Josh didn't respond to Morrighan's remarks about the tea; he had learned long ago that when he had nothing nice to say, those remarks were better off unspoken. His smile returned as the writer seemed to shower him in compliments. "I am. I'm one of seven Champion-Ranked trainers in Hoenn, and can back up my title as Gym Leader: the Master of Faster." The Galarian horses near him were evidence of it; even the ice-type, one not known for speed, could gallop at quite the clip. "Go ahead! I've got nothing to hide."

Once Morrighan was ready, Josh plucked the RAINBOW FEATHER from his vest, SACRED ASH floating from its quill toward the ground. "About a hundred and fifty years in the past, two ideologically opposed legendary bird Pokémon roosted upon the Brass Tower and the Tin Tower. Their names are Lugia, the Beast of the Sea, and Ho-oh, the Great One. A gigantic storm descended upon Ecruteak, chasing both birds away. Lightning struck the Brass Tower, sparking a fire that raged for three days. It was only a torrential downpour that had reduced the tower to rubble."

Josh would stop to let Morrighan catch up with any notes she was taking, the feather scintillating in the park's natural light.

Between the blinding ELECTRO BALLS and the slow speed of Carnation's attack, the electric bird had what felt like all day to weave around the hunk of earth that was hurled his way. Stretching his wings powered by the burst of AGILITY from earlier in the battle, the Tyranitar's parting blow grazed his underside. Even a graze still hurt, coming from an immensely powerful species easily capable of shattering bone to pieces.

"Etali, ROOST!" the Gym Leader called out, the black and yellow bird landing in the center of the grassy field to catch his breath. It would leave Poppy with the all-important initiative, but it was a small price to pay to make sure they would have an even match.

"That's where you're wrong," Josh argued. "There are absolutely more than one. Suicune died in the war. We know this because of the late kyle lopez 's ashen construct. Yet Isaac Merlo is Suicune's Avatar. They may be rare, but they're far from unique." As were their Hoennian counterparts. They resembled and sounded like the Beasts. In his mind, they were the Beasts, just in different forms. And until Science presented him with a theory backed by solid evidence, that wasn't changing.

Josh nodded, shivering as the memories of being beaten by OKIDOGI flooded his mind. "That's... correct," he answered. "It's because of Raikou. A Johtonian Raikou. I wanted to keep him a secret as long as possible. But circumstances there forced my hand. Forced me to use him in battle. So now Hoenn knows that the Raikou and I are best friends." He held the RAINBOW FEATHER's quill in his right hand, ash dripping from its point as he pondered calling forth the monochrome legendary Pokémon.

The mention of distrust made Josh's mood sour. "Oh, I'm more than familiar with that adage," the Champion heaved, having dealt with several of his superiors that had a very clear trust issue they seemed unwilling to address. "One of the worst feelings in the world is discovering that a long-time friend isn't who you thought they were."

Josh's life had changed, as well. Some aspects for the better, some for worse. For one, Swift was becoming more and more like a real Pokémon by the passing month, the ashen construct showing Josh that he could use the devastating ELECTRO BALL attack to some of the greatest potential among any Pokémon. Since being able to cuddle and bond with the electric tiger (well, the best one could bond with a non-sentient construct), he had grown an appreciation for the creature's traits other than speed. He would have perished at Rhea Armistead 's bloody hands, had his Beast not drawn on the steadfastness hiding deep with Josh's subconscious.

The message had come up as unknown because Josh had gotten a new phone; he had lost his previous phone when he was abducted by the Loyal Three. The tone sounded familiar, which was the only reason he even replied to it:

If this is who I think it is, you'll know me when you see me. What's the address?

In an abundance of caution, Josh came armed to the teeth. Seated on the back of his ashen Beast, Josh controlled the Raikou within slow traffic. The yellow furs of his inert ZERAORA SYGNA SUIT made him stand out in the night's dark colors, the Champion looking much like a bipedal Zeraora himself in the wartime getup. Provided Alexei Ivanov had replied with the address or his coordinates, Josh would have little trouble finding him, if the Stormbringer desired himself to be found.

