Josh had been through a similar experience in the PRISMATIC PENITENTIARY: a horrible injury that had kept him from doing what he wanted to do. It was doubly painful for Josh, too. After chasing the Beast of Thunder for a decade and change, Swift was at last his. His Raikou. Yet a tragic injury had prevented the Knight of Thunder from honing his skills with the Pokémon of his dreams.

He knew the pain Remiel Calcifet was in, being stuck in bed. The best he could do was comfort the Crown Prince and visit him in his most dire time of need. When Josh pushed the door open, Remiel would be able to see an Espeon a little shorter than he was, fully equipped with riding tack. There was only one trainer in Hoenn that felt a measure like that necessary.

It was Mauville's Master of Faster, Josh Devlin .

The two walked around the Avatar's bed, Josh taking a seat in a chair next to it, and his Espeon sitting on the floor next to him. "Hey, Remiel," Josh greeted the royal as he stroked his Pokémon's silk-like fur. "How you doing?" Were he to tilt his head, he would see the glint of a RAINBOW FEATHER pinned to the Gym Leader's shirt.

"I'm a Gym Leader," Josh replied. "Word about us, AQUA, and the like usually gets around pretty fast." There were times he wanted peace and quiet, but as a Gym Leader of one of Hoenn's largest and most densely populated cities, such time was rare anymore.

"Hey, Elise," Josh waved toward the Ambassador. "You and Charles are lookin' good. Been getting much volume at your castle? I've had to reduce capacity at Mauville Gym because of the weather. Since Mount Chimney, it's been... really hot. I've closed the Gym between the hours of 11 AM and 3 PM until this horrible heat wave's gone." With Elise being part-time, it wouldn't affect her schedule at all. Even so, she was probably aware of the reduced hours.

Josh turned to Remiel Calcifet and carefully rolled back his bandage-covered left sleeve. "That's how I felt last month," he sympathized with the Avatar. "In that dumb ass jail, they banged up my arm. So I get your frustration. Though it might change depending on how well I do in rehab, my doctor says I won't be able to ride Swift again until November. I want to be out there, fighting with you. But I don't know that I can."

No wonder Remiel Calcifet was so banged up; if he had a run-in with an Avatar, his suffering must have been catastrophic. "Do you know who?" he asked. "Even a physical description would help."

Even volume for Josh's racing challenges was down for reasons other than the weather; with the focus on was preparations, not many trainers were challenging his Gym other than to battle him. In a way, it was a blessing; with his arm at reduced capacity, he could barely hold a horse's reins, let alone those of a truly speedy Pokémon such as one of his lions. As he listened to what Elise Calcifet had to say, the Champion waved toward Charles, greeting him but not interrupting his bearer.

Though the physical description was brief, the two features were enough to jog his memory. "I fought them. In Dewford. They... they killed Slider, my Braviary. It took so much time for Pazuzu, Goose, and the rest of my flock to move on." The helpless Gym Leader breathed a deep sigh of frustration. "If only I were at full strength, it would be so easy to clip their wings. But with me the way I am, I won't be fighting from Swift's saddle any time soon."

As much as he didn't want to brush off Melody's advice, Josh still was hesitant to fully trust anyone's Patron, League or Rocket. The only Patron he thought was truly symbiotic with their Avatar was kyle lopez ... and he was gone. "I don't need to be Swift's Avatar to fight our best. I don't know how to explain it... but it feels like our thoughts are always in perfect sync." Indeed, his Beast's thoughts were his, for the ashen legendary Pokémon at all only thought through him.

"That's one of my concerns, too," Josh sighed, finding himself adjusting his posture after slumping in his chair some. He tilted his head toward the princess before continuing. "We rely on them to be able to Dynamax our Pokémon. If one of us loses that capability, they won't be able to defend against the other. There has to be a reason why Calyrex chose you. I would be wary of accepting any blessings, though. Remiel, maybe you'd be able to shed some light on this... but I've seen too many Patrons dominate their Avatars. Melody Miro has been trying to convince me otherwise, but as my understanding is now, were Swift or another Raikou to offer his blessing to me... I'd have to decline." It was ironic. Josh, before his rebirth, wanted to be an Avatar. After his rebirth, he no longer wanted to be one. Why?

He liked Swift the way he was and didn't want him to change.

Remiel Calcifet 's thoughts were ones Josh had considered. He had many restless nights where he pondered the Beast's true nature. "There are too many variables out there right now to know for certain. I've thought about that myself, that Swift might just think exactly how I do. It might be why we work so well together. It could also be possible that I just click with what he used to be." He took in what the Calcifets were saying to one another, as well; even being able to deliver messages, weapons, and medicine at the speed of lightning, there was only so much he could do.

The League could only overcome their predicament by working together.