Seth had a feeling he would be facing off against someone else from the competition sooner or later, that much was certain. As a matter of fact, he'd hoped he'd get to battle them as early as possible as they were all obstacles in his way. He recognized Thomas as one of the first people he'd met at the gathering the queen had set up to announce the contest. While not as rude as some of the others, there was still an air of arrogance around him that was very off putting to Seth. As their names went up on the board, Thomas cleared his throat to speak.

"I have to admit, I wasn't expecting you to get this far. After that mishap at the party, I thought it cemented fact that you and Allie disliked each other. But since you're here now, I can see that's not the case. Still, you should give up while you can because I don't intend to lose to you," Thomas said with a cocky smirk.

"You're right about one thing, I didn't like her at first. But after spending time with her and getting to know who she was, I was able to change my tune. We put our differences aside and as you pointed out, I'm still here. So while I admire you being straight with me, I'll have to say no to walking away," Seth replied firmly.

"If that's how you wanna play it, fine by me," Thomas shrugged. "But don't say I didn't warn you after you get crushed," Thomas chuckled as he readied his first choice while the judge stepped out onto the battlefield.

"It's time for the first bout of the preliminaries to begin! Kicking off the Lumiose Conference are Seth and Thomas, two young hopefuls vying for the chance to take Allie's hand in marriage! The stage has been set. Trainers, send out your first Pokémon!"

"Scolipede, it's time!" Thomas declared, tossing a black and white sphere onto the field.

The monstrous megapede towered above the battlefield as it was released. Scolipede cast an intimidating glare down at the opposition, hunger in his eyes as he awaited the release of his first prey among three. Seth looked up at the daunting eight foot adversary and smirked. He knew exactly who to choose for this match.

"Cerise, why don't you come on out?" Seth said calmly, his eyes not leaving Thomas's as Cerise began to materialize beside him, her evolved form on full display.

The Royal Sword had been invisible up until that point so as not to draw any unnecessary attention until she was called to action. Hovering forward, she readied herself for the battle that was about to commence. She had trained hard each day up until this point and had worked tirelessly to earn the power she had gained just days before. She planned to put every bit of her newfound strength to good use, and that all began with the imposing creature standing against her.

"This will be a three on three battle," the judge began as she looked between the two combatants. "The battle is over when all three Pokémon from either side are knocked out. The winner will proceed to the next preliminary round! Both sides ready?" she asked.

After receiving confirmation from both sides she raised her hand to signal the start of the match by shouting, "you may begin!"

After being given the command to start, Scolipede gave a mighty shout and rampaged toward Cerise, his horns glowing bright green as Thomas gave the order for Megahorn. As the great venomous beast approached, Cerise readied herself by switching her mode, her shield out to the side as her side as she angled her bladed body. A dark purple aura erupted around her obsidian frame as soon as she swung the edge of herself toward the horns of her attacker, sparks flying the impact the moment they clashed.

"Pin Missile!" Thomas shouted fiercely.

"Shadow Sneak!" Seth countered swiftly.

Scolipede's frontal spikes began to glow brightly as he prepared to launch a close range missile assault at his target. Abandoning her current directive, Cerise disengaged from her adversary in favor of diving into the shadows beneath the arena, effectively avoiding the Pin Missile assault. In a flash, she shot out of the ground with an upward slashing strike that carried the energy of the wind with it, forcing Scolipede to stagger back, nearly toppling over.

"Use Payback!" Thomas retaliated in irritation.

"King's Shield!" Seth riposted.

The spectral blade swiftly sheathed herself into the holster on the back of her shield and cast a barrier of protection before her to ward off her opposition. Scolipede's tail slammed hard into the barrier, a decision he would soon regret as he felt power being sapped from his body, making him feel weaker than before. As Scolipede gathered himself up for another attack, Cerise was upon him in a heart beat, her body surrounded by gusting winds that sliced through the air in a wave of crescent blades as she arced herself into a diagonal upward slash. Scolipede shrieked in pain as he crashed hard into the ground.

