(October 2024) Keenan Toral

Ever since Josh heard Keenan Toral 's account of Greyson Connors 's harrowing Gym Challenge, it had become clear that the confidence that surrounded the Toral disappeared in the presence of a legendary Pokémon, whether a god, a shard legendary, or even the Mauville Leader's unique ally he inherited from kyle lopez . He had been there, too; in order to become a Champion, he had to defeat not only Entei, but Ho-oh, without the use of one of Arceus' Most Sacred Creation. He knew how intimidating it was to battle one; they seemed to be on a completely different level of strength, speed, and resilence than ordinary Pokémon. They weren't unbeatable, but in order to have a hope at defeating one, a trainer would have to go in prepared.

Sitting atop the black thundercloud, Josh and Swift faced Keenan Toral just outside Mauville Gym's rear entrance, the battle courts north a fair distance. "Thanks for dropping by, Kee. Looking forward to sparring with Swift?" he asked, a thunderous purr rocking a column of air spreading outward between the Raikou's dagger-like fangs.

With every lightning-fast stride, Swift's back seemed to drop out from underneath the two, only for the black thundercloud to catch them on the way back up. He knew the Raikou's top speed well from when it was under Kyle's control. He remembered being paralyzed when Extreme Speed kicked in, zooming from Mount Pyre to Mauville City within minutes. Swift, in his current form, lacked that legendary speed. Not to say that he wasn't still going incredibly fast!

The Beast's speed leveled off, the riders' peripheral completely incomprehensible. Even Josh's other Pokémon, fleet of foot as they were, had to dive out of the way to avoid being run over by the fanged tiger. As much as it may have felt to Eddie that he was riding on a lightning bolt, this was the tip of the metaphorical iceberg. Perhaps one day, when both rider and beast were at full power, Eddie would get to experience the speed of lightning with him.

Once the main battle courts came into sight, Josh relaxed his legs, causing the Raikou to pump the brakes. Just like accelerating to full speed took a long time, so did decelerating. It took several laps around the court complex before the legendary electric-type came to a complete stop, the Gym Leader letting Eddie regain feeling in his legs before sliding off. "Fun, isn't it?!" Josh cried triumphantly, having not gone that fast with the prized ashen construct since before being abducted to Ultra Space.

The rest of Josh's pride, and stragglers who remained in the gallery after the Gym Challenge was over, looked excited to see the king and queen race one another. Josh snorted upon hearing the child's suggested method to control Kovu, the large, golden-maned lion powerfully purring to get him amped up. Even Josh felt a strong rumble beneath him; he couldn't have imagined how that must have been for the energetic guest.

"That is one way, yes, but you'll wear your voice out if you try shouting over the wind," Josh corrected the boy, reaching around him to grab the fire-type lion's reins. "It's actually a lot like riding a bike. Pulling on the reins like this is how you steer him!" Josh squeezed the Pyroar's sides lightly, bringing the lion to a brisk walk before pulling with his left arm. At his tactile command, the lion started turning left, then back to the right with a tug of his right arm.

Were the child to demonstrate an understanding of how to control direction, only then would Josh grant his wish. "Squeezing his sides with your legs is how you control his speed," Josh taught the child like he did most of his new students. "The tighter your hold, the faster he'll go. If you relax your legs, he'll slow down. That's just about all there is to it!" Before he agreed to let the child race Kyle, though, he would evaluate the boy's understanding of how to control the lion. Something else also bothered Josh.

Was the chaperone's name... Kyle?

Josh wasn't holding anything back. The desert was dangerous, even more so with its proximity to Mount Chimney. Local Rangers had been warning trainers to stay away from the mountain. Something big was happening there, and if even Elite Rangers were being told not to approach, the reason must have been a truly catastrophic omen. Whatever was causing this disturbance could well have spilled into the desert.

