what - I'll go on it first and let you decide from there," he proposed. "But either way, going to her theme park sounds like a fun way to relax and forget about all that's been going on in Hoenn recently. It's starting to wear on me. But I'm a Gym Leader. If I don't contribute to the war effort, I put my job at risk."

Not only was he a Gym Leader, but he was the Knight of Thunder. The last one Kyle and the Great One knighted in the Top Champion's final days.

As much as Josh wanted to get out there and make a difference, Yuina was right. He wouldn't get better unless he rested. Slept. Dreamed of being the hero he wanted to be. Having the means to do so now, but not the body to use them, was among the most frustrating experience he ever had in his life. He had to take it easy.

"Exactly, Yuina," the Champion answered. "Once I'm out of here and have done enough rehab, there will be time to enjoy ourselves. Thanks for coming to visit!" With that, he waved goodbye and closed his eyes, doing what he could to will himself to sleep. The dream world was the only place he could do what he wanted to do, and he hoped his subconscious would manifest in the way he had desired all this time...