Josh's Sacred Swords were fast. The thrusters beneath the paradox Pokémon's metallic boots had some real kick to them, letting them keep up with their legendary counterparts. As the Terrakion and Virizion look-alikes mentally strapped their riders on with psychic power, ensuring they wouldn't need to focus on their posture and balance, Josh swiveled to face Dirk. "Considering you've beaten several Gym challengers on your own already, you're a mighty trainer, more than capable of completing the Gym circuit. I'm just a little worried because the Pokémon down here can be a problem... even for me."

While rare, the legendary paradox Pokémon were known to be here, and they were terrifying creatures in the wild. It had taken Josh quite some time to learn just why Entei's species name was Gouging Fire, and he had learned so the hard way. On a routine sparring day at his Gym, Entei's mean horn had pierced through even Teyo's armor, the stout Bastiodon experiencing true pain for the first time. Perhaps it was because the fossil Pokémon has sacrificed some defense for speed when Josh trained him.

"It's all the waterfalls," Josh educated Dirk as their Pokémon's metallic hooves kicked against one another during their long and powerful strides. "Once we get below the cloud level, the air should become a lot drier." As is, it was really thick... more so than Route 119 in the summer. "Just keep your eyes out for paradox Pokémon that look like legendary Pokémon. Like Raikou, Entei, and Suicune at my Gym, and these three. If you see one, we run. They're... a lot even for me."

Josh watched Dirk battle the dark-type canine. Houndoom were an ornery species, and almost required a saddle to ride due to their hard bones running across their backs. If one could get through their aggressive tendencies, they made excellent mounts, with a great balance of speed, strength, and stamina. "Opportunistic, I see," Josh hummed, seeing how well-prepared Dirk was for the dark-type. "It doesn't hurt to have one or two backups, either, even if it's not the Pokémon you're looking for. Komainu's a good boy; if you need to practice with him, you're more than welcome to use him when we head back to Mauville. He's my own Houndoom."

After the battle, Josh led the way beneath the cloud layer, the metallic Swords of Justice tromping into Area Zero proper. "Oh, more than that. When you see the Pokémon that show up down here, you'll be terrified," Josh warned. He deeply revered and respected Johto's legendary Beasts. That there were paradox Pokémon that were closely related to the sacred trio would almost no doubt get Dirk's attention. Any one of them would be brutal to do battle against...