In the aftermath of the explosion of a small vessel, fuel, metallic debris, and other pollutants had been scattered all over a small island northeast of Sea Mauville's main wreckage site. The sea had already been cleared, and what recoverable lives there were had already been recovered. Josh and Vespa Baskerville found themselves on cleanup duty, this time on land rather than in the sea.

Rather than finding Cassandra, Vespa would find Mauville's Gym Leader, Josh Devlin, astride perhaps the largest Vaporeon she had ever seen. "Vespa?" he asked as the water-type transitioned from swimming to running, slowing to a stop near her. "Champion Devlin or Gym Leader Devlin, but you can call me Josh. I've been told we'll be working together removing toxic debris in the wake of a crash."

Though Josh grimaced on the inside, he kept his patience and calm demeanor amidst Vespa Baskerville 's cluelessness. He pointed toward a specially marked container that had been dropped off at the island for the task. While not as large as a standard shipping container, its volume was still impressive. "It's just a matter of removing as much of the nasty parts of the wreckage as possible from the island. Anything that's been tainted by oil, fuel, and the like. Anything that could leak and pollute the island if ruptured. You have Pokémon that would be good at that?"

Josh clicked open a second Poké Ball, this one containing a Type: Null. "Aleph here will he able to help with the heavier pieces. Won't you, Aleph?" he asked, giving the ornery Normal-type a gentle pat. The chimeric Pokémon seemed to have other ideas. though...

Josh hummed and hawed over the consideration that Vespa had a Ditto. Whatever Pokémon Josh had that was best for the task, they could have two. "Then how about this one?" he asked before clicking the switch on Vayu's Poké Ball, a saddled Corviknight flying out of it and landing on the small island with a metallic thud and a screech. "Vayu was the Pokémon I was planning on using to haul the largest pieces to one place, where they could be loaded by another team on standby." He would need to take care not to rupture anything with his giant talons, but the steel-type was more than experienced in moving heavy, sensitive machinery around. He had even helped Bora move entire sets of bleachers around at the Gym when both of the metal birds were alive.

As Josh climbed back aboard Kairi, ready to ride in the opposite direction he sent Vayu off, he noticed Aleph attempting to goad The Squad into a sparring match, extending his CRUSH CLAWS outward. The Gym Leader rolled his eyes. "Come on, Aleph, we have to focus. Maybe after we're done here, you and her Falinks can go a few rounds." He turned toward Vespa. "Sorry about that. Aleph's strong, but he can be a bit... moody."

The distinct smell of burning fuel accompanied the fire, Josh realizing how serious the situation was. "Vayu, Aleph, you two keep cleaning up around here! Kairi and I have to head toward that fire!" Josh ordered the two Pokémon. While the Corviknight would be keen to continue hauling heavy pieces of wreckage for transport, the Type: Null was quickly growing frustrated with how focused the Falinks was on the job.

With strides surprisingly powerful for a Vaporeon, Kairi ferried Josh to where the fuel fire was, a piece of a fuel canister whizzing near her ear from a big explosion shattering it. "WATER PULSE, Kairi!" the Gym Leader cried over the crackling noise, his saddled water-type expelling a wide spray of water over the burning ground before the flames could raze the island's vegetation further.

"You're welcome," Josh replied as Aleph at last snapped out of his trance, helping haul heavier pieces of metal to more open places where Vayu could scoop them up into his talons more easily. It looked like a little convincing from the Falinks was all the ornery normal-type needed!

Neither Vespa Baskerville nor the Champion would see any more serious risks, what with the metal bird prioritizing the most hazardous of materials first. "Looks like we're in the clear," the experienced Ranger breathed a sigh of relief, giving Kairi a gentle pat. "You did such a good job, Kairi, you know that?" The Vaporeon sounded a gentle squeal, ready to get back to Dewford after a long day.

At the coastline and ready to return, Josh waved toward Vespa. "Have your Ditto transform into Kairi and let's ride back to Dewford," he suggested. "Maybe find some Unovan cuisine somewhere. After a job this big, you deserve it."