"LADIES AND GENTLEMEN~!"

The crowd erupted instantly as Lisia stepped onto the stage in a burst of glittering lights, Ali spinning gracefully beside her.

"Welcome, everyone, to Lilycove City’s special Contest Spectacular!" Lisia announced dramatically, "The miraculous! The emotional! The dazzlingly unpredictable Duo Contest Spectacular!"

"And tonight," Lisia continued excitedly, "let’s give it up for our Coordinators! Good luck, everyone! Make this the most dazzling night ever!"

And then the performances began.

—

Backstage, May and Ash watched from a monitor as the teams performed one by one. Since most of these pairs had literally been formed less than five hours ago, a lot of the routines were either complete chaos or just the two Coordinators accidentally competing against each other.

That wasn’t to say it was all bad, though.

Some people actually managed pretty decent performances, but even then, the judges weren’t scoring very high. Because of the nature of this contest, only two teams would advance to the next stage and battle for the win.

So yeah, the whole thing was stacked against everyone.

Still, there were a few standout moments.

One team using Butterfree and Delcatty managed a surprisingly elegant routine, combining petals and Silver Powder to create glittering ribbons drifting through the air. It was easily the best performance so far.

May hummed softly, "Wow, this is..."

"Interesting," Ash finished for her, making her nod.

The performances definitely weren’t disasters. Most of the Coordinators were experienced enough to recover quickly whenever things got awkward.

Lisia still applauded enthusiastically anyway.

"That recovery was super graceful!" she praised cheerfully while one of the soaked judges quietly wiped water off their notes.

Backstage, Ash stared at the screen, "I think the audience member in row three just accepted death."

May snorted, "Did you see the last guy’s face? He looked like he’ll never recover."

Ash glanced sideways at her and smirked, clearly amused to see her joking around with him, "So when did you start preying on people’s downfall?"

May smirked slightly, "I learned from somebody."

Ash snorted, "Should I be concerned?"

Before May could respond, another loud cheer erupted from the stage, and Chaz burst out like he’d been fired from a cannon.

A spotlight somehow followed him despite nobody remembering there even being one a second ago.

"People of Lilycove!" Chaz shouted while pointing dramatically into the distance, "Tonight, you shall witness a tale of passion!"

Drew walked out behind him looking like he regretted every life choice that had led to this moment.

May covered her mouth, trying not to laugh, "Oh, this is gonna be amazing."

Ash crossed his arms, "Ten bucks says Drew considers murder before the routine ends."

"Twenty says Roselia does first."

Then their performance began.

Macherie wound up her fist, preparing a [Focus Punch], while Roselia began firing out [Magical Leaf]. As the leaves spiraled forward, Macherie struck them with a punch powerful enough to send them spinning into a miniature cyclone.

When the swirling leaves reached the top of the stage, they burst apart into glowing green fragments that rained across the arena like sparkling confetti. And that was only the beginning.

The two of them continued the performance smoothly, Drew forcing a strained smile the entire time while Chaz remained far too enthusiastic for any normal person.

Backstage, May slowly looked toward Ash, "Okay, now I’m nervous."

Ash shrugged, "Nah."

"Nah?!"

"We’ll just do better," Ash said with a grin.

May stared at him, "You sound way too confident for someone who didn’t even want to be here two hours ago."

Ash shrugged again, "I committed to the bit now."

"That is not reassuring," May said flatly.

Ash tilted his hat slightly, a grin hidden underneath it, "Relax, Lady May."

May felt her face heat slightly at the dramatic voice again.

"You’re really enjoying this persona way too much."

"I have no idea what you mean."

"You literally entered from the ceiling."

"In my defense," Ash said, pushing up the brim of his hat with a finger, "presentation is everything."

May sighed, though she couldn’t stop herself from smiling, "Alright then, how about you prove it here?"

"I think I will," Ash smirked back as he looked toward the screen where Drew and Chaz were finishing their performance.

Then the screen flickered and changed, announcing that Ash and May were next.

Ash lowered his hat again, shadowing his face, "Well then," he said smoothly, offering May his hand once more, "shall we steal the stage?"

May rolled her eyes at the dramatic voice, but she still took his hand anyway.

Together, they stepped toward the stage entrance.

