Part CLXXXIV: Return of a Rival

"I can't believe that it's almost time!" Ash said excitedly as he stuffed his face with the free food that was provided to the entrants of the Lumiose Conference and their registered guests. "I can't wait for it."

Ash wasn't wrong, it was the night before the Lumiose Conference, so it was time for the opening of the Conference. Unlike the Grand Festival, the opening of the Lumiose Conference wasn't as much of a spectacle because it had been going on for years at this point, so it had been honed down to a simple event.

Of course, it was still an event with media and fans gathering all around the stadium to talk to trainers in it, enjoy various stalls set up for the Conference, and checking out the 4 smaller stadiums constructed around the main stadium for the expansion of the trainers allowed to compete. It was a fun festive atmosphere that Ash and his friends had enjoyed all day, but it didn't need to be a big event on the whole.

In fact, it was pretty low key all things considered. All trainers eligible had registered for the Conference over the course of the year, some like Tierno and Trevor did so at the start having already claimed the 8 gym badges necessary the year before so had registered as soon as the registration was opened at the start of the trainer year, while others opted to do so the moment they reached the threshold. Naturally, Ash didn't until that morning but that was Ash for you and now that he was registered he was excited and ready to win it.

Ash really couldn't wait but this was still nice. All those who had entered, a total of 256 as Ash was used to in past Conferences and an increase from the 64 that had competed in the Lumiose Conference the year before, along with a few friends and family were welcome at this event.

Many, but not all as the event wasn't mandatory and the draw made public to all competitors, were here standing around tables set up in one of the parks that was to the side of the main stadium and connected to it by a path, as buffet tables lined the area on the sides and the far end was a stage with a screen on it. It was a little more informal that then other opening ceremonies that Ash had been at, but he was thoroughly enjoying it regardless.

With him at his table was Misty, May, Serena, Clemont, and Miette who'd decided to fully support Ash for the Lumiose Conference, so she had officially joined their group for the duration of the Conference. The tables weren't large so all of them couldn't be at one but the others they knew were all around them in nearby tables, so they were all in the same general area as one another.

One had Max, Bonnie, Owen, Adam, and Emily, the latter two deep in conversation with Owen while Bonnie was telling Max of the year prior, on it while and another had Tierno, Trevor, and Shauna at it. As Ash looked around he noted that Lyra and Khoury joined the second table with some food having just arrived and began to discuss the upcoming Conference as a group.

All of those in the Conference, those being Ash, Tierno, Trevor, Max, Lyra, and Adam, were excited for it in their own rights as they geared up for the opening of the Conference which would also go over the format and rules for it as part of the ceremony as rules were subject to change from year to year. Beforehand it was a social event to eat, relax, mingle, and of course scout out the competition.

"Everyone here has defeated all the gym leaders in Kalos." Clemont said as he looked around the crowd. "Many this year, I recognize a good portion of them though some are from last year against Clembot or even longer ago when I first took over the gym or before that I think."

"I know, I can't wait to see how good these people will be." Ash said as he looked around. "So, who should I be on the lookout for? Who are the favorites this year?"

"Well other than you, and yes you are a favorite Ash, there are two who have reached finals before that are going to be considered big favorites." Clemont said looking around and seeing one of them off at a table on the other side of the area deep in discussion with two other trainers who Clemont also recognized. "I can't see one of them, he did give off a loner vibe when I faced him, and he swept my team with an electric type no less so he's going to be strong competitor for sure but last year's runner up is over there."

"Where?" Ash asked a Clemont nodded towards the man.

The man in question was very much a man, there was no doubt that he was at least a decade older than Ash if not another half decade on top of that. He was a tall, broad man with wild black hair that stuck up in two spikes on the sides, a thick black beard but no mustache, and eyes filled with determination.

He wore a black vest thing that was open showing his muscular chest and which fell to his knees, high black boots, and wrappings on his forearms and around his waist. Oddly, he was covers in geometric red paint or tattoos on his arms, chest and face. To complete his look, he wore a belt of purple orbs and had a lot of weird red corded bands around him and attached to him via two straps over his shoulders. Lastly, he carried a wooden umbrella of all things.

He clearly looked strong as he chatted with the other two at his table as they all ate. The trainers with him, a boy and a girl around Ash's own age give or take a year or two, also looked pretty strong to Ash, they both held themselves with the poise of seasoned trainers who'd won many tough battles, so Ash focused on them for a moment before asking for more information from Clemont.

