Located to the north of Sunyshore City, Lily of the Valley Island served as both the location of the Sinnoh Conference as well as the home of Sinnoh’s Pokémon League Headquarters. It was a mountainous island filled with forests and tall cliffs, and it had a small, sleepy town sitting on its southernmost coast.

Out of all of its features, however, what stood out the most was the wide valley that stretched across the entire island. It appeared almost as if a mountain had been severed in two and one half had been pushed to the side. In the flat grounds that made up its center, the valley hosted countless arenas and battlefields.

I traveled to the island via boat, as Gardevoir was unfamiliar with the location and could not teleport to it, and because the distance between it and the mainland was too long for Altaria to fly. The ship arrived on the second of March, a Sunday, and I stepped off of it and onto the busy docks as dozens of trainers excitedly entered the island around me.

The air was sweet with the scent of both flower vendors and sugar-rich foods. With nothing stopping me, I strode inwards to head directly towards the main Pokémon Center, where I would need to register.

Up several walkways and a few large staircases, I made my way through the coastal settlement and into the wide, flat Conference grounds. A main road stretched through this entire valley, and it was flanked by arenas, fenced off battlefields, and even a few buildings dedicated to Pokémon League workers.

An archway marked the entrance to this bright green expanse, looking ancient and carved from stone. One side of it had a depiction of Dialga soaring into the heavens, while the other had a depiction of Palkia diving towards the earth.

Connecting the two halves was a carving of a bright, nondescript light whose beams shined over both Dialga and Palkia. At first glance, it almost seemed like just a generic detail, but I knew that it represented Arceus.

Stepping through, I quickly arrived at the Pokémon Center, which was right off to the side. The main room of the building was located in a large glass cylinder that let people waiting peer out at the crowds of excited people browsing the various vendors set up. In the back, several railed walkways marked the floors in which competing trainers would be given their rooms. The ground floors were dedicated to taking care of injured Pokémon, however.

Identical to what happened in Hoenn, a large screen flashed with information about trainers who were registering to compete, and once I displayed my eight Sinnoh badges, mine, too, appeared above.

There was a measure of pride, seeing that there. It proved that for a second time, my team had made it to this final tournament that marked the end of the season. Tobias waited ahead, just as Ash did. One way or another, I would be battling both of them, and all I could do was hope my preparations had been enough.

Distracted, I was brought out of my musings as a room key jingled in the nurse’s hand.

“Your room is on the fifth floor, in the eastern wing of this building. As for your status as a competitor, the requirement to participate in the preliminary rounds had been waived, and your first battle will begin alongside the top sixty-four.”

I smiled, nodding along to her words, but as she finished off her instructions, I paused.

“I’m sorry, can you repeat that last part?”

The nurse cleared her throat.

“As a seeded trainer, your first match will take place in the top sixty-four, whose matches will be announced Wednesday night of the second week,” she explained. “That means you get to skip the preliminary rounds and the first half of the qualifiers. Congratulations on being placed in the higher rounds! Few trainers have proven themselves strong enough to earn that honor.”

The nurse smiled at me while I stared at her with a blank look on my face. I expected to merely skip the preliminaries, not skip a round of tournament battles as well.

“Is it possible to learn who the other seeded trainers are?” I asked.

“Hmm. I’m not sure...”

“I’m just wondering about two of them: Ash Ketchum and one Tobias.”

The nurse bit her lip then turned to her computer, typing furiously on her keyboard. I stood there a bit awkwardly, taking significantly more time at the counter than other trainers in the process of registering. After a few minutes of careful typing and clicking, the nurse finally turned back to me, her smile gone but out of focus rather than anything wrong.

“Both trainers you mention have notes in the system that matched yours. I would say both are likely to be seeded as well.”

“Thank you,” I said. “That’s a weight off my chest.”

With my registration finished, I took the elevator to where my room was located, deposited my stuff, and sent out my Pokémon. As they walked around the room—half of them immediately jumped to lay on the bed—I collapsed on a chair and sighed.