The moment the doors opened, bright lights poured over them, and the massive crowd beyond erupted into cheers.

"Ohhhhh?!" Lisia leaned forward immediately from the judge’s table, "And here comes our mysterious phantom pair!"

As the audience applauded, May whispered quickly, "So what’s the plan?"

Ash didn’t even look at her, "Take the lead," he murmured back smoothly, "I’ll support you."

May blinked slightly before smiling.

That answer alone somehow made the nervousness settle.

Because yeah.

That sounded exactly like him.

The announcer called out loudly, "Begin!"

May’s Poké Ball burst open first in a flash of light as Combusken landed onto the stage. Then Ash released Ninetales, the one he had just evolved earlier that day.

"Since when do you have that?" May whispered quickly.

"Not the time. Just throw out moves, and we’ll make them better," Ash responded.

May’s eyes widened slightly, but she trusted him immediately, "Alright! Combusken, [Flamethrower]!"

Combusken spun forward, kicking flames across the stage in a spiraling arc with [Flamethrower]. The fire twisted upward in bright orange ribbons, heating the air around the battlefield.

"Ninetales, [Confuse Ray]," Ash said smoothly.

Ninetales’ crimson eyes glowed as shimmering golden wisps floated into the flames, causing the fire itself to distort until it resembled the aurora borealis made entirely of fire.

May blinked in surprise before quickly catching on to what Ash was doing.

"[Sky Uppercut]!"

"[Fire Spin]," Ash added immediately.

Combusken launched upward while, below it, Ninetales’ tails extended gracefully as a tornado of fire spiraled into existence. The vortex formed blazing rings of fire that Combusken leapt through one after another.

The audience was completely eating it up, cheering loudly, while Lisia looked practically ecstatic at what she was seeing. She was already making a mental note to figure out who this mysterious stranger was later.

Meanwhile, Ash tilted his hat slightly lower as Ninetales landed gracefully beside Combusken.

May glanced toward him quickly, "You’ve definitely done this before."

"I absolutely have not."

"You’re lying."

"A magician never reveals his secrets."

"You are not a magician."

Ash put a finger to his lips in a shushing motion, "Phantom gentleman."

"That’s worse," May said, though both of them were clearly trying not to laugh at their own banter.

"So, shall we wrap this up?" Ash asked, tilting his head slightly.

"Then let’s make it flashy," May grinned back.

Ash gave a small nod, "Ninetales."

The fox lowered itself slightly, its nine tails spreading out behind it elegantly.

May immediately caught on, "Combusken, [Double Kick]!"

Combusken launched forward in a blur of motion, kicking off the stage floor before leaping high into the air. Flames burst from her feet with every strike, creating glowing rings across the battlefield as she spun.

"Ninetales, [Extrasensory]."

As Combusken soared upward, glowing platforms of psychic energy formed beneath her feet one after another, allowing her to kick off them repeatedly and climb even higher into the air.

Then, once Combusken had reached the perfect height, May swiped her arm forward dramatically.

"Combusken, [Overheat]!"

Combusken flipped in midair and pointed her beak downward, unleashing a massive spiraling pillar of fire toward the stage below.

Then, as the flames descended, Ash raised one hand calmly.

"Ninetales, [Counter Shield]."

Ninetales’ crimson eyes glowed brightly.

Then each of its nine tails ignited with differently colored flames, there was Blue, Gold, Violet, Green, Red, Silver, and White.

The multicolored fire launched outward, spinning around Ninetales in perfect circles before spiraling upward into Combusken’s massive [Overheat], weaving around it like glowing rings.

The entire firestorm transformed instantly into a swirling vortex of multicolored flames.

Combusken dropped directly into the center of it.

"[Blaze Kick]!" May shouted.

Combusken rocketed through the spiraling inferno, kicking straight through the heart of the multicolored flames and causing the entire vortex to erupt into dazzling rainbow fireworks before landing perfectly back on the stage.

The crowd exploded into cheers.

Even the judges looked stunned as they quickly began discussing scores.

Meanwhile, back onstage, May glanced toward Ash while the applause continued around them.

"You called that supporting me?" she whispered.

Ash tilted his head slightly, "I did support you."