The boy had short brown hair with a clear cowlick in the middle and matching eyes. He was wearing a purple crop top that exposed his stomach, black pants that came to his mid calves with purple designs on the lower portion below his knees, fingerless gloves, simple shoes, and a long light blue coat with a fur collar. His bag on a single strap over his shoulder and Ash noted that there was a Key Stone on the clasp of the bag showing that he likely had Mega Evolution capable Pokémon on his team.

The female with them had long, pale blonde hair that flowed down her back with a set of bangs that framed her pale face and a styled-up fringe held there by a lavender stone that matched her eyes. She wore a simple dark brown blouse and matching skirt with a purple band around the hem and the wrists of her sleeves and a pair of purple lines down the middle of the blouse. The whole thing had a high lilac collar at witch was a white bow-like ascot thing.

She completed her look with a pair of boots that matched the rest of her outfit and came up to just below her knees. However, the most startling thing about her was that she had a Key Stone dangling from an earring set in her right ear showing that she too had a Pokémon capable of Mega Evolution.

"The guy in the middle?" Ash asked curiously and already guessing that he also had a Key Stone given his success and how his two friends had them as well. "He was the runner up last year?"

"Yup, that's Remo." Clemont said with a nod. "He's probably the best Kalos native in the tournament this year so he's the home region favorite. He's got a strong team and there's a Key Stone in the base of his umbrella that he uses with his Garchomp. Last year the final came down to him and a Hoenn trainer called Sawyer who I faced once during the time May was away in Hoenn and beat but he was always making notes to get better and even got a Key Stone and a Mega Stone for his Sceptile by the end of the year that really helped him out. In the end Mega Sceptile won out over Mega Garchomp giving Sawyer the win."

"Huh that makes two Sceptiles who won it all then." Ash said internally noting the confirmation of his suspicion that Remo had a Key Stone on him and interested in seeing what a Mega Garchomp looked like. "I lost to a Sceptile in the Indigo final and that one could Mega Evolve as well though we weren't allowed to or else I would have faced it with Mega Charizard which would have been fun but oh well hopefully I can if I ever get a rematch of that final."

"What did happen to Sawyer?" May asked. "We ran into him a few times last year where we battled and saw his growth, and he revealed that he'd beaten Clembot in his rematch, but as I missed the Conference I don't know more than that he won. It was big news back home as he's from Hoenn and won the first ever Conference to allow Mega Evolution so the media in Hoenn was all over it but that's all I really learned about it."

"He got his right to challenge the Elite Four and lost to all of them, though he came pretty close against Siebold due to type advantages, so he accepted an offer from Steven, the Hoenn Champion, to work for him as a research assistant." Clemont said. "Steven was around last year during the incident, so it made sense for Sawyer to work for him."

"So, the winner here gets to face the Elite Four as well." Misty said. "I figured it would be the same as it is in Sinnoh and Kanto."

"That is the winner's right after all." Clemont said. "The winner is allowed to face all of the Elite Four during a special event that occurs in the stadium a week or so after the final were each day the winner faces one of the Elite Four, the order is decided at random every year, to see if he or she can beat them. A win against any one of them knocks out that member and you get to replace him or her but only if the win occurs in the confines of that battle. If you beat multiple then the losers face off in a special battle to decide who remains in the Elite Four, a round robin if it is 3 and a mini tournament if it is all four who lose but the Champion wins."

"Sounds just like in the other regions." Ash said. "And I take it beating the Champion means you get to become the Champion."

"Precisely." Clemont said with a nod. "That is a full battle and of course any member of the Elite Four can challenge Diantha during the course of the year to a battle for the right as well should that member feel like it. It all has to be official and has to be a full battle but so far she's not lost to a challenger since becoming the Champion a few years back."

"Makes sense, she is very good." Ash said recalling his battle with her and really hoping to finish it one day. "I'm going to win it all this year and face her though, I know it."

"Well, you'll have some stiff competition in addition to Remo, he's not the only strong trainer in the tournament after all." Clemont said as he looked back to the table with Remo and the other two on it, so Ash did the same. "The girl with Remo is called Astrid, she was one of the semifinalists last year though with a larger field she might struggle as she was easily beaten by Sawyer in that battle. In fact, she beat the boy with them, Titus I think his name is, in the quarterfinals to advance to the semifinals though they are still good friends as all trainers should be. Sawyer also beat Tierno in the quarters and Trevor in the first round."

