"Has anyone seen my medallion?" Lili asked, walking around and checking under stuff. She didn't get much reply with everyone trying to get ready. She, along with a few of the others, had gotten up a little earlier than others to get on their contest outfits. She now wore a tight white dress, a belt made of silver and black leather, and black heels. She also wore a turquoise necklace that reached her mid chest, along with a matching bracelet, ring, and earrings, with the ring on the left and the bracelet on the right.

"Did you check under your bed?" Mason asked, putting his black cape on. Other than that, he was simply dressed with dark blue slacks, a light grey dress shirt, and white sneakers.

Lili ducked down under her bed, then popped up with her medallion. "Got it. Thank you."

There was a knock on the door. "It's open!" Kushina called.

Trenton walked in, followed by what looked like a security guard with a large tray of drinks. "Hey hey, how's everyone doing?" They all said they were good. After a good night's sleep, they were mostly over the initial scare.

The guard set down his tray. "Hey, you're the guard from last night!" Madeleine said.

He smiled. He was pretty young, around his mid-twenties. He wore the standard green guard uniform, which showed he worked in one of the hotels. His two most notable features were his long purple and blue hair, which was tied into a ponytail, and his hot pink eyes.

"It's good to see you again Madeleine," He said. "I didn't get to properly introduce myself last night. I'm Samuel. I'm very glad you weren't harmed last night."

Madeleine put on her red and white jacket over her blue dress and started putting on her two red leaf hair pins. "Yeah, it was a little scary, but I'm okay."

"I'm happy to hear that." He picked up a napkin and wiped a drop that was sliding down one of the cups. "Well, after that little fiasco, Tianna and Terence decided that it would be better if you guys had a full time guard."

"So you are going to be our guard?" Azura asked. She was one of the few who didn't have a specific outfit for contests.

He nodded, and smiled at her. "Indeed. I am horribly embarrassed by what happened last night, but I can guarantee that it will not happen again." He gestured to the drinks. "I'm not big on bribery, but I did go ahead and get all of your favorite drinks in hope to make a good first impression. Your names are on the cups."

Azura looked a little unsure, and went and found her cup. She picked it up, smelled it, and looked slightly surprised. "This is the coffee from the Midnight Carbink."

"Wait seriously?" Leon said, putting his purple jacket on over his plain black t-shirt, which matched his black pants and shoes. He walked over and grabbed his cup. "Nice!"

Rhianne, who had just finished straightening her gold tiara and fiddling with her hair, which was now down instead of braided, walked over. She picked hers up and took a sip. "This is a smoothie from one of the food stands. How'd you know I like it?"

The guard smiled. "Well, I didn't exactly know. I was able to get a record of all of your purchases, and based what I got you off of that."

"Smooth," Kushina said, impressed.

Rhianne set her cup down on a coffee table. "While it is good, I don't even want to risk something getting on my dress." Her dress was pure white with a blue tint, so this was reasonable. It flowed behind her, and there was a hanging bit of cloth from her shoulder to her wrist, which looked like scarves hanging from her arms.

Kushina, not having a new outfit, didn't have this problem, and got her drink. "So, when do we head down?"

"Pretty soon," Terence said. "Once you all are ready, we can start moving."

Everyone finished their final preparations, and they all started walking out of the hotel. They made their way to the giant arena, where Terence left them in the waiting room to go get ready for the contest.

Everyone was starting to get a little nervous now. Almost everyone had a medallion out, and was thinking over their routines. Madeleine and Kumarie were looking at the list of Medallions, Madeleine thinking aloud about what the arenas would look like. And, to some of the contestants' surprise, Gimli was happily giving her his ideas too.

Once they had gotten through the list, she looked at Samuel, who was standing by the door. "After we do are routines, do you know where we're supposed to go?"

"I will be escorting you to an assigned room where, after Tianna and Terence announce the pairings, they will give you details about the next part of the competition."

"Hello everyone!" Said Tianna, her voice being projected to them through an intercom.

Samuel smiled. "And it seems it won't be long before I do that."

"Hello everyone!" Tianna said. The crowd erupted with cheers.

Terence, who was beside her on the announcers stand, waved to everyone. "Is everyone doing good today?" The crowd continued their loud cheer.

Tianna smiled. "That's good to hear. Now, the first round of the Kabota Resort is going to begin in a few minutes. First, Terence is going to give a recap of how this is going to work."

Terence nodded. "Well, first off, this is the coordination round. The contestants will perform a routine in an attempt to show off their pokemon's best features. However, there is two twists in this contest." There was a slight mumbling from the crowd, who only knew about one. Terence continued as though he didn't notice. "The first is the arena. Depending on the medallions that were or were not found, our contestants will be given a special arena. Not only must their routine showcase their pokemon, but it must also match the aesthetic of the arena." He smiled. "This is actually where strategy comes into play. The biggest part of this twist is that the order of contestants is random. If you don't have a medallion, you will be randomly selected one from what remains. Should someone have that medallion, it will be voided." There was a slight murmur at this. That was a pretty dangerous rule.

"Now, for the second twist. Usually there are three judges who judge the routines. But, for our contest, all of you will be the judge. You should see a small screen in front of you. After each contestant performs, you will rate them one through ten, with one being the worst and ten being the best. These results aren't permanent, so you can change them as the round goes on. After the final contestant, you will put in your final ratings. You can only use each number twice."

Tianna stepped forward. "Now, we will be doing these in groups of five, with a short break in between each set. The results will be quickly calculated right after the last round." She smiled at everyone. "So, are you ready to get started?" The crowd erupted, cheering as loud as they could. "Then let's bring out our first contestant, Marcus Lanson!"

Everyone cheered as Marcus walked happily out into the arena. He straightened his red ascot, which went over a white dress shirt and a black tux, and waved to the crowd.

"Now," Terence said as a small pedestal raised out of the ground. "Should you have a medallion, please place it on the pedestal."

Marcus pulled out his pretty green and pink medallion. He placed it on the pedestal, and it lowered back into the ground. Everyone waited, eager to see the arena change.

It happened gradually. A small rose sprouted in the middle of the arena. Then a few tulips popped up here and there. More and more variety of flowers grew out of the ground until the entire arena was covered. A breeze flew by, blowing Marcus's dreads and sending a few petals flying.

"Wow," Marcus said quietly, pretty impressed.

Terence smiled. "One of our more colorful and beautiful arenas. I present to all of you the floral arena!" He looked at Marcus. "You may begin now!"

Marcus pulled out a pokeball, which was incased in a capsule decorated with seals. "Alright then, Ivy, let's do this thing!" His roserade appeared in a shower of petals and sparkles, landing gracefully. She blew a kiss to the crowd, winking in Tianna and Terence's direction. The crowd went crazy.

"Now, let's get this show on the road," Marcus said. "Start with petal dance!"

Ivy nodded, and started spinning gracefully on one foot. Pink petals started to swirl around her. They started sweeping through the flowers, picking up more petals, giving the move more color. Marcus smiled. Here was the fun part. "Now, nature power!"

Ivy started to incorporate more steps into her dance. A giant green orb appeared over her head. Marcus nodded. He hadn't been sure if it would be energy ball or not. It continued to increase in size as Ivy danced. Soon it was a bit bigger than her.

"Now, magical leaf!"

With a fast and violent spin, blades of green energy shot out from Ivy. They then curled back in, and sliced through the growing energy ball. The attack blew apart as a bunch of mini energy balls, which struck most of the petals and showered her in sparkles. She stopped spinning, knelt down, and bowed to the crowd as the final petals and sparkles came down. The crowd cheered like crazy.

"And there you have it folks!" Tianna said. "Let's hear it for our first routine of the day!"

Marcus smiled and high fived Ivy. He then returned her to her pokeball, gave on last wave to the crowd, and made his way out of the arena. Once they left, the arena returned to normal.

"So, how do you think he did?" Tianna asked Terence.

"Well, it definitely complemented the arena well. However, being a bit of a dancer myself, you could just slightly tell that Ivy was pretty dizzy from that petal dance. She did a wonderful job of not showing it, though. And due to her ability natural cure, when she finished her routine, any dizziness was gone."

"Yes, it was a very impressive show." Tianna turned to the crowd, "However, you all are the judge, so put a number by that man's name!" She looked at her watch. While it didn't tell time at all, it was telling her what percent of people had already put in numbers. It reached eighty percent within ten seconds. "Now, the fun isn't over yet. We are now onto contestant number two. Give it up for Victor Styles!"

Victor walked out, not really acknowledging the cheering crowd. He was another one of the contestants that didn't have a coordination outfit. When the pedestal raised, he placed his open hand on it. "I don't have a medallion."

Terence nodded. "Very well. One will randomly be selected."

Everyone waited quietly. Then, slowly, grass started to grow. Then a giant shadow covered the arena, only to light it back up again when it became filled with stars and a bright moon. Everyone looked at the sky in amazement. Victor too looked surprised, but also slightly concerned.

"The Midnight arena, full of grace and wonder," Tianna said. "You may begin."

"Altaria, here we go." His pokemon appeared normally. Since he didn't know his arena, he hadn't put his pokemon in a capsule. "Let's start off simple. Dragon dance."

Altaria raised her wings, gracefully flapping them and moving side to side. She started getting faster, and soon, two blue dragons started flying around her. When she finished her dance, they collided, sending out a wave of blue light.

"Now, moonblast, followed by dragon rush," Victor said.

The moon started to glow, and Altaria shot a pink ball high into the sky. Then, with a giant flap of her wings, she let loose a multicolored energy that formed into a dragon. It raced up to meet the moonblast, and bit down on it.

The two attacks exploded, and the shock was enough to send Altaria out of the sky. She landed hard on the ground. Victor ran over to make sure she was okay. She was, and got back up. "Tough break, but still not bad," Terence said. "Let's hear it for these two!" The crowd cheered. Victor just let Altaria climb onto his shoulder instead of withdrawing her, and walked out just as the arena was switching back.

"That was a pretty devastating finale," Tianna said.

Terence nodded. "Yeah, the art of splitting a move isn't a simple one. But, all things considered, it could have been a much worse routine." He looked at the crowd, "though it is ultimately up to all of you. Did the routine have some redeeming qualities, or was it a disaster in your eyes?"

"Also, since he didn't have a medallion, one of them was just voided," Tianna said. Her watch was at eighty again. "So we will have to wait till later to see how that effects everything. But for now, let's give it up for Jacob Smith!"

Jacob came out slowly. He, like Victor, didn't look at the crowd or have a different outfit for coordinating. When the pedestal raised, he too put his hand on it, showing he had no medallion. "Looks like it's another random one," Terence said. "I wonder what this one will end up as?"

Unlike the previous two, it took very little time for this one to change. There was the sound of spraying water, and everyone looked up to see streams of paint come crashing down on the arena, covering it in different colors. More colors came from the sides, and some just seemed to seep up from the ground.

Terence laughed. "The greatest tribute we have to all artists: the color arena!" He smiled at Jacob. "You may begin."

Jacob blinked, surprised by the large amount of color. Then he pulled out a pokeball, which didn't have a capsule. "Vaporeon, you're in charge." His pokemon appeared, also seeming slightly surprised by the large amount of color. She also lifted her paws, which the paint was sticking to.

Jacob smiled, slightly having an idea. "Use surf."

Vaporeon nodded, and took off, running around the arena. Once she built up speed, a giant wave picked her up, which she swam on top of. The wave absorbed the paint, turning it into a beautiful cascade of colored water.

"Next use dig," Jacob said.

Vaporeon dove underground, and her wave of color went with her. She then started popping out and diving in at random places, her colored wave dancing behind her. Jacob hoped their last move would work. "Shoot the water up with hydro pump and use ice beam!"

Vaporeon didn't appear for a second. Then, a giant geyser of color shot out of the hole in the middle of the arena. Vaporeon jumped out of the hole in front of it, and shot it with a beam of blue energy. It froze, along with all of the other paint, making everything look like stained glass. Vaporeon landed nimbly in front of it, covered in paint, and smiled at the crowd. Everyone was going insane.

"Look at that!" Tianna said. "What a routine! Let's hear it for Jacob and Vaporeon!"

Vaporeon shook off all the paint, then happily walked over to her trainer. He smiled at her, then withdrew her into her pokeball. He walked out of the arena. The giant sculpture of water broke apart and fell to the ground, where the paint started to slowly fade away and the holes got refilled.

"That was a pretty strong routine," Terence said.

Tianna nodded. "Definitely. Jacob made full use of the arena while still perfectly showcasing his pokemon. That'll be a tough one to beat." To her surprise, her watch already showed everyone had placed their votes. "But that doesn't mean we don't get to see the other competitors try. Give it up for our next contestant, Larenz Esplain!"

Larenz walked confidently out, waving at the crowd. He dipped his giant teal hat, which had a feather in the brim, towards the crowd, which received him even more cheering. He also had on a teal vest, a black shirt, pants, and shoes, and even a long teal cape.

When Larenz reached the pedestal, he pulled out his pale blue medallion. He gently placed it down, and awaited the arena to change.

This one was weird to watch. It was almost as though the ground was rippling, and then was pale blue, dotted with clouds. It was as though Larenz was standing on the sky. And, due to the gasps of the crowd, Larenz noticed that this had happened to the entire arena. Tianna laughed. "Probably one of our more disorienting forms, but cool nonetheless: the sky arena! You may begin!"

Larenz pulled out his pokeball, which was in a capsule. "Braviary, come out with a solid brave bird!"

The pokeball burst open, and Braviary, glowing blue from his attack, shot into the sky, followed by a trail of feathers and confetti. Once he got pretty high, he made an extremely sharp turn back towards the ground, now plowing through the confetti. Once he was nearly level with Larenz, he extended his wings, ending the attack, and sending confetti and clouds flying out from him.

"Wow, they are gone right out of the gates!" Terence said.

Larenz smiled. "And we won't take too long to finish. Back into the sky with air slash, and then break them with superpower!"

Braviary wasted no time. He shot back into the sky, spinning around and sending blue blades of energy flying. Then he sped after them, glowing blue. The air slash had essentially made a spiral, which Braviary followed, heading back down. Each air slash broke apart into tiny sparkles as he hit them. Once he was done, the bird landed gently on the ground, finished.

There was a loud cheer from the crowd. "Well, there you have it folks!" Terence said. "It was short, but it was definitely sweet. Give it up for Larenz and Braviary!"

Larenz walked over to Braviary, patted him on the beak, and withdrew him. He then made his way out of the arena, which returned to its solid looking state.

Tianna looked at Terence. "So, what did you think of that routine?"

Terence shrugged. "To be honest, I'm not sure. The arena was matched, no doubt, but the routine did lack the certain feel that most routines have. Not to mention it was a little short. Though it did wonderfully show his pokemon's power." He looked at the crowd. "You all have your work cut out for you. Keep picking those numbers."

This round took slightly longer, but soon it was time for the next contestant. "All right," Tianna said, "we are at the fifth contestant. After this routine, there will be a short break, giving you time to stretch your legs or even talk about the routines. So, let's give a big welcome to Lili Grey!"

The crowd cheered as Lili walked out, but she didn't seem to notice them. She silently made her way to the pedestal that slowly raised from the ground. "Please place any medallion you have there," Terence said.

Lili slowly placed her medallion. There was a collective gasp from the crowd. The medallion was a dark blue, with a giant moon in the middle of it.

It was the medallion of the midnight arena

"Since your medallion is void, you will be randomly selected and arena," Tianna said.

Everyone waited with bated breath. Then, the arena started to open up. The ground was sliding to either side. Underneath it was metal ground, covered in gears. Once the ordinary ground was gone and the metal ground was fully revealed, multiple beams of steel shot up into the air.

Terence nodded. "One of the more interesting arenas, I present you the iron arena. You may begin!"

Lili pulled out a pokeball without a capsule. "May the Earth Mother be with us. Steelix, come on out!" The giant pokemon came out. He seemed slightly confused that he was the one out for the contest portion.

"Use Iron tail and draw on the ground."

Steelix's tail flashed white, then bacame iron. It slashed it through the ground, making deep cuts. He tried his best to move around gracefully as he did it, but it wasn't much of a success.

"Now, finish by lighting up the design with dragon pulse!" Lili said.

Steelix opened his mouth, and let loose a multicolored dragon at the edge of the design. It did light up the drawing, which was of a steelix head, but the attack didn't remain perfectly in the grooves, jumping out in some places. Plus, the drawing was only subpar.

Still, the crowd cheered enthusiastically. "A great adaption to an unexpected twist," Tianna said. "Let's hear it for our fifth contestant everyone!"

Lili withdrew her giant pokemon, waved to the crowd, and walked out of the arena. The ordinary ground moved back into place. Terence looked at Tianna. "That was a tough break."

Tianna nodded. "Yep, but that's just how the game goes. While the routine could have left a lot to be desired, she did do a wonderful job of adapting, even though she most likely already had planned her routine."

Terence looked at the crowd. "Well, the first five have finished. There are fifteen to go. What did all of you think? Who do you think was best so far? Think about it, and we will see all of you after the break!"

Finally, I finished the next chapter! I can finally confirm to everyone that I am not dead! I am so sorry there was such a long break. My ability to underestimate how busy I am is unrivaled. But, things are truly starting to calm down, so I will have more time two write. I will do my best to have a chapter in at least every two weeks, if not sooner than that.

So what do you think? Which routine did you like best, who do you think right now is in the top spot? And do we think our mystery attacker will make another move any time soon?