"Scolipede is unable to battle! Aegislash wins the round!" the judge declared as her hand shot up.

Thomas frowned as he returned Scolipede to his ball. While he knew he was at a disadvantage, he hadn't expected there to be such a gap in power. He'd underestimated his opponent, a mistake he would soon rectify with his next choice.

"Golurk, front and center!"

Making a heavy impact onto the field, the ghostly automaton rose to its full height, dwarfing Cerise by a significant amount. The ancient protector looked down at its opponent and slammed its fists together as a sign that it was ready to begin. Sizing up the Golurk, Seth dawned a more serious look as he analyzed the strength of the current threat facing him. Scolipede was a monster in his own right and would have given Cerise trouble had she not been prepared for the scenarios she faced. This, however, would be a much different fight as Seth could see that they were on even terms without them so much as having to make a move.

"Gonna need you to sit this one out Cerise. That Golurk's a lot tougher than he looks," said Seth as he recalled Cerise to his side.

"As you wish, m'lord," Cerise complied, withdrawing herself from the battlefield.

"Just sit tight and observe for a bit, I'll send you back out soon," Seth stated, reaching down to his belt to pick his next choice.

"Gogoat, you're up!" Seth called out, launching the horned beast into battle, giving Gogoat his first battle debut since his capture.

Looking up at the daunting behemoth before it, Gogoat stomped the ground with his front hoof and looked back at Seth, his eyes showing signs of uncertainty simultaneously intermingled with determination. Seeing this, Seth waved Gogoat over to it for a quick stroke of his horns.

"I know this is our first real battle together, and you're probably not sure what to expect. But you're strong and I believe you can handle it. You don't have to worry about winning, just focus on doing your best. Wear it down, got it?" Seth coached him, the horns on Gogoat's head lighting up in approval of the statement.

Seth sent Gogoat back to his position and set to work on his strategy. With the stage set, the two combatants readied themselves and—once given their commands—charged each other at full force. Gogoat's horns glowed a vibrant green while Golurk launched a heavy, fiery punch in a downward motion as Gogoat drew near. The two came to blows in the center of the arena, the force of Golurk's punch causing the ground to quake as it met with Gogoat's horns. As a result of their collision, Gogoat was sent sliding back from the point of impact, just managing to regain his footing in time to avoid another megaton Fire Punch from the automaton juggernaut.

"Keep moving, use Seed Bomb!" shouted Seth.

Opening his mouth, Gogoat fired a volley of explosive, glowing orange seeds at his adversary. Crossing itsarms, Golurk braced itself as it allowed the seeds to explode against it, the impact causing it to stagger back slightly. Recovering from the blast, Golurk drew its fist back, an icy aura covering it as it swung forward after Thomas called for an Ice Punch. The golem's massive fist slammed hard into Gogoat's left flank, sending him skidding along the ground.

I knew that Golurk would be trouble. Not only is it strong but it's faster than it looks. Taking this thing down isn't going to be as easy as I'd hoped. I'll just have to keep it on its toes then... "Gogoat, use Leaf Blade!"

"Not going to work! Golurk use Phantom Force!" Thomas countered.

Gogoat's grassy mane began to glow as two sharp blades of grass jutted out from both sides of Gogoat's neck. With a snort, Gogoat exploaded forward at top speed toward Golurk who stood in wait as it was approached. As Gogoat leaped toward him, Golurk suddenly vanished, leaving the dimension for a brief moment as Gogoat landed harshly on his hooves and slid across the ground after missing his intended target. In a flash, Golurk shot out of a shadowy portal just above Gogoat and brought both fists down upon the unsuspecting foe, pounding Gogoat into the ground with devastating force, resulting in a small quake that shook the arena.

"Gogoat is unable to battle, Golurk wins the round!" the judge shouted as her hand went up.

"Can't say I wasn't expecting that," Seth said casually as he withdrew Gogoat so he could get some rest.