"Well, all the more fun then and this Sawyer kid sounds like a good challenge one day as well should I ever cross paths with him." Ash said now really pumped for it. "And it looks like both Astrid and Titus can Mega Evolve."

"I know Astrid can." Clemont confirmed. "Her Absol to be precise and it's strong. I never faced her though, she beat Clembot last year rather than me so I can't assess it personally. As for Titus that Key Stone has to be new because he didn't have one last year though he does have an Altaria which is a Pokémon that can Mega Evolve so it's not a surprise that he has one now. I think Alain has faced both Astrid and Remo's Mega Pokémon and beat both of them, but he was really good last year. If he entered the Conference then, which he didn't as he was starting his atonement at the time, he probably would have won with minimal Pokémon loss."

"Damn, well I hope he gets to that level again so I can face him in a full battle one day." Ash said. "That fight against his Charizard was something else so I know that a full battle would be just as good, and I really want to see the other Mega Charizard and face it in battle."

"We remember that battle." May said as Serena nodded though Miette who wasn't with them at the time didn't, but she had heard of it when they ran into her in Aquacorde Town a few days after it. "It was epic, I can't wait to see Ash-Greninja against Alain's Mega Charizard one day."

"I was busy enduring the Chamber of Emptiness and all the joys that that place had for me." Misty said with more than a hint of sarcasm in her voice. "Totally worth it mind you but still I missed that battle, and it sounded really good. A shame really as I do love watching Ash win."

"I wouldn't say worth it after seeing what happens when you Mega Evolve Banette." Serena pointed out. "That wasn't exactly pretty."

"Meh, I can handle a little pain." Misty said dismissively though as everyone at the table had seen the results of said Mega Evolution they knew it wasn't just a little pain that Misty had been in. "All part of the training."

"Well, if Ash ever gets Lucarionite then he'll need to undergo special training as well because that's another Mega Evolution that is different though it's because of how it affects Lucario not the trainer though of course the trainer is key to controlling Mega Lucario." May said opting to gloss over Misty's statement for the moment as she knew Misty was fine with the cost of Banette's Mega Evolution. "I remember how hard it was for Korrina last year to master it but when she did it was amazing. That battle I had with here while using Mega Blaziken in the gym, her first with Mega Lucario under control, was something else."

"Oh, right your gym battle last year." Ash said remembering it. "Did you win?"

"Of course not." May said with a laugh. "I don't really have a strong team to face a fighting type specialist, at least I didn't at the time as I hadn't caught my Slurpuff yet, though Honedge was solid, it even evolved into a Doublade in the battle to help out while Glaceon did his best, but I had to rely mostly on Blaziken in that battle. He was amazing and that was actually my first Mega Evolution for him as well, we'd gotten the stones around that time, and held his own well but even with his advantages on a Mega Lucario, Korrina was just a better pure battler than me."

"She did give me a good gym battle and it helped Riolu evolve so I am really grateful for that." Ash said with a nod. "Alright so there's Remo, Titus, and Astrid as notable Kalos coordinators. I see a bunch of faces that I am pretty sure are trainers from Unova, I think, so there's a few of them here, and of course Lyra, Max, Tierno and Trevor all have experience. Who else is there."

"Well…" Clemont began when suddenly a voice cut him off from behind them.

"So, the rumors I've been hearing all year are true." A cool, male, voice that was very familiar to Ash and Misty said as the speaker called out directly to Ash. "You are here Ketchum. After that little stunt of yours in Kanto last year I was hoping you'd come to Kalos as well but until now I didn't believe that you'd actually done so. Good, at least there's one person here who can offer me an actual challenge in the Conference, not that you'll beat me again."

Ash and the others turned to see a boy Ash's age standing there looking solely at Ash. He was about Ash's height with shaggy, off purple hair that fell past his ears and piercing black eyes that no longer held the coldness they once held though they still weren't warm by any stretch of the imagination. The boy wore a purple zipped jacket with a popped collar, black sleeves and purple cuffs that was partially unzipped showing a dark greenish gray shirt under it, baggy charcoal gray pants and purple and black shoes.