"You turned my Overheat into rainbow fireworks."

"And?" Ash asked innocently.

May opened her mouth, paused, then pointed accusingly at him, "You know exactly what you did."

Ash simply tipped his hat slightly as if accepting praise.

Because yes.

He absolutely knew what he did.

—

Later, after all the scores came in, it was no surprise that May and Ash took first place while Drew and Chaz secured the second spot.

Meaning the final battle would be between them.

"People of Lilycove!" Chaz declared dramatically as he stepped onto the field, "Bear witness! For destiny itself has guided me to this very moment!"

Macherie flexed proudly beside him, "Machoke!"

"And though my rival Lisia may sit among the judges today..." Chaz pointed toward her dramatically, "...know this! I shall rise victorious and carve my name into the eternal tale of Contest history!"

Lisia clapped politely, "Good luck, Chaz!"

"I SHALL TREASURE THOSE WORDS FOREVER!"

Drew pinched the bridge of his nose in immediate regret.

Meanwhile, on the opposite side of the field, May walked out with Combusken beside her while Ash followed a step behind. Unlike before, though, he didn’t have Ninetales out immediately.

Ash casually rolled his shoulder, spinning one arm lazily, "About time we finish this up. Ready, May?"

May grinned, her nerves completely gone now that she was back onstage, "You better keep up."

Ash chuckled quietly beneath his hat as he pulled out a different Poké Ball, "Alright then. Let’s see if you can back it up."

Vivian finally rushed to the center of the stage and absolutely wasn’t bitter that Lisia had stolen her announcer role for the night.

She loudly cleared her throat before speaking into the microphone.

"If everyone is ready...battle start!"

May immediately sent out Combusken.

Drew released Roselia.

Chaz sent out Macherie.

Then Ash casually spun the Poké Ball in his hand before throwing it forward. The ball burst open in a flash of light, revealing Milotic as the elegant Pokémon stretched its long body across the battlefield.

After all, there wasn’t any rule saying contestants had to use the same Pokémon in both rounds. Most people did, but there was never an actual rule requiring it.

Besides, some Pokémon genuinely just didn’t enjoy battling.

Drew’s eyes widened in shock at the sight of Milotic, but he quickly shook himself out of it.

"Roselia, [Stun Spore]!"

But May reacted immediately.

"Combusken, [Ember] spread!"

Golden spores burst outward from Roselia while Combusken spun gracefully, kicking rapid-fire Embers across the field. The flames ignited the spores midair before they could drift anywhere near Milotic.

Then Ash moved.

"Milotic, [Twister]."

Milotic raised her tail elegantly before a swirling tornado burst forward, spiraling directly toward their opponents.

"Roselia, dodge and use [Petal Dance]!" Drew called instantly.

Roselia leapt lightly to the side as glowing petals exploded outward, spinning around the [Twister] in the opposite direction.

The collision sent pink petals and glittering water spraying beautifully across the stage.

"Ohoho!" Chaz pointed dramatically, "Magnificent opening, Drew! Our elegance shall not fall so easily!"

Drew sighed into his hand, "Please stop narrating every thought you have."

Chaz ignored him completely and pointed forward instead.

"Macherie, [Thunder Punch]!"

Macherie charged through the storm of petals before winding up her fist with crackling electricity and slamming directly into the tornado.

The [Twister] exploded apart in a burst of sparks and shimmering water.

"YES!" Chaz shouted while dramatically pointing toward the ceiling, "THIS is what Contest Battles are meant to be!"

Drew sighed again and covered part of his face with his hand from sheer secondhand embarrassment.

"Roselia, just use [Leech Seed]."

Seeds shot through the lingering mist toward Milotic while Macherie charged forward again.

"Macherie! [Dynamic Punch]!" Chaz commanded dramatically.

Macherie’s fist glowed brightly as she lunged forward. 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

Ash’s eyes flicked briefly toward May, giving a silent signal.

May caught it immediately and nodded, "Combusken, intercept!"

Combusken dashed across the stage and slammed directly into Macherie mid-charge with [Quick Attack], knocking the Machoke slightly off course.

At the same time, Ash snapped his fingers softly.

"Milotic, [Aqua Tail]."

