Josh lurched backward in Kokusho's cocoon saddle as the Hydreigon took off in a powerful motion he was not used to. It had been almost six months since he had held the reins of the three-headed dragon, and with him still missing some mobility in his left arm, steering the behemoth would take a lot of re-acclimation. A reminder that soaring on the back of the dark-type dragon required equal strength from Pokémon and rider.

Once they were at altitude, all Josh needed to do was survey Route 104 for the golden-glowing Scyther that Rustboro's Rangers asked for his aid in scouting... and stay out of any searchlights coming from the Rocket-occupied Petalburg. Embers, cold mist, and sparks dripped from Kokusho's three heads as they turned toward Lash.

Seeing another Hydreigon rider in the sky, Josh reined Kokusho's main head toward her, his own dragon's heads dripping embers, sparks, and cold mist. The face atop the dark-type looked familiar, but he couldn't quite put a name to the face. Instead, he flew alongside the six-winged Pokémon, seeing if she would break the ice first.

They might not have time to do that; a glint of bright, golden light would catch Josh's attention, its source growing brighter and brighter as it raced toward them on clicking wings that grew louder and louder with each passing second. Josh remembered this before; he had seen a similar phenomenon with Yuina Higashi and a golden Arcanine. Flicking the Hydreigon's reins, fire dripped from the center mouth, ready to discharge FLAMETHROWER at the noble Pokémon closing in on the duo at quite the clip.

The FLAMETHROWER singed the golden Pokémon, but not as badly as Josh expected from a Pokémon capable of making that noise. By the time he could identify it as a Noble Scyther, based on his other encounters with the Pokémon, it was too late; the giant insect was already on top of Kokusho, slashing across the slower foe with FURY CUTTER after FURY CUTTER. Even the Master of Faster could not react in time, the dark-type loudly roaring when the wild's blades cut through his scales like they were fabric. The Hydreigon struggled to fly.

Like Yuina Higashi warned him before, this was no ordinary Pokémon. A noble guardian of Hisui, displaced by space and time. "We have to flee!" Josh called out toward the familiar face he couldn't put a name to. Little did they know that simply fleeing wouldn't get the Scyther off their tails. Unlike the Noble Arcanine, this ancient Pokémon was out for blood.

This Scyther acted like ones from Distortions. Increased size, increased aggression, and increased speed. It would have been one Josh tried to outright capture and add to his Gym's massive roster. If there was a Pokémon that had the right size and body shape to strap a saddle to, he wanted it at his Gym. Even if the species wasn't traditionally fast, he could make it fast. There was even a new Internet meme circulating about; it was a giant Slowpoke wearing a saddle, ferrying Josh past a galloping Rapidash in a slight blur. While this was, of course, an egregious exaggeration, there was truth in it. The Mauville Leader really would ride almost any Pokémon.

"Kokusho, floor it!" Josh shouted over the wind. "DOUBLE TEAM!" The three heads all leaned in, the dark-type dragon stretching his six wings and zooming away from the Scyther. It matched the DOUBLE TEAM with a DOUBLE TEAM of its own, the illusory copies quickly dispatched in the wake of the ally Hydreigon's TRI-ATTACK. The golden mantis Pokémon hissed at Lasciel Elis and her dragon with another volley of FURY CUTTER swipes, trying to cleave them both into pieces.