It was basically the same outfit he'd worn the last time Ash saw him but there were two new additions to it. The first was a glove that matched his outfit on his right hand that looked a lot like the glove Owen wore all the time, a special glove with a band at the base that had what was needed to use that Dynamax thing out in Galar in it, but as Ash recalled being told that the other boy had been in Galar the year before, so it made sense. The other thing was a glowing Key Stone that dangled in a special holder from his waist.

"Paul?" Ash asked amazed at seeing one of his biggest rivals, second only to Gary if he was being honest, standing before him in Kalos. "What are you doing here?"

"What do you think, I'm here to compete in the Lumiose Conference." Paul said before he surprised Ash with a small smile on his face as he spoke to him but there was still a coolness in his voice. "I hoped that the rumors were true when I first heard them about a month into my time in Kalos but opted not to seek you out until now as this is the best place for our reunion."

"You bet; I've gotten so much stronger since we last battled." Ash said excitedly clenching his right fist and inadvertently showing off his own Key Stone despite the fact that he wasn't going to be using it in the Conference. "I hope we can battle again in the Lumiose Conference."

"Fate will see to it, I bet." Paul said simply. "But I know, I followed your success in Kanto last year, it wasn't hard after you revealed fairy types during the Indigo Conference though it certainly explained the changes I'd noticed in some of my Pokémon and others I battled when I was out in Galar. When you lost I knew you'd chose Kalos or Galar and as I had just lost to some Kanto guy called Ritchie who annoyingly nicknamed all his Pokémon in the Galar Cup final I decided to come here rather than go to Unova for the league there. Alola didn't interest me at all, it's too new so I am waiting for there to be an actual Champion there before I go there."

"Well things have worked out then." Ash said with a grin though he wanted to ask more about Ritchie as he was one of Ash's oldest rivals but all in good time. "So, you're the other finalist I've heard about."

"Yes I am." Paul said looking at the others, the girls were unknown to him which clearly annoyed the long-haired red girl with a Piplup, so she was possibly from the same region as he was, but he recognized the blond boy. "I see you know Clemont."

"Paul, I didn't realize you had a history with Ash." Clemont said. "If I did I would have been more specific with him about you."

"My past with Ash was irrelevant to my battle with you in the Lumiose Gym." Paul said coolly. "And I don't particularly care how you know him. I only came here to tell Ash that I'm ready for a rematch with him."

"Same here and I see you can Mega Evolve a Pokémon." Ash said.

"As can you." Paul pointed out. "But I will not tell you who I can and can't Mega Evolve. Just don't lose before me, I want to face you in a full rematch. We are tied in full battles; I would like to break that tie."

"Agreed." Ash said not giving away anything to Paul either and deciding to ask about the glove. "So, if you went to Galar you can Dynamax now as well."

"If it is in Galar and in a place where Dynamaxing is possible then yes I can." Paul said. "Whenever you go there you'll learn about it. It can't be done outside the Galar region like Mega Evolution and those Alolan Z-Moves can so no point discussing it now."

"Alright well then I look forward to learning if I visit that region." Ash said. "I do intend to visit one day."

"I don't doubt it." Paul said before he began to turn. "But I just came to tell you that I'm looking forward to facing you again, you can actually give me a challenge in this Conference so don't let me down. See you in the tournament."

"Wait, aren't you going to stay for the opening ceremony?" Ash said as Paul turned to leave.

"No point." Paul said as he walked away his hands now in his pockets. "I know the rules, they're straightforward, and they'll publish the draw as soon as it's done so I'll know who I'm beating tomorrow soon enough. I need to rest and be ready, see you in the full battles Ash."

With that Paul walked away leaving the others to stare in surprise at the whole exchange, or in Misty's case fume at how he clearly didn't remember her despite her sending him an invite to Ash's party both times, the first he said he was in Galar the second he ignored, and the whole fact that she spoke to him a few times back in Sinnoh. Clemont had faced him in a gym battle and been routed by Paul's Electivire, and was chastised for it by Paul which felt excessive to Clemont, but the others didn't know him at all though May had heard of him.

"I didn't realize Paul was here." Ash said turning back to them. "He was a great rival, really pushed me to be better and I did the same for him. He even mimicked the Counter Shield technique to use it against me in our Sinnoh League battle if I recall correctly."