“We made it,” I said.

My team all stopped what they were doing to cheer.

“Not like that was in any doubt,” I quickly added.

My team cheered again.

"Regardless, I just found out we have a few extra days to train. The Conference only has 128 trainers in it instead of Hoenn’s 256, so we’ll be joining in once the top 64 have been determined. That means our first battle is either next Thursday or Friday, unlike the Monday we expected. We know our opponents, so more time means we can be even more prepared.”

An air of seriousness blanketed the room. Plans swam in my head as my Pokémon all exchanged determined looks. In the pit of my stomach, nerves fluttered around, yet despite all of that, I was excited.

Just a bit longer, and everything would begin.

There were a few side tournaments in the first week, but I ignored them to not reveal any new tricks my team had worked out. Information control was a game in itself, and it was a game that I had a severe disadvantage in with my show battles and Contests having publicly available recordings.

Due to the Conference's proximity to the League Headquarters, I had to apply for a pass to register Gardevoir for passage on and off the island, but that was approved within the hour I filed it. The distance he could Teleport was just long enough to bring us back to the mainland. As it stood, I didn't want anyone seeing what we were practicing, so for a few hours each day, we visited a forest free of any trainers and worked on our moves and strategies.

At night, I let my Pokémon relax and explore.

I appreciated just how willing vendors were to set up during tournaments across the region. The familiar suspects were all there: carnival games, extremely unhealthy food, rare collectibles, and held items. I even recognized a handful of booths from both the Wallace Cup and the Grand Festival. These people probably made their livings just selling to travelers who went to all the major events.

My team was rotated in and out to let them experience what the Conference had to offer, though by this point, they were basically used to the sights. Out of everyone, it was clear Dedenne enjoyed it the most. I was pretty confident that glutton scarfed down more food than the bottomless pit that was Mawile.

When the preliminaries rolled around, I kept an eye out to see how they worked. For better or for worse, I wasn't competing due to my status as a seeded trainer.

For this Conference, aspiring competitors had to search the valley for hidden "badges" whose ownership would allow them to compete in the Conference. The badges came in three colors: red, blue, and green, and competitors had to have all three in their possession at the end of the week in order to make it in.

Each day, competitors holding a badge could be challenged for ownership of it, but competitors could only be challenged once per badge overall. A one-on-one match with an official watching it took place, and whoever won got to keep the badge in question.

Of course, you could only challenge badge-holders if you didn't hold a badge yourself, which turned the preliminary rounds into a war between the badge-holders and the badge-seekers.

Collecting all three early forced someone to defend them the whole time, but waiting until the end to obtain them meant risking the chance to successfully claim a badge for yourself.

It was entertaining to watch all the trainers scramble to search the Conference premises and the constant battles that happened afterwards. I could see why the preliminaries were so complex, as it was extremely entertaining to watch the chaos with an outside perspective.

Still, by the end of the week, the preliminaries had ended as expected, and the competing trainers had been selected to compete.

And then, the opening ceremonies started the next Monday.

Ash was there. So was Paul, Nando, Tobias, and then Barry, the rival from the games.

I felt bad that I completely forgot his existence. I didn't even remember he had showed up in the anime. Still, that didn't mean he hadn't earned his place here, just like every other trainer around me, too.

I stood tall in my Valerie-made outfit, cleaned and maintained to let myself be as presentable and as stylish as possible. Ahead, I watched a runner ascend the steps up to the very top of the stands. The torch the runner was holding was tilted downwards, and the flames of Moltres burned bright and proud to mark the start of the Conference proper.

In a box overlooking the field, I knew every member of the Elite Four were watching. Likely, some Gym Leaders and even Steven were there, too.

One hundred and twenty-eight trainers would compete for the right to become this year's Conference champion, and then that champion would go onto challenge the Elite Four. Tobias served as that victor in the anime, but just like he had stopped Ash back then, I planned to stop him right here.