Milotic spun gracefully beneath the incoming [Leech Seed], whipping her tail around fast enough to crack the seeds apart before they could reach her.

Drew’s eyes narrowed immediately, and he clicked his tongue.

"Roselia, [Magical Leaf]. Curve it around."

Roselia spun elegantly, sending glowing leaves arcing outward instead of directly forward this time. The leaves curved around Milotic from both sides while Macherie attempted to grab Combusken in a grapple.

"Macherie, [Seismic Toss]!"

May reacted instantly, "Combusken, jump!"

Macherie raised her arms, ready to catch Combusken, but right before contact Combusken kicked off the ground, causing Macherie to grab nothing but air as Combusken flipped cleanly over Machoke’s shoulders.

But the curved [Magical Leaf] was still closing in.

Ash gave a soft whistle, wordlessly signaling for a [Counter Shield].

Milotic immediately spun with [Aqua Tail], creating a spiraling vortex of water that caught the incoming leaves before they could strike either her or Combusken. Then, with another sharp whip of her tail, she launched the water and trapped leaves straight back toward Macherie and Roselia while Combusken was still airborne.

Both Macherie and Roselia were sent flying backward before slamming into the ground. They managed to recover quickly, but not before losing a large chunk of points.

Ash smiled faintly, though his attention flicked toward the timer overhead.

It was nearly over.

He glanced sideways at May, "May."

That was all he said.

May instantly understood, a grin spreading across her face, "Leave it to me."

Ash’s hidden smile widened slightly beneath the shadow of his hat.

Macherie immediately lunged forward again, charging ahead to create an opening for Roselia’s attacks.

But May swiped her arm forward sharply, "Combusken, run straight at her!"

Combusken dashed directly toward the incoming Machoke.

Then, right before impact, "[Smokescreen]!"

Combusken spat out a thick cloud of black smoke from her beak just before Macherie reached her, causing the Machoke to grab nothing but smoke as Combusken disappeared completely into the darkness.

"What?!" Chaz shouted dramatically.

But May only grinned wider and pointed upward.

"Combusken, [Sky Uppercut]!"

Combusken burst vertically through the smoke cloud, rocketing high above the stage.

At the exact same moment, Ash raised one hand calmly.

"Milotic, now [Hydro Pump]."

Milotic’s eyes glowed blue before she fired a massive blast of water upward into the smoke cloud.

Drew reacted instantly.

"Roselia, redirect it with [Magical Leaf]!"

Glowing leaves shot upward, attempting to split apart the incoming [Hydro Pump].

But that wasn’t what Ash and May were aiming for.

Ash tapped the brim of his hat lightly, "Now."

May smirked immediately, "Got it, [Flamethrower]!"

Still airborne, Combusken twisted midair and blasted flames directly into Milotic’s spiraling water attack. The fire and water connected instantly, creating a cloud of scalding hot steam that covered the stage, now blocking the view for Drew and Chaz, and the heat itself was painful.

Drew looked around sharply, "Roselia, stay alert—"

"Macherie, we can still-" Chaz also tried calling out, but it was too late.

"[Blaze Kick]"

"[Dragon Pulse]"

Through the steam, purple fire shot directly into Macherie, sending her flying back. Before Roselia could do anything to support, Combusken burst through the steam and was already in front of her, leg blazing, then it struck, sending Roselia flying as well.

Both Pokémon were launched out of the steam and slammed onto the ground, rolling before finally coming to a stop. Spirals filled their eyes, meaning they were unable to battle. So, as the steam cleared around them, the winners were Ash and May, even though Ash never gave his name.

Then the crowd exploded.

The entire stadium erupted into deafening cheers.

Lisia was fully standing now, clapping excitedly, "THAT WAS AMAZING!"

Vivian nearly lost her voice yelling into the microphone, "AND THAT’S IT! WHAT AN INCREDIBLE FINISH!"

The crowd roared even louder as May jumped straight into the air before immediately spinning toward Ash with a massive grin.

"We actually won!"

Ash had just barely recalled Milotic when May suddenly grabbed him in a hug, "Ash, thank you, thank you, thank you!" she laughed, nearly bouncing, "That was AMAZING!"

Ash completely froze but quickly recovered and returned the hug, patting her on the back, "Sure, I did promise you, didn’t I?"