"He's still an ass." Misty grumbled. "But he didn't seem as cold and cruel as he did in Sinnoh, so I guess it's a positive that he's mellowed out a little."

"You mentioned him in the past." May said. "So that's what he's like in person and an improvement apparently. I don't want to see what he was like back then."

"He's better than he used to be." Ash admitted. "Back when I first met him he was all about catching Pokémon that were strong and if they weren't he'd just release them or give them away. He had this Chimchar that he pushed too hard to the point that it crossed the line into abuse in my mind and then released so I offered Chimchar a place on my team. He accepted, eventually becoming my Infernape, both of his evolutions were in Paul's presence actually now that I think back on it, and the Pokémon that won our full battle in the Lily of the Valley Conference when Infernape beat Paul's Electivire in the final matchup."

"That was a great battle and Infernape was the MVP of it by far." Misty said recalling it well. "Really one of the best I've ever seen but Ash is underselling Paul, he was a right asshole back in Sinnoh, but he seems to have mellowed out a bit, gotten slightly more mature though he's still not a warm person."

"That does happen with age." Clemont said. "And against me he was strong, won every battle with his Electivire which impressed me, but he clearly wasn't impressed by me. From what I've heard only Wulfric managed to beat two of his Pokémon and got him to use his Key Stone but that's it. Paul's one of the big favorites along with Ash and Remo while others like Astrid and Lyra are seen as lesser favorites with people like Max, Titus, Tierno and I think a few of the Unovans considered dark horses."

"Paul was always a strong trainer, but he does tend to scold what he sees as weakness even if it's not, our styles were so different it added to the rivalry and Paul's issues with me." Ash said. "So, this will be great. I hope to face him in the Conference."

"Knowing your luck, you will, and it will be in a full battle." Misty said. "Along with facing Max at least and probably Trevor, Tierno, Lyra, and Adam or some combination of them as well."

"True I do end up always facing my friends in League Conferences." Ash said thinking back on it. "I've faced Ritchie, Harrison, Gary, Morrison, Tyson, and Lyra once, Cameron, Stephan, Nando, and Conway twice, so who's to say who I face for a first or second time in the Lumiose Conference this year. It's going to be fun regardless."

"It's going to be interesting that is for sure." Misty said.

"Yeah I hope you destroy that guy Ash; he seems like he needs a little humbling." Miette said with a smile. "And win this all. Misty just finished with my outfit so I can't wait to show it off tomorrow."

"Now, now, we must be ready as a group." Misty said as Ash looked confused. "Tonight, is focusing on the opening, tomorrow we can show our full support."

"Yeah, when is that going to happen?" Serena asked and as she said it there was a crackle from the mic causing them to all look to it. "Oh, now I guess."

Serena was right, at the microphone on the stage was a slightly overweight, unassuming, man with poofy brown hair and glasses wearing a suit. He stood at the podium in the center as Professor Sycamore stood to one side and surprisingly Diantha stood to the other side her eyes sweeping the crowd and alighting as she smiled at Ash when she saw him there as she was eager to see how well he did in the upcoming Conference. It seemed that it was time to open the Lumiose Conference and it all felt right with the sun setting behind the stage to add to the atmosphere.

"Ladies and gentlemen." The man said and his voice was nowhere near as assuming as his look, it was a rich, full voice that was perfect for announcing and commentating which made sense as he was the main announcer and commentator for the Lumiose Conference which meant that he'd be the one commentating on the full battles as well as the Kalos League's delegate for this moment. "It is time to announce the opening matchups for this year's Lumiose Conference and officially open it."

By now all of the crowd was focused on him eager to see who they would be facing in it. Ash was a little taken aback by the lack of ceremony or the lighting of a torch, but it seemed things were a little more laid back here in Kalos than they had been in other regions he'd competed in, not that Ash really mind it. He was just eager to see who his first opponent was and learn if there were any odd rules to the Conference in comparison to others he'd been in.

"Before I do though, I will go over a few changes that have been made since the last Lumiose Conference as those of you who were in it or watched it last year can tell we have many more competitors than back then." The announcer said and several of the crowd, including Tierno and Trevor, nodded at that. "In the past we've had 64 trainers but this year, mainly because Kalos is still the only region that allows for Mega Evolution in its Conference, we've seen an explosion of interest and talent, so we've expanded the field to 256 trainers who have won the 8 badges required for the Kalos League."