Above, a beeping suddenly rang out, and everyone's vision was drawn to the main screens. Over a hundred trainers began to be listed out, sets of eight being displayed in groups of four battles that divided them up by field.

Rock, Grass, Ice, and Water remained as the classic options for fields to battle on in this Conference. Familiar names came and went, but by the end, Ash, Tobias, and I did not show up. Interestingly enough, Paul was there even though I had expected him to be seeded like us.

All the trainers walked off the field. Sixty-four matches would stretch from today until Wednesday, and then I would compete in the next thirty-two.

It felt strange to have a significantly less dense schedule than the previous Conference, but that just meant we had even more time to prepare.

A call that afternoon meant I found myself at a restaurant that night, and soon enough, I was in a private room with an expensive meal in front of my face.

"To your achievement in making it to the Conference," Steven declared, cup held high.

I raised my own glass of water in response, and all of the Pokémon in the room shouted their names as part of the cheer. Both of us sipped our drinks as the Pokémon dove down to start their meals.

My water was cold and refreshing. Out of nerves, I kept training relaxed today, but such a nice drink helped cool me down.

"Honestly," I said, "I didn't really think making it to the Conference would be that big of a deal for me. I know it sounds arrogant, but I had a lot of free time this season so I had plenty of time to train."

"Still, a reason to celebrate is a reason to celebrate," Steven replied. "Not every trainer becomes a seed in only their second League season. That is an achievement of its own right. You should be proud of yourself, Alex."

I smiled genuinely.

"Thank you. Though, I'm more proud of my Pokémon more than anything else."

Once more, all of my Pokémon raised their heads to cheer. They quickly went back to their food, and Steven chuckled.

When it came to the restaurants on this island, most of them served competitors for free. However, some restaurants were still quite exclusive, so I hadn't expected Steven to invite me out of the blue like this.

Especially since this place required reservations months in advance. Just how long had he been planning this?

A sudden yelp caught my attention, forcing me to not dwell on that thought any longer. Where the rest of my team was set up, I saw Ninetales glaring at Dedenne, whose cheeks were stuffed full. Ninetales's plate was suspiciously one berry short as Dedenne smiled at her, looking rather smug.

I laughed when I saw a berry from his own plate get lifted into the air behind him and tossed into Ninetales's mouth. Dedenne's expression dropped as Ninetales sent him an imitation of his own smug grin right back.

"Your Pokémon are lively as always," Steven commented.

"They always are, but I'm glad to see they're in high spirits. I've been pushing them a lot recently, and I've been worried I haven't been balancing both rest and training. After months of training, knowing what team sits ahead of us might be motivating, but its just as terrifying."

I moved my glass of water around in my hand, letting the water spin in a whirlpool. Condensation dripped onto my fingers as I let my mind recall everything I knew.

"Tobias's team," I mumbled. "It's..."

The thought dropped away before I could say it. Steven simply nodded, accepting I wasn't going to continue.

He took a bite of his meal before wiping his mouth and staring off at his team. His eyes lingered on where Metagross was situated nearby, not eating but likely having a telepathic conversation with Rapidash nearby.

"I'll be honest, Alex, I cannot see you beating a Darkrai."

Steven's brutal statement made me wince.

"That might have been a bit unfair to say, as I truthfully cannot see anyone beating a Darkrai, even myself,” he said. “Ever since the events I witnessed in Alamos Town, the species holds a... different place in my heart. Watching any of Tobias's battles will be difficult for me."

"I'm sorry.”

"Don't be. Things worked out, in the end."

Steven took a long sip of his tea and stared into the dark liquid in thought. It didn't take him too long to return to his usual self, and a calm smile grew back on his face.

“Though, those thoughts are from the emotional side of me. Logically, based on your past performances, I have no doubts whatever mad strategy you have will give you a solid fighting chance."

I laughed.

“I’m sorry, ‘mad strategy?’"