Among the black-haired man's five Pyroar also stood a Type: Null, the amalgamation of a Normal-type eying Lisette warily, unsure if she was friend or foe. All five of the felines, including the Illumina female Josh rode, seemed much more friendly. "They are!" the Champion replied. Zira, the shortest of the females, approached, sniffed, and nuzzled Lisette if she allowed it. Curiously, every single one of the Pyroar wore saddles and reins, much like a horse Pokémon would. "Ever since Space-Time Distortions started showing up in Hoenn, Pokémon that are much bigger than normal started showing up in large numbers. They used to be one in a million anomaly. Now, if you're reasonably patient, you can find them in the wild. Of course, breeding them to this size can be done, as well."

The Gym Leader reined his Illumina Pyroar, Nala, to a stop near lisette bellamy . "Gym Leader Devlin or Champion Devlin, but you can call me Josh," the black-haired man introduced himself. "Sorry if Zira's making you uncomfortable. She loves sniffing and trying to make friends with strangers. Sometimes she acts more like a dog than a cat."

Josh was excited. This was going to be his first truly fast ride on any of his Pokémon since banging his arm up in Megalopolan prison last Spring. Craggro, his own Hisuian Arcanine, let out a loud howl as the Champion waved toward his Ranger friend. "Hey, Yuina! There you are," he greeted her, Braver and Craggro both standing tall, but not much taller than Kano. "Thanks to Entei, I'm recovering a lot faster than I thought I would. How you been?"

To help in the search, Josh brought out the rest of his six fire Pokémon: four Pyroar, including two Illumina ones that Yuina had yet to see. The four saddled lions faced Celebi's bearer, Nala's and Kovu's resplendent fur making them look like gods of the feline species...

The Great Desert at night was a playground for Josh's nocturnal Pokémon... and the ones too dangerous to use on standard Routes. At least not without frightening passersby with horrific paradoxes like Raikou, Entei, and Suicune, the three "Hoennian" counterparts of the Johto legendary Pokémon Josh revered. He had so many rare and powerful Pokémon that he was quite the force to be reckoned with.

Josh wasn't there to joyride, though. He was on a mission.

Seated on Eriette, his Spectrier, the ghost-type equine galloped across the night sands swiftly on the lookout for Neon, whom he had a tip was there. His nerves shot sky-high the deeper he got into the desert. For he knew from Remiel Calcifet 's testimony at the hospital that he would be engaging in battle with an Avatar. The RAINBOW FEATHER gleamed in the moonlight, its quill already leaking ash in a trail behind the hooved Pokémon.

Were they to get within sight of mint frost , Josh would quietly order Eriette to disappear into the shadows of a PHANTOM FORCE attack, taking the thrill-seeking rider on an ethereal jaunt to deliver a nasty surprise: a ramming and trampling attack from behind!

The sheer brilliance of the newly-ascended Kovu and Nala, the heirs to the late King Aslan, was almost too much for the eyes to bear witness to. Joined by two hulking, muscular Pyroar named Nuka and Tazama, the newest, biggest, and most muscular members of the Mauville Pride, the four saddled lions looked ready to assist Josh and Nicholas. The RAINBOW FEATHER gleamed brightly in the light of the two Illumina Pyroar, the light they emitted making their surroundings bright as day.

At Josh's belt was one last Poké Ball containing a violent and powerful Pokémon in the event of a Rocket attack -- which felt a near certainty, what with Petalburg now firmly Rocket territory. "Nicholas?" the tenured Ranger asked from the saddle of the Illumina male. "Gym Leader Devlin or Champion Devlin, but please, you can call me Josh. What should be a simple search operation could get a bit complicated. If you see any Rocket agents, do not engage without my command. I don't want you become another victim."

With the warning out of the way, he introduced his four Pyroar. "These three are Nala, Nuka, and Tazama," he gestured toward the Illumina female, then the male, then the other female. "And I'm riding Kovu," he gently gave he Illumina male a pet. "If you need their help, they're here for you."

Little did Josh know how much each other respected the need for speed. The need for urgent delivery was growing greater and greater during war times, and someone willing to use a Zeraora for transport would be incredibly valuable. Provided Josh could convince Keiko, there might be two couriers delivering supplies and intelligence by lightning strike.

