On one drop of dew to her face, Cynthia wakes up. She does not recognize where she is. She could only see a soaking cavern around her with the sharpest stalactites and stalagmites imaginable. But before them, she notices metal bars in front of her. She is in a cage.
She bangs the metal enclosures in pursuit of answers. "Hello! Whoever you may be, get me out! You don't know what authority I have that I can lay on you."
Suddenly, a deep voice echoes through the walls of the cave. "What authority can you lay on me?" Tamerlane is lurking in the shadows. Its ominous presence sends shivers to Cynthia's spine. "What can your skills and your Pokémon can do about it?"
When upon mentioning about the Pokémon, Cynthia checks out her belt to find out her Pokéballs missing. "What did you do?! Where did you put my Pokémon?"
"Calm down, trainer," the ruthless conqueror says. "They are safe out of your hands."
"Who are you? What do you want from us?"
With a certain smoothness to his confidence, Tamerlane exposits, "Valid questions from the one they considered the Champion of Sinnoh. I wonder how you become the region's champion."
"It doesn't matter," Cynthia retaliates. "Who are you?!"
"I believe that you seek the truth. Thus, you shall soon witness it." With that, Tamerlane summons the monstrous Caliban. Cynthia is mystified at the ancient Pokémon's appearance that she is left stunned. "Caliban, teleport!"
At a second, the Pokémon transfers the three out of thin air towards a tall islet from a faraway ocean. Its rock composition has a rocky plain at the top, where the three are transported.
During the process too, Cynthia's cage disintegrated, setting her free from captivity but trapped with the two ancient beings. "Where have you taken me?"
Tamerlane takes a deep breath of relief, having arrived on the very area he wishes to be. "My home. It is everywhere you see."
"I only see an ocean," Cynthia replies.
"That is why you other region people are so blind that you think with such ambitious people, you condemn them," Tamerlane responds while he is facing towards the ocean.
"