"Well, I wasn't the one who had my Pokémon Fling their Mega Stone in the middle of a show battle. You understand your battle with Maylene is a highlight hundreds of thousands have watched, right?”

“That’s... concerning?” I offered.

“Praiseworthy, if anything,” he countered.

We returned to our meal as both my Pokémon and his ate in the room alongside us. With this restaurant being on the same island as the Sinnoh League Headquarters, the room was genuinely large enough to fit another restaurant inside, which let Steven’s large Pokémon fit inside just fine.

Steven started to tap his fingers on the table as he put his utensils down. Detecting a shift in the conversation, I sat back in my seat to show I was ready to continue.

Steven asked me a question.

“What are your plans after the Conference?”

I blinked at the familiar words.

“I feel like I have to get through it, first," I said. "You know Cynthia asked me the same thing?"

"I do, actually. She kept hinting at it trying to be smug, and I managed to wear her down enough to explain what happened.”

I blinked at his words. He stopped tapping his fingers to cross his hands over one another. His expression settled down to be much more serious.

“Next year, I will return to my tenure as Hoenn’s Pokémon League Champion. In truth, I had only stepped down on paper, but for all intents and purposes, most officials still treated me as if I were such. My goal in coming to Sinnoh was to relax and train, but it was truly a way to prove to the public I was still reliable. I failed them in Mossdeep. A Champion has to be strong enough to keep the region safe, and while I did manage to encourage Rayquaza to step in, Team Magma was able to unleash Primal Kyogre to heavily damage the city. Hoenn’s faith in me was... hurt.”

He took another long sip of his tea. He set it down with a sigh.

"I bring this up for a specific reason," Steven continued. "The media has been sent into a frenzy now that I have assisted with the capture of Hunter J, and that doesn’t even account for my presence during the events that happened in Alamos Town. The people of Hoenn demanded my resignation when I failed to publicly defend Mossdeep, but now they wish to see me back."

"What's the point you're building up to?" I asked suspiciously.

My Pokémon had stopped eating. The room was quiet as everyone listened in.

“I think you should accept Cynthia’s offer,” he said.

There was a pause as I took what he said in.

“I don’t follow.”

“Look, Alex, when it comes to emergencies, you haven’t had anyone to call but me. In Kalos, it took me a month before I could respond, and Lysandre had approached you twice before you were able to set up anywhere safe. In Sinnoh, Ash’s presence was an unknown and frankly mildly terrifying factor that proved to be connected to several Legendary events. I was able to step in without my responsibilities tying me down, but once I am in Hoenn, I won’t be able to do the same.”

“So you want me to work for the League... so I can have a support group?”

“Allies, specifically,” Steven said. “You need to have people to contact for help, people that aren't just me. I have no doubts that there will be something in the future that raises alarm bells in your mind, just like events before. Who would you be able to call if I am not available? Cynthia is stuck in Sinnoh, with her only leaving for a rare visit to Johto or Unova, otherwise. Sycamore isn’t fully in the loop, and even then, his influence is limited to Kalos.

“There are countless regions on the planet, regions you are likely to visit. I don’t want you feeling stuck and alone, facing some kind of criminal or terrorist organization by yourself because you were the only one to recognize the signs.”

I went silent, staring at my food in thought.

“Sorry about that,” Steven suddenly said. “With my tenure as Champion slowly creeping back on me, I’ve been thinking about the future more and more. I didn’t mean to make you more stressed, as I primarily brought you here to give you a nice meal to help you relax before your upcoming battles.”

Steven chuckled and poked at his food with a fork.

“No, I still appreciate it. Thank you,” I said.

Steven smiled, but I found myself unable to go back to my meal. My mind was flipping and turning as I considered all the possibilities that the offer entailed.

I wasn’t sure if I was going to accept. I still wanted to travel the world, and the idea of being limited by the League’s whims in one way or another didn’t appeal to me. I understood they only wished to try their best, but it felt wrong to be beholden to an organization like that.