May was still riding the victory high too much to notice.

"We actually pulled that off!" she laughed, "There’s no way I could’ve done that without you!"

"I mean, technically, no, you literally couldn’t have," Ash said, tapping his chin, "But can you let me go now? I need to mysteriously get away before—"

"Phantom! Phantom! Phantom!"

Ash visibly died inside.

"Oh no."

May finally noticed the chanting too and looked toward the audience.

Lisia was standing on top of the judge’s desk now, because apparently sitting normally was no longer enough for her excitement.

"MYSTERIOUS PHANTOM GENTLEMAN!" she shouted dramatically into her mic, "YOU WERE AMAZING!"

Ash immediately lowered his hat further, "I regret everything."

Lisia jumped off the desk happily, grabbed the box with the two ribbons, and ran up to Ash and May, "Congratulations! Since you won, you both get the special Lilycove Ribbon!"

May grabbed hers happily, and Ash slowly took the other, because, I guess, why not. He looked at it and sighed while May grinned, giving him a light elbow and leaning in to whisper, "Looks like you’ve got some fans now."

Ash looked up, and other than Lisia’s beaming face, he could clearly see a lot of fangirls. He grimaced, now extremely thankful he had hidden his face and name.

But then Lisia clapped her hands together and took another step toward Ash, "So, Phantom! What’s your name? Oh, have you done any other contests? What about your Pokémon, do you have any more? Did you make your suit yourself?!" she asked, one after the other, excitedly.

Ash took a step back and lowered the brim of his hat even more. Looking around, he saw May’s Combusken just stretching, and he spoke through his teeth, "Hey, a little help?"

Combusken looked up at Ash and shrugged. Then she spat out another [Smokescreen] that covered Ash’s body, and he pulled a Batman, quickly disappearing before the smoke faded.

But that just made Lisia and his new fans even more excited, "Oh my Mew, he’s so COOL!"

Lisia turned to May and grabbed her hands, "May! Can you tell me more about your friend?!"

May blinked and laughed helplessly, "I-er, well, I don’t think he wants me to say anything. I can’t really break his trust like that, can I?"

As Drew was about to say something, maybe finally say something nice, Chaz suddenly stood up, nearly knocking Drew to the ground, "At last, I have found another rival worthy of the great Chaz!"

Then Chaz dramatically pointed toward May, "And you!" he declared, "Newbie no longer! Though I once doubted your role in this grand story, tonight, you have proven yourself worthy of standing upon the Contest stage!"

May blinked, "...Thanks?"

"Hmph!" Chaz flipped his hair dramatically, "Do not misunderstand! I still intend to defeat you someday!"

"Okay?"

"And mysterious Phantom gentleman!" Chaz pointed to the sky, "I eagerly await the day our paths cross once more beneath the spotlight of fate!"

"Eh...yeah, good luck with that," May said helplessly, since she knew she probably wasn’t going to be able to convince Ash to do that again. But right now, that wasn’t on her mind, right now, she had to think of a way to get out of this place without getting swarmed.

—

{Meanwhile}

Outside the contest hall, Ash managed to escape and change into his normal clothes. Since no one saw his face, no one could prove it was him, and he was already hoping he wouldn’t have to do that again.

And he especially hoped May would never tell anyone, especially not Green. If Green found out about this, Ash was never living it down.

He found a bench and sat down, pulling out his phone and beginning to scroll. Right about now, he had to figure out their next plan.

He wanted to go to LaRousse City, since he had promised Nora he’d at least check things out with her and Damian. He could actually get a boat there, since Lilycove was a port city where boats came and went, but he still needed a reason why.

Well, he supposed he could say he wanted to try out the LaRousse Battle Tower to train. That could be a good excuse. But just as Ash was lost in thought, he got an email.

Yes, an email, since it was late, most people wouldn’t call him. And he only knew of one man outdated enough to send him something like that.

When he opened it, just as he thought, it was an email from Professor Oak. So he rolled his eyes and read through it, but when he did, he suddenly got a bad feeling.

Because the first sentence of the email was, [Have you ever heard of something called the Battle Frontier?]

And for some reason, Ash felt like something really bad was about to happen.