On top of that, Josh felt he needed to help Keenan Toral become more comfortable around Swift, particularly after the ashen Beast's mere presence left the accomplished trainer unable to speak. Not right away, though. They needed to get to the dig site first, and even at a more modest speed, there was no way Josh's Pyroar pride could keep up with the Raikou. Shorter, smaller members of the dig team would share the saddle covering the backs of some of the larger Pyroar, while larger and taller travelers would get their own. The rest of the pride would help cart supplies to the dig site.

Provided Keenan Toral and his father didn't have their own Pokémon to ferry them there, Josh would offer the backs of two of his lions for them to get to the remote dig sits safely. "Don't get too far ahead," the Champion warned. "While they're all combat trained, not all of them are trained to fight with a rider. And try not to go too fast, as tempting as it may be." Even with the saddles designed to mitigate the power of their flexing backs, a Pyroar's gait was still quite a bit bouncier than that of an equine Pokémon. Inexperienced riders could easily fall!

"Ready, Suicune?" Josh asked the Walking Wake he was seated on, the water-type paradox obedient to Josh's reins. Steam began to form from the dinosaur-Beast's twin tails, emulating a real Suicune's Tailwind. The waves it created crashed against the natural waves headed toward the shore, making it very choppy for the rest of his Pokémon to navigate.

That was the whole point of today's trip: to get the rest of his aquatic Pokémon in shape for a naval battle to come. One day, he might have to protect Dewford, Slateport, Lilycove, or Arceus forbid, Mauville herself, from Rocket invasion. Battling the wind- and steam-fueled currents were some of Josh's newer water Pokémon, as well as some familiar faces.

Nereus Onassis had reconnected with the Gym Leader recently and wanted to meet up at Mauville Bay, which was part of why Josh was working with his water Pokémon so late in the season. He hoped the paradoxical Suicune wouldn't intimidate the older trainer too much...!

The power behind the charge was incredible, the ground itself torn to pieces in the glowing Arcanine's wake. Kano met the noble, their RAGING FURY and ROCK HEAD colliding in a thunderous impact that sent pieces of blazing earth flying outward in all directions. One piece smashed into Braver, the Arcanine loudly squealing in pain from the Rock-type attack's wake sullying his orange and cream fur a blood red. "You don't have to tell me twice!" the Gym Leader exclaimed, violently reining Craggro away from the majestic and powerful wild in preparation for Extreme Speed. "But what is it?" he asked Yuina for the third time.

As Josh led the way back toward Mauville City, his steed's paws starting to blur as he prepared for an Extreme Speed run, so did the noble's. A humming noise filled the air around the Gym Leader as Craggro executed the sprint, giving the illusion that his four legs were one. They weren't out of the woods yet, though; that Noble probably knew the move, too. And with its larger body size, it would outpace and outmuscle Josh's Pokémon given the chance...

Josh took Vespa's stammering as being lost in emotion. It was a trying time for the Champion, having lost several Pokémon during the war. He was no stranger to his Pokémon being killed in action. Losing ones this close to him was the first time it truly hurt. if he lost Saber in battle... it would be one of the few Pokémon he would give up Swift to get back. For he knew from some of Kyle's last words in the Border that the feather containing the Raikou had the power to unconditionally bring a single Pokémon or person back from the dead.

Raikou may have been Josh's favorite Pokémon, but that Manectric was special.

"She didn't act like it, though; she was the happiest thing in the world," Josh reminisced aloud. "She never let anything drag her down. She was fearless until the end. She had to know she was going to die when she stepped in front of Chien-Pao's swords to save both MATIAS SILPH and I. And to think, when I was at the Border, I wanted to befriend and ride such a wicked Pokémon. I'm glad that didn't end up happening." The snow cat, as swift, agile, and regal as it was, was also the antithesis of everything Josh fought for. From the way it charged in battle, he also couldn't imagine trying to sit on a Pokémon whose back flexed above its head with every flex of its snowy spine. For even the most talented riders in the world, that sounded like a challenge -- and a painful one at that.

Lost in thought, it took Vespa musing about handling their first catch to snap him out of it. It made him realize that his Gym was the only thing letting him raise such a large roster. "That's fair! Dragons are a handful to raise," the Ranger replied. "Have you been to the top of the Sky Pillar before? It's quite the view."

