Josh was no stranger to the dead. He had been to the Border on several different occasions. Wrangling with the spirit of Chien-Pao before it chose jayden cross . Avenging the death of SHAWN RICHARDS, his top Gym Trainer and planned successor to the Gym.

"It's okay, Andrea," Josh answered. He would have given the cosplayer a pat on the shoulder were he not in the saddle of Eriette, his Spectrier. His other ghost-type steeds were around, and he even looked like a knight with Danjuro the Honedge in his hand. "It feels weird holding a sword in my hand again, not gonna lie. I put that blade down after the resurfaced island. When I realized fighting isn't my forte. War couriers are just as important as those who fight, you know." It was a truth he hoped Andrea would be happy to hear. While it wouldn't keep him completely out of danger, it was a role that was less dangerous than directly battling Avatars.

He understood why Andrea wanted to return to the place she lost Chomper. "If we can't find him here... we'll visit him at the Border," the Gym Leader promised. "Given how close you two were to one another, it should be expected that his soul's running around there. I highly doubt he's passed on. That reminds me... I should check on kyle lopez if we end up going there." Little did he know that rumors of the Emergent's death were greatly exaggerated... though Kyle was no longer in the form the Knight of Thunder recalled.

As much as Andrea wanted to ignore it, war was a reality within the region. Though skirmishes broke out from time to time, Sootopolis and Petalburg marked the war's true beginning. It had taken Josh three ventures, but he had at last found the way to best use his unique skill set to serve the League in their effort to oust Team Rocket like had taken place in his birth region so many years ago.

"I know that feeling all too well," Josh replied. "I went through it with my closest coworker. After dorian westcliff killed him and six other people at my Gym, his spirit wouldn't pass on until I went to the Border and avenged him." Even a year and a half later, Josh still had not found an employee worthy of being an Interim Gym Leader in the event he became ill and needed to temporarily step down from his important role.

An OMINOUS WIND blew over both adventurers, blowing around a wholly unnatural mist. Eriette stopped and loudly snorted several times, cautious and perhaps afraid of the paranormal presence. "I'm going to the other side to see what's there, Andrea," Josh said to her as his hold on the Spectrier's reins tightened. "Eriette, PHANTOM FORCE!" Seconds later, horse and rider vanished into thin air, reappearing in a color-inverted version of Hoenn whether ethereal beings dwelled...

The ethereal world on Hoenn's other side appeared as an inverted mockery of the corporeal world, now draped in varying shades of violet. Shortly after Andrea followed him, a robotic voice echoed all around them, commanding that they both leave. "Eriette, SUBSTITUTE!" the Gym Leader ordered as Gigi's SHADOW BALL left Andrea's two Pokémon locked in a fierce tug of war.

Between Andrea, Gigi, and the Hydreigon's wrathful spirit appeared an empty husk of Eriette, shielding them against the three-headed, Shiny spirit. "I'll do my best to protect you, Andrea... but this is something I can't help you with. None of your friends can. Only you understood Chomper. Only you can calm him. Understand why his soul won't pass on to the Border." Josh had learned that the hard way with the people he had lost in the Gym attacks. Nothing was bringing them back, particularly not with Kyle gone. "But I'm here to support you how I can."

Eriette's SUBSTITUTE remained in front of the trio, whinnying with defiance and protecting them from the three-headed phantom's wrath. It had only been spared by Gigi's CONFUSE RAY; Josh knew just how powerful Chomper was. That Hydreigon was her ace Pokémon, like Saber was for Josh. He wondered how the electric-type felt upon seeing markedly less action in the war once Swift had stolen the spotlight.

Was Saber equally angry at him?

Josh saw a reflection of his past self as the emotional girl wallowed in sorrow over her fallen Pokémon's irate spirit. "Andrea, apology and admission of fault can only go so far," the Champion called out to her as he reined the spectral mare around to keep her projected self between her real one and the Hydreigon. "I've found that Pokémon that feel like they're betrayed need you to understand what you can do for them and why they should give you a second chance. But you know Chomper better than anyone else. You know what your Pokémon wants."

Josh sharply pulled back on Eriette's reins, causing the horse to rear dramatically. "No matter what, I've still got your back!"

If there was one thing Andrea was, it was stubborn. If she didn't get her way, she would do everything in her power to change that. When she got emotional, nothing could stop her. Including putting herself in the way of the Spectrier that Josh rode upon. He gasped and was about to scream for his dragon-loving friend, only to see the three sets of jaws pass through her skin harmlessly.

Josh watched the scene unfold between Andrea and her Sygna Pokémon. Though their bodies could no longer touch one another due to being in different planes of existence, the love between them transcended the states of life and death. Seeing Chomper's spirit pass on was a bittersweet moment. One that moved Josh so much that he dismounted from Eriette and embraced Andrea in a big, friendly hug, were she to allow it. "I'm proud of you, Leader," Josh's voice seemed to boom in the sudden silence. "The Great One has raptured Chomper's spirit. One day, when your time in this world is up, She will come for you. And you will be with Chomper in paradise."

Josh climbed back onto Eriette's saddle and held her reins firmly. "I should check on the spirits of Aslan and Resheph, too. The Pokémon I lost at Sootopolis," he mused as the three returned from the ethereal world back to the outskirts of Petalburg Woods. "Just like I won't forget my fallen Pokémon, don't you ever forget Chomper." Just as he was about to ride into the distance, he turned his horse around. "And if you ever want to go hunting for another Hydreigon to power your Sygna Suit, let me know. I'm always down for some dragon-riding fun with you!"

As a Gym grinder, Josh had the support of others who had already risen to the top. It was only right for him to pass that support on now that he was a Champion himself. "Holy...!" Josh gasped, Andrea's squeeze quite a bit stronger than he was expecting. "You're strong!" She was a dragon trainer, after all -- very few dragon trainers were anything but physically strong. Even Josh was; he had to have iron thighs to stay in a dragon's saddle!

"And don't be shy about it either," Josh reassured her that he was willing to help the emotional cosplayer who desired no more than to become a Pokémon. "I know he's not Chomper, and no Hydreigon will be. But you're more than welcome to hold Kokusho's reins the next time we go flying together." And even if she didn't want to utilize tactile control, Kokusho was more than willing to listen to verbal commands. "Need a ride back to town? Eriette's got room for another." Regardless of travel arrangements, the two would be on their way to their next destinations, Josh's being a hotel bed in Oldale Town. He was growing tired, and Mauville City was quite far away!