But, helping the League would let me help others, too. Most of my information was already exhausted, but there were still a few regions left with threats lurking in the background. I could make a difference.

A sudden thought came to mind, and I chuckled to myself quietly.

Even after all this time, I was still more comfortable by myself. Well, not specifically by myself. I had my Pokémon and the occasional friend to travel alongside.

The rest of the meal was eaten in silence, with Steven and I slowly bringing bites up to our mouths. I mostly just moved things around, finding the taste delicious but the very idea of eating any more was almost completely unpalatable.

When it was all over, Steven paid the bill, and our Pokémon all shifted around, more than just filled up. In Ninetales’s case, she almost looked unconscious, and I poked her stomach only to get a satisfied groan in response.

“So,” Steven said. “After a pleasant meal, a battle is always a good way to work it off. How about it? I have a Pokémon that is incredibly interested in rematching Dedenne.”

I smiled. It was a little forced, but a battle with Dedenne didn’t sound bad at all.

I had Dedenne jog for a bit to wake himself up. Togepi rode in my lap on Rapidash’s back as the little mouse did his best to keep up.

Once he was warmed up, I met with Steven at a battlefield along the main road. To not cause a scene, both of us put on disguises, though I doubted anyone would recognize Steven with the Pokémon he was about to send out.

Since this was a public battlefield during the Conference, a League official was available to serve as the referee. If the preliminaries hadn’t already been passed, we could have easily been mistaken for a pair of competitors battling it out for a preliminary badge.

“You two ready?” the League official asked.

He looked nervous. Steven was a big player, and technically, I had the potential to be one, too.

“We are,” Steven and I both said.

The official nodded then waved the flag to have us begin.

“Dedenne!”

“Kleavor!”

Dedenne scurried onto the field as Steven’s Kleavor stood off against him. Kleavor evolved from Scyther when exposed to a Black Augurite, a phenomenon Steven had talked about excitedly all the way here.

Like she used to be as a Scyther, Kleavor was a mantis-like Pokémon, but instead of normal chitin, she was covered in craggy rock. Her hands were not scythes but a set of black stone axes that looked to be made of Black Augurite themselves.

Seeing Dedenne caused Kleavor to hop back and forth on her feet excitedly. Ever since their last battle, she liked Dedenne, though she was much more terrifying as she was now.

Last time, Dedenne had “beaten” Scyther, but that was only due to Steven using a purposefully flawed strategy. This time, I could tell he planned not to do the same.

“Swords Dance."

"Electroweb!"

Kleavor continued hopping back and forth, rubbing her two ax-hands together to properly sharpen them. At the same time, Dedenne lept straight up and shot out a ball that expanded out into a net of pure electricity.

With Kleavor occupied by her attack-enhancing dance, she was unable to slice the attack to defend herself, and the electricity zapped her on contact while its solid form wrapped her up and slowed her down.

"Nuzzle and Charm. At your leisure," I quickly ordered.

Kleavor buckled down and eyed Dedenne carefully, subtly using an unknown move while getting ready to prepare herself. Dedenne darted to and fro on the field, moving back and forth until it seemed like he was about to leap in for a Nuzzle.

Kleavor tensed, readying a reactionary attack. Dedenne, however, stopped right outside her range and tilted his head.

His eyes widened to make them appear unreasonably large as his ears flicked back and forth. He rubbed a cheek with a paw, purposefully disturbing his whiskers to emphasize his cute face. From an angle, he eyed Kleavor questioningly, going as far as to slightly open his mouth to expose his buck teeth and squeaking out a soft "Denne?" in confusion.

I covered my face with my hands. He was going so far beyond what he normally did for Charm, it was ridiculous. Even more, he was causing sparks of electricity to crackle in the air behind him and illuminate his head to make it seem he was even being lit up by a spotlight.

To my horror, it actually worked. Kleavor lowered its axes and practically melted under Dedenne's cute gaze.