"You've come to the right person," Josh answered with a smile. "Feel free to make an appointment at Mauville Gym, and we can exchange techniques. I'll show you what's worked for me, and see if you can adapt it into something that works for you. I will warn you, though; Zeraora require quick reaction times to control." The two would go on, Josh talking about how he came upon both of them and how differently they had developed. One was Shiny, even!

"Most of them are!" Josh answered, his eyes focusing on Blinky. "Jolteon especially are good for racing, long as you have the proper equipment to make sure their quills don't spike up." Aisling may have noticed the guard on the front of the electric-type's seat, keeping a rider's legs from bouncing into her quills. Though it added some weight to her gear, she didn't seem to mind... and it seemed necessary for a human to be ferried about on one safely. "They all have their different strengths and weaknesses, just like in battle! After all, a Pokémon race, at its core, is just an unorthodox Pokémon Contest." Silph Cup races awarded Contest Ribbons for winners, after all.

After the brief battle with the Clauncher, the Champion elaborated on his career choice. "I've admired very fast Pokémon since I was a child, and have dreamed of competing on a professional level. Little did I think I would ever be teaching Hoenn's trainers how to do so in an official capacity as Gym Leader!" In his mind, there was truly no better way to bond with a Pokémon with great running capability than to mount up, becoming of one mind with the partner ferrying their trainer across the wilds.

Pinky's low-pitched squeal may have startled Aisling and her Flareon, not used to the almost alien-sounding cry of a Sylveon so large. "What about you? What brings you out to Mauville Bay?"

Even Josh winced as he saw what Verte did to the poor Arcanine. Without the Sygna Suit that Shalin Nariya wore, such ferocious vibrations would threaten to tear up the insides of anything near the Flygon. Sweating from the exertion, the dragon-type zipped toward Josh to pick him up and chase after the Corviknight.

The destructive HURRICANE shattered every north-facing window of the three-story office building, blowing the Gym Leader's precious Ride-On Raikou plush into the opposite corner and on its side. As much as ne knew it was a trap, what choice did Josh have? If he didn't, he wouldn't have an office building anymore. In an effort to divert the Corviknight away from his Gym, Josh reined Verte toward one side of his Pokémon and rider foes.

With wings once again roaring loud as a race car, the dragon-type lunged toward the armored avian, intending to hurl and SUPERPOWER it to the ground with reckless abandon. Even from the Flygon's saddle, the vibrations made the Gym Leader's hair stand on end. How much more harsh was it to be on the receiving end of the two-pronged, blunt and sonic attack!

With Josh at Ao's reins and Vespa seemingly ready, the Gym Leader was ready to give her a crash course in controlling a flying mount. Thankfully, getting in the air wasn't too difficult; it was simply the paradox Pokémon lifting itself into the air through draconic energy and floating forward enough to gain lift underneath its crescent-shaped wings. The expulsion of energy may have pressured Vespa, but it wouldn't have lasted long. With them in the sky above Hoenn's south seas, Josh could begin.

"Think of your reins like a joystick for your Pokémon," he explained. "If you've ridden a land Pokémon before, all the rules of controlling one apply, but there's a new one for the third dimension. If you pull back on your Pokémon's reins, it will climb. Just be careful; because Roaring Moon glide on their wings rather than flap them for thrust like most dragons, climbing too quickly can cause you to stall." It was one of the reasons Garchomp were notoriously difficult to fly on; their minimum speed needed to maintain lift made it much like controlling an airplane. "If you hold the reins more slack, your Pokémon will descend. Think of pulling on the reins like changing the way your mount's head faces, and which way they look."

After the speedy jump, Josh wheeled Illumina around, letting their momentum carry them backwards before coming to a stop near the shore. He withdrew the Lanturn while still mounted, swimming and wading through the shallows and back to dry land. "Just about any Pokémon can put on a lot of speed with the right work ethic!" the Gym Leader bragged. Hylda, his Glastrier, was a prime example. He had already used her in a racing challenge long ago, and proved to be quite the competitive ice-type.

With the two out of the water, Josh slow to dry off due to the humid conditions, he slipped back into his shoes and let Airi lead him back toward Mauville City. "There's a great ice cream parlor on the east side of town. How about we get out of this awful heat and cool off there? They've got a good variety - thirty-one flavors!"