"And what's that supposed to mean?" Thomas inquired, crossing his arms impatiently as he waited for Seth to send out his next teammate.

"It means exactly what you think it does. I had a feeling things would turn out that way, and since they did I now have a pretty clear understanding of your Golurk's strength," Seth replied as he motioned for Cerise to return to the battlefield. "So let's get these two reacquainted, shall we?"

Allie watched the battle unfold with great interest, her focus remaining on Seth who had just sent Cerise back into battle after having withdrawn her to begin with. A smile tugged on the corners of her mouth as she saw exactly what it was he was doing. While it was true that Gogoat held the overall advantage in speed, he hadn't been with Seth for very long and while he was tough, he still had room to grow. Seth, she figured, must have known this, but still decided to give Gogoat a chance to experience his first real battle.

He held his own, for the most part, and probably could have won had it not been for how much more experienced his opponent clearly was. Gogoat, Allie concluded, was simply used to test the waters. She knew how strong Thomas's Golurk was due to seeing it in action during one of her later visits as he was finishing the challenge. His team was fairly remarkable, but even with what he brought to the table, the fact still remained that he would need to do better than that to keep Seth at bay.

"Watching them intently I see. You've got that same look in your eyes that you always get when you're excited about something," a familiar voice giggled, prompting her to tear her focus away from the match so she could greet the four young women that had come to see the end of her competition.

"You came!" Allie exclaimed excitedly as she pulled Morgan into a hug.

Morgan beamed as her friend welcomed her and reciprocated the affection saying, "of course we did pet! There wasn't even the slightest chance we would miss this, not for a wee second!" Morgan said happily. "I hope we didn't miss much."

"Not at all! It just started in fact, take a look," Allie replied, gesturing for the four to look down from their box above the stands.

"I recognize those two. That's Seth is it not? I had a feeling he'd make it this far. He sure cleans up nice, doesn't he?" Morgan said grinning as she looked over to catch the blush on Allie's face at the mention of his name.

Clearing her throat, Allie stepped up beside the sisters and began explaining how the rest of the competition was going to go as she had yet to tell them about it.

"So that's how it's going to work," Allie said as she watched the battle below continuing with Cerise having a clear upperhand inspite of Golurk's best efforts. "What do you think?"

"That's going to be quite the surprise. I think it's a fantastic idea that you're doing this," Dana said grinning. "I just hope these men will be able to handle it."

"I have a feeling they'll be just fine... well... some moreso than others anyway. I'll cross that bridge when I come to it. For now, I'm just going to observe until it's time," Allie said, her eyes returning to the battle as a Shadow Ball cannoned into Golurk's chest, sending it crashing hard into the ground.

"Golurk, get back up and use Shadow Punch!" Thomas called out as his phantom golem pushed its massive frame off the ground and rocketed off into the sky toward the floating form of Cerise as she levitated in wait.

With a mighty thrust of its arm, Golurk connected its fist with the shield of its foe and sent her sprawling through the air. Vanishing into dark portal, Golurk followed up its assault by hammering Cerise—with all of its might—toward the ground. As Cerise Plummeted, Golurk ignited its body in flames and shot toward the ground at breakneck speeds.

"Finish it with Heat Crash!" Thomas roared.

A smirk slid onto Seth's face as Golurk closed in like a meteor that had just broken through the atmosphere. To most, it looked as though Golurk had this round sealed up given how much damage Cerise had taken. Unbeknownst to the onlookers, that's exactly what Seth wanted Thomas to think. As Golurk closed in, Seth played his hand.

"King's Shield!"

A loud clang was heard as Golurk's body made contact with the spectral barrier that Cerise erected just before she'd hit the ground. In a split second she slipped into the shadows and was above Golurk, her blade laced with darkness.

"Night Slash!" Seth ordered, putting the final nail in the coffin.

Golurk crashed hard, face first, onto the ground. The judge's hand shot up swiftly to make the call.

"Golurk is unable to battle! Aegislash wins the round!"