Josh had been so occupied chatting with the other that it took Lutgarde's voice to make him aware that they had even walked in. "Thanks for dropping by," he replied, turning toward the accomplished Ranger. "It means a lot. Aslan was where my pride started. I didn't plan on raising more than one Pyroar, but one turned into two, turned into three... turned into... well, eleven." Kion, one of the smaller males, stood next to Lutgarde as the royal pair's eyes shifted toward them. "Every single one of them deserved to be a king or queen. But there can only be two royalty in the pride."

There was no true replacement for Aslan. The great lion was a leader in his own right, keeping the pride's spirits up and on task. He was smart enough to lead a team of Rangers on his own, without Josh guiding him. And yet the two never objected when working with one another. The king and queen had big shoes to fill. While there would no doubt me rough edges in the first few weeks, he expected the transfer of power to be peaceful enough.

That Genevieve didn't back down from a run on the fastest Pokémon on land showed how much the Ranger had changed. Had he heard that Navy was the only one in all of AQUA that endorsed him for Elite Four, he would have recommended the Elite Ranger for the position, too. They were right. His position as Mauville Gym Leader was invaluable. It was arguably the most strategically-located city in Hoenn, and would no doubt come under heavy fire during the war. It was paramount that it was run by a trainer who could deploy Pokémon faster than anyone else in the region.

The acceleration on the initial straightaway pushed Josh back in his cocoon and pinched his skin. While his facial skin didn't stretch against his skull, he could feel it collecting toward the back of his cheeks. Had Entei not prepared him for this race by Extreme Speeding away from Sootopolis and back to Mauville, this race easily would have overwhelmed his body.

Josh loudly grunted as he yanked on Braver's reins with every turn. No matter how he trained the Arcanine, he had to deal with the reality of the species' physical limitations. At the speed they were going, he had to initiate the turn before the course even curved. Not wanting to bang his arm up even more, he made wide turns around the opening half-minute. He wanted to win the race. But he also had to respect that his arm wasn't quite at full capacity.

With heavy footfalls that drowned out even the loud gallery, the five speedy Pokémon were off. The fire-types left burning trails behind them, Genevieve Cromwell 's ARCANINE seemingly giving his all from the moment the green flag dropped. The other two of his kind trailed closely behind, though with every turn, the gap between ACE SHEEKE and Josh Devlin grew as the Leader's arm injury held him back from making the cleanest turns his big, fluffy dog was capable of.

ARAVAN ESCHER did not have to worry about the wide but sharp turns; what his SALAZZLE lacked in raw speed, she made up for with sublime cornering. Her impossibly rapid gait made it hard for the blue-haired Gym trainer to concentrate, his surroundings looking like a mild earthquake was taking place. Without being able to put all his focus on making every turn clean, Aravan and the venomous lizard could not keep up with ERON IUNIS' LINOONE, the normal-type sprinter flicking its rider to one side with every sudden right-angle turn. A gentle, gradual turn leading to a narrow pass cut into the tan Pokémon's lead as the sky continued to grow darker...

NOTE: This Obstacle has more than one Target Number. Please indicate in your OOC NOTES which Target Number you are challenging.

Prompt: One of the course's titular turns loomed ahead, and fast: four rapid-fire, right-angle turns in the rough shape of a striking lightning bolt. Two approaches would work well for this unique challenge found nowhere else on official Federation race courses, and each came with their pros and cons.

The first would be to treat the whiplash-inducing turns separately. While less risky, the speed at which the turns came would flick the riders back and forth harshly without significant braking.

The second was that there was a small space between each pair of corners. If executed properly, it would result in taking much more shallow turns and be faster overall. The downside was the much higher degree of difficulty that came with it, on top of the greater consequences for failure. Tripping on one corner would likely send Pokémon and rider flying to the opposite corner of the next turn, resulting in an abrupt crash that could be race-ending for a team.