At that Ash noted that several of the trainers, especially ones he thought he recognized from Unova, looked pleased at that. He didn't mind so much how many trainers were in a Conference, but he could see how the larger a conference was the more weight a win in it carried and Ash fully intended to win this Conference.

"This also matches several of the other regions in terms of size thus increasing Kalos's prestige in comparison to other region's Conferences." The announcer continued. "Naturally, this has led to some changes to the format of the Conference which is what I will get into now."

This caused some murmuring from the crowd, but it wasn't really a surprise that there would be changes to the format. It had been known all year that the Conference had been expanded by two rounds and that the four new smaller stadiums had been built to accommodate that expansion. It seemed that now they were going to learn the full details of what those changes meant for the Conference itself.

"The first is that the opening of the Conference will be tonight at the end of the draw rather than before the first matchup as was the case in past years because we will not be using the main stadium until the last 16 begins." The announcer said once the murmurings had stopped, and this announcement ensured silence as everyone was now paying attention to the announcer. "There will be a special opening for the final battles, the last 4 rounds, but that is just under a week away. First is the 4 days of preliminary rounds to whittle the number of trainers down from 256 to 16."

Again, this made sense to Ash, in all the regions he'd been in there had been some sort of preliminary round to lower it to 16 or 32 depending on the region with the full battles never starting later than the quarterfinals in his experience. Ash had experienced single battle elimination rounds, double battles, a group stage round robin event thing in Johto, and standard three on three battles to reach the final stage of a Conference in the past so he was prepared for anything. Now he'd learn exactly what Kalos would do for the preliminaries.

"The preliminary battles will be three on three battles held in the stadiums surrounding this one with the draws for each being held here half an hour after the final battles of the day have ended." The announcer continued as the whole crowd listened intently to what he had to say. "In addition, the fields will be random like in previous years with the random field for the day being different in each stadium and it won't be revealed until the first battles there. Also, they will change after lunch so those going later in the day will be on different fields. If the battlefields do get significantly damaged they will be replaced by a new random one however."

That did get some murmurs but to Ash it made sense again. He'd had random fields before, as well as normal battle arenas, so it was just another thing he was used to. What he wasn't aware of yet was the detail and intricacy of the Kalos fields, but he'd learn that soon enough.

"Once those battles are over and we have our top 16 we will have two days of rest so that our remaining trainers can prepare and take a break like they do in other regions before the final battles begin." The announcer continued. "When the tournament resumes it will resume with full battles; two rounds earlier than we have started in the past, but this puts us in line with Kanto and Johto for when the full battles start. Those battles will occur in the main stadium. However, after much debate, it has been decided that those battles will take place on normal, unaltered, unadorned battlefields."

Ash wasn't too surprised, that had been done in Kanto the year before, but apparently it was big news here. The crowd of trainers, especially those from Kalos or who had competed in the Lumiose Conference in the past, were buzzing up a storm at that. Ash certainly had done full battles on themed battlefields, themes that changed after the third Pokémon for one trainer went down, but this wasn't unfamiliar to him either, so he just focused on what the announcer was saying.

"This has been done after the popularity of it in Kanto last year." The announcer continued over the crowd. "A test of pure skill without hazards or strange conditions that can potentially alter the outcome so that it is pure skill that determines the winner. That's how it will be, and we will reevaluate after the year is over to see if it will stay or not."

The announcer paused here to let his words sink in and there were some murmurs here and there but for the most part Ash noticed that there wasn't any confusion on the faces of his friends or those potential rivals. He'd expected as much, they were all ready for this no matter what the rules and conditions would be. They, like him, were just waiting for the draw to occur.

"The last thing is just to remind you that Mega Evolution, or a Pokémon with an ability that can mimic it, is allowed but only one that can be Mega Evolved is allowed to carry a Mega Stone into the battle." The announcer said. "Or if it is ability based then that Pokémon will be considered the Mega Evolution capable Pokémon and no others in that team capable of it are to have a Mega Stone. Failure to abide by this rule will lead to an immediate disqualification."

That did cause a buzz of confusion from most but everyone at Ash's table just looked to him, and if they'd looked to the stage both Sycamore and Diantha were doing the same though the latter had a twinkle in her eye at it while Sycamore was neutral. It was clear that the ability part was aimed at him and Greninja as Greninja was the only Pokémon known to have an ability like that.