Thomas looked rattled as he returned his Golurk. He was down to his last Pokémon while Seth still had two in his arsenal. The very thought of him losing in the first round would be extremely embarrassing for him. Reaching down to his belt, Thomas grabbed the last of his teammates and expanded the ball, his hopes riding on his last remaining companion.

"You've managed to hold out far longer than I expected. You've earned some respect in that regard, however... I think it's time I stopped playing games and ended this," Thomas proclaimed as he hefted his last ball into the air with a shout, "Medicham, to battle!"

The moment Medicham materialized onto the arena was when Seth realized that things were about to get tougher. Medicham was powerful enough as it was, but seeing as this one had a stone hung around his neck, it didn't take much for Seth to realize that he was in some serious trouble. Without hesitation, Thomas activated the keystone on his wrist band, transforming Medicham into an even more formidable foe than before. 

"This is going to be rough," Seth muttered as he analyzed Medicham's aura. "Stay on your guard Cerise, this one's a lot stronger than the others..."

"No kidding, I can feel it," Cerise replied, shifting herself into her defensive stance to prepare for Medicham's inevitable attack.

"Shadow Sneak!" Seth commanded, aiming to land the first strike.

Medicham remained still as Cerise dove into the arena and slithered through the shadows toward him. Closing his eyes, Medicham's body surrounded itself in a bright pink aura. Just as Cerise shot out of the ground behind him, Medicham ignited his fist in flames and rounded on Cerise, connecting his fist with her exposed blade with an explosive punch that blasted her across the arena. Her body hit the ground and became motionless, causing the judge's hand to shoot up quickly to call the round.

"Aegislash is unable to battle, Medicham wins the round!" she declared.

Felicity and Jamie watched intently as they waited for their turns to battle. Felicity scrunched her brow into a frown as she saw Cerise go down to a single strike. Annoyed didn't even begin to describe her feelings on the current match considering she was the one who wanted to have the pleasure of taking Seth down. Aside from Jamie, who had gotten much better over the years, Seth was the only one who she considered a worthy opponent.

"You're not starting to worry are you?" Jamie asked, taking note of the expression on Felicity's face as she watched the match.

"Not in the slightest," Felicity huffed, her eyes diverting back to the screen as Seth returned Cerise. "I just hope Seth ends this match so I still have a shot at beating him myself."

"Well, I don't think you'll have to worry about that. If there's anything we've learned about Seth it's that he's almost always ready for anything. Judging by how calm he looks, there's a good chance that he's got something something up his sleeve," Jamie said with a grin.

Felicity knew he was right. When it came to Seth, there was always a surprise waiting just around the corner. As she observed Jamie from the side, she caught sight of a decorative locket hung around his neck. Before, there had been a more simple necklace with his keystone attached to it. A grin slid onto her face and a giggle escaped her lips.

"So, where'd you get the locket? Last I checked, you weren't one to shop for things like that," Felicity said, giving him a knowing look.

"Huh? Oh uh... well... you see I—you already know don't you?" Jamie said nervously, his hand reaching up to scratch the back of his head. "Melody sorta got it for me as a gift and she also kinda blurted out that she liked me the other day so..."

"No surprise there," Felicity said smirking. "She's had a crush on you since she was in middle school. It was only a matter of time before she admitted to it. I also have a sneaking suspicion that you like her back but are probably feeling awkward since it's our best friend's sister we're talking about. But that's a topic for a later discussion, so let's get back to the match shall we?"

"Straight to the point as always huh?" Jamie responded, the blush fading from his face as his eyes were drawn back to the battle at hand. "Looks like he's made his choice..."

"Vespisol, en garde!" cried Seth as he fired his final choice into battle.

When the Soldier Bee Pokémon came into view, whispers shot through the crowd and gasps of surprise were heard as the Bug-type made its appearance. It was certainly a fascinating sight as no one, save for Korrina and Ramos, had ever seen it before. Vespisol quietly hovered to the ground and stood at the ready.