Then, he smirked. He stopped using Charm to lunge forward and slam into Kleavor's stomach, hitting a Nuzzle.

Kleavor locked up. The move did its job and paralyzed its target.

"Discharge!" I yelled.

Right up close to Kleavor, Dedenne exploded with as much electricity as he could afford to lose. Kleavor shouted her name in pain, though it was no longer a Flying Type so it did not take super effective damage.

Dedenne then pushed off her body to get back, and Kleavor fell to one knee.

"Great job interrupting Kleavor's Focus Energy. Without that Charm, Dedenne would have been subjected to a devastating attack."

At Steven's comment, Dedenne turned around and smirked. I sighed, waving him off.

"Yeah, yeah. You're amazing as always," I grumbled.

Dedenne puffed up with pride.

Then, Kleavor's axe slammed into his chest.

"Try not to turn away from your opponents in battle!" Steven called out.

Though Charm had canceled out Kleavor's Swords Dance, it didn't mean Kleavor was any less strong. It pushed through the paralysis it was subjected to to ensure its sharp blade properly impacted Dedenne's stomach.

Dedenne went flying through the air and thankfully managed to land on his feet at the very edge of the field. Kleavor then rushed at him as he just barely dodged, her blade slicing into the ground only millimeters away.

"It's incredible what the combination of the Sheer Force and Sharpness abilities can do," Steven said. "Kleavor's Stone Axe is one of the strongest Rock Type moves I've seen, and the move tends to get critical hits quite frequently, too."

The axe was pulled up from the floor as Dedenne nervously looked up at the Pokémon towering above him.

He gulped, both out of fear and also to eat the berries he stored with Cheek Pouch to heal his injuries.

"Rain Dance," I ordered, swapping strategies.

Dedenne began to desperately hop between an onslaught of slashes sent at him straight from Kleavor. He tried his best to use the move I wanted, but the sheer number of attacks coming his way was slowing him down.

There were times where it seemed that paralysis should have stalled Kleavor, but the Pokémon pushed through, showing that training alongside a Champion could truly push a Pokémon to new heights. In Dedenne's case, he was being pushed to bring his dodging skills to an entirely new level.

Eventually, a small rain cloud formed above. Kleavor's rocky body became moist with water, and she shivered uncomfortably.

"Now! Thunder!" I yelled.

"Endure."

Kleavor braced herself for a blast of lightning to shock her with everything Dedenne had left. He put his all into this move, desperately trying to take out Kleavor before she could take him out.

It was extremely unfortunate Kleavor knew Endure and could withstand the move.

"Quick Attack," Steven said.

The fast to use move prevented Dedenne from using Endure himself. The previous uses of Stone Axe might not have all hit, but they came in enough numbers to weaken him for the rapid attack to take him out now that he was drained.

Dedenne hit the ground with his eyes spinning. I returned the unconscious rodent to his fast ball and whispered quiet praise to him in his Pokéball.

He did a good job, and he almost won too. A Champion's Pokémon was still on a whole other level, even as recent as Kleavor was.

I approached Steven to shake his hand. He patted Kleavor's head affectionately, then returned her as well.

"Good match, Alex," he said.

"Same to you, Steven. I don't plan on using Dedenne against Tobias, but I'm happy to see that his training let him almost pull off a win."

Steven smiled back on me, though the corners of his mouth twitched slightly for some reason.

"It was good, but I do have a question. Why does Dedenne not know Thunderbolt or Electro Ball? They are powerful moves, are they not?"

I winced at his comment.

"I didn't expect to be called out like this," I commented. "Long story short, those moves require control where Dedenne likes blasting. Even more, his species only learns them as TM moves so they're pretty difficult to train. We just never got around to fully figuring them out."

Steven nodded in response.

With the battle done, I felt a lot calmer about everything presented ahead of me, especially since Dedenne did so well. Steven and I chatted a bit before splitting off. He planned to watch the battles here, and I planned to compete, of course. I still had a day before our first match, and from there, it would be daily battles until the end.