Target Number 1: 135 (Reaction)

Special 1: Pokémon apply only half their Speed ranks (no rounding) to this Obstacle.

Target Number 2: 150 (Speed)

Special 2: Pokémon that meet or exceed this Obstacle's Target Number gain 75 TP in addition to any normal TP gain. Any TP loss resulting from a Pokémon rolling beneath this Obstacle's Target Number is multiplied by 1.5.

Josh had been to the Ultra Sea many times, extracting Dynite Ore from within Eternatus' bowels; he was familiar with the horrors within that part of the alien realm specifically. Outside that... it was anything goes. And he wasn't holding back, either. The tension in his arms was visible as he held Suicune's reins, the Walking Wake swimming through the half-liquid, half-gas environment. The RAINBOW FEATHER was pinned to his Ranger uniform, Swift ready to deploy at a moment's notice.

Josh reined the prehistoric Beast upwind as Nikita lit a cigarette. "Not anything different than when they had me in the salt mines," the Champion answered. "Those mining operations to manufacture our first Dynamax Bands were brutal. I'm glad I'm assigned more--"

He stopped speaking as a disembodied voice echoed through the deep. "EnVoY... OuR EnVoY... DeLiVeR uS... fRoM hIiIiIiIiIiMMMMMMMMMMMM..."

Though he did flinch or shriek in fright, the rider's hair stood on end. "Did you hear that...?" he asked the detective.

Josh had been somewhat desensitized to loss. Counting Pokémon that had come back from the dead, thanks to kyle lopez and the Great One Ho-oh's mercy, he had watched one of his Pokémon die ten times. "Resheph in particular hurt a lot," the Gym Leader answered. "Before the war started, I would travel from Goldenrod to Celadon City once a week and play Voltorb Flip. It was the only game I was allowed to play there because I was under 21 at the time. I played every week for months on end until I won enough coins to buy Resheph from the prize counter." If Lutgarde knew the general demeanor of Pokémon from Game Corner facilities, particularly Rocket-run ones, they would know how challenging they were to raise.

Regole's coo was deeper than Resheph's. She was not a hyperactive schoolgirl; she was a caring and protective mother, more adept on the field of battle than on the race course. "I've already come to grips with it; as you remember, we had a funeral for Aslan at my Gym. Like I said, it doesn't make it hurt any less, but she's gone. And kyle lopez is gone, too. Without the Great One's presence, death is... much more final than it was before."

The duo did have a job to do; with Sootopolis in shambles and control of the island contested, Josh and Lutgarde were to use their water and flying Pokémon to ferry League resources from Sootopolis' outer archipelago back to Ever Grande's main island, as well as assist with smaller jobs as needed. "Might need to call my secretary once we get to the islands," he noted aloud. "I don't think Regole and Staccato alone will be able to handle this."

For Halloween, it had been tradition for Josh to dress up as the person he had wanted to be: a knight in shining armor, wielding a plastic, lightning bolt-shaped sword. Its translucent edge, illuminated by a small light bulb within, gave him the illusion of being a member of AQUA. Reinforcing the illusion was Josh's Manectric, Saber. Though his purple thundercloud saddle was a permanent part of his outfit now, his Raikou mask and blue, spark-shaped tail dongle were not. Admittedly, it did feel different this year; with him possessing the RAINBOW FEATHER, he could sit upon the ashen Beast as part of his costume... but it didn't feel right. Memory or no, the Johtonian god of speed was not his to flaunt. It was his to defend the region with.

Josh wasn't going trick-or-treating for the candy; he was going to show off his heroic-looking costume. Striking a triumphant pose as he waited in line for their turn to register, the Gym Leader turned toward Vespa Baskerville . "What do you think? Do I look like an Envoy to you?" His self-proclaimed Avatar-like title had shifted over the years as he came to a better understanding of his role in the Hoenn region. Once Determined when all that mattered to him was befriending Raikou, then Signer before he knew his true focus, he was Hoenn's Envoy in the make-believe world that he deluded himself in during the tenth month of every year.