"Ladies and gentlemen this is amazing! Professor Sycamore here, has just informed me that what we are seeing here is quite possibly one of the rarest evolutions to ever exist. Vespisol, according to the data I've been given, is the male evolution of Combee. I've heard about it, but I was told that the possibility of seeing one was next to impossible, but there it is everyone!" the announcer exclaimed excitedly.

Thomas arched a brow as he listened to the announcer explain what he was seeing, saving him the trouble asking about it himself. While it was an impressive feat to have accomplished, none of that mattered in the face of Medicham's might. Thomas wasn't at all intimidated by the little bug that was standing across from his ace.

"Medicham, let's end this quickly. Fire Punch!"

Medicham darted forward, his fist aflame as he swiftly closed the gap. Watching Medicham's punch all the way through, Vespisol parried the strike with one arm, creating an opening for Vespisol to deliver a punishing Mega Punch to the overextending Medicham's chest. The wind from the strike launched Medicham upward and backward, making him land hard on his back. Sensing danger, Medicham quickly crossed his arms over his face as Vespisol was quickly upon him, lashing out with several rapid strikes.

"Get him off with Psychic!" Thomas countered hastily.

Vespisol found himself bound by a powerful force that restricted his movements, freezing him in mid-air. With a swift kick, Medicham sent Vespisol crashing along the arena, the Bug-type bouncing several times before regaining his bearings and taking to the skies. Dusting himself off, Vespisol looked down at Medicham with determination burning in his eyes. This was what he lived for—a fight like this, where he could go all out and test the limits of his strength. Feeding off his excitement, Vespisol loosed a battle cry and formed two long, verdant blades in his claws and gripped them tightly.

"Strike back with X-Scissor!"

Vespisol pointed imperiously at Medicham with his blade before taking a nose dive from the sky, his blades at the ready as he approached at mach speeds. Medicham shifted his stance and drew his hands back, psychic aura channeling into his palms as he timed his attack. With an upward sweeping motion, several crescent blades were launched toward Vespisol who rolled and ducked under each as they came, batting a few away with his blades of energy as he neared his target.

Vespisol ducked the follow-up flaming fist and dove at Medicham, lashing out and landing a well placed slash to his abdomen. The attack caused Medicham to stumble and lose focus momentarily as another strike sliced across his chest, followed by several more, the last of which knocked him back from the force. Regaining his footing, Medicham was able to defend against another onslaught. Medicham's body began to glow with a bright yellow and orange aura as he defended. Planting his feet, Medicham swung hard in retaliation, the Reversal attack sending Vespisol crashing to the ground several feet away.

Medicham breathed heavily and winced while gripping his arm. Thomas knew that Medicham was low on stamina and could only hope that the attack was enough to end the match. Much to his dismay, Vespisol was determined not to give in and pushed himself up and rose to a stand, staggering forward slightly before steadying himself. It was clear that both of them were running on fumes meaning they needed to make this last attack count.

"Medicham, let's end this with one final Fire Punch!"

"Vespisol, stand your ground and then use Mega Kick!"

Medicham charged forward, both fists blazing with scorching flames. Putting the full weight of his body into the attack, Medicham swung hard after quickly reaching his target. Vespisol, adhering to his trainer's command, stood his ground. Wind picked up around his leg as he spun his body away from the punch, the gusts of wind extinguishing the flames as he whipped around and cracked his foot against the side of Medicham's head, the force of the kick sending him sailing through the air and slamming into the arena, his mega form giving out.

"Medicham is unable to battle! Vespisol wins the round which means that Seth Da Silva advances to the next round of the preliminaries!"

Cheers erupted from the crowd as the battle came to a conclusion. Thomas, though disappointed by the result, took a deep breath and swallowed his pride as he walked to meet Seth in the center of the arena. Reaching out, he shook Seth's hand and wished him luck in the rest of the competition.

"Wasn't that an amazing way to kick off the conference!? I'm sure that's one battle that will be talked about for a while," the announcer exclaimed as he turned his attention to the board. "Let's bring out our next two contenders!"