Ash actually understood the specificity of the rule because one of his registered Pokémon could Mega Evolve, though Ash lacked the Lucarionite to do so, so it was made clear to him what the rules were. He fully accepted that however and couldn't wait to show off in the coming Conference.

"Alright with that out of the way, onto what you've all been waiting for; the draw." The announcer said excitedly as the large screen behind him lit up with the trainer card images of all 256 trainers shown though they were small images so it would take a moment to find out who you were facing and when once the draw ended. "Let's see who our first matches are between?"

The cards flipped over and then were suddenly scattered, the animation of it being shown on the screen as they flew around for a few moments before settling in face down on the screen. Before they flipped over a cross formed on the screen to break it into 4 section to show the 4 stadiums they would be in with the cardinal direction written at the top to indicate the precise stadium that the trainers would be battling in tomorrow.

Only when all that was done did they flip over to reveal who everyone was facing in the opening round of the Lumiose Conference. Everyone looked at the trainer cards that were now in pairs with vs. between them and a number on the side indicating where in the order of battles they were in that stadium along with a note of where the cutoff for lunch was.

Instantly everyone began trying to find their pictures and Ash was no exception. Thankfully, he was actually pretty quick in finding his as he was in one of the first matches, the first one in the North Stadium and he was paired against a picture of a dude with a shaved head except for a wild red mohawk in the middle of it that was swept back from his head. That was who Ash was facing and while the others noted where the rest of their group were Ash looked around to see if his opponent in the crowd of gathered trainers.

It didn't take him long; the dude's fashion sense was as bold as his hairstyle. He was standing to the side wearing a red leather jacket with large lapels, black epaulets with a silver stud in them, two silver stud like buttons, black cuffs and hem, and some strange visor thing over the center under the popped collar. The jacket itself wasn't long enough to reach his waist and his sea green shirt could be seen under it. He finished the look with black pants that had what looked like large rolls in them on the thigh but skinny on the calves, black boots and fingerless black gloves.

He was looking around and caught Ash's eye and grinned at him as he sized Ash up from a distance. Clearly the guy was cocky and confident, so Ash just grinned back eager for the match tomorrow. He'd learn more tomorrow about who the guy was and just turned back to the board to find his friends on it.

All of them had matchups against trainers that Ash felt like he recognized but didn't remember. It also showed that none of them were facing each other off the bat so that was good, they could win and advance as a group and then see who was drawn against who tomorrow night when the next draw happened, providing they all won their matches that is.

"Alright that is it for me so I will now turn it over to the Kalos Champion, Diantha, to deliver the opening speech." The announcer said once everyone had had ample time to process their matchups. "All of you will be sent your matchup, rough time start for those not first, and other pertinent information as soon as this is over so you can prepare, and we will see you all tomorrow."

At that the man stepped back and left the stage as the gathered trainers applauded him. As this was happening, Diantha walked up to the microphone and smiled at the trainers before her. That alone got the crowd to be quiet as they awaited her address though Diantha herself paused and closed her eyes, showing her perfect purple eyeliner was on point as always, as she composed herself for a second before opening them as she began to address the gathered trainers and their friends.

"To all of you trainers competing in the Lumiose Conference, welcome." Diantha said a clear, confident, and warm voice. "Your efforts and experiences are treasures that will always be with you no matter what happens in the coming days but now it is time to put all that hard work you put into earning your 8 badges, be it this year, last year, or years past, to the test. The Kalos League demands that you give the upcoming battles everything you've got and demonstrate all your hard work and demonstration what got you to this point. You will need it if you want to win it this year. Therefore, it is my great honor to declare this year's Kalos League Lumiose Conference, open!"

At that Diantha gave them a wide smile and raised her right arm as suddenly fireworks went off in the sky and the gathered trainers cheered for her and the coming Conference. It was much simpler that Ash was used to, but he liked it nonetheless and having Diantha open it was fitting because it allowed him to focus on what he really wanted, to win it and become a Pokémon Master.

That was it for opening ceremonies and the crowd began to break up. They milled around for a bit and chatted with the other groups in their large overall group before they all decided to head back to their lodgings for the night. Those competing needed a good night sleep for tomorrow the Lumiose Conference began and Ash's latest quest to win a Conference started first thing. He couldn't wait, bring on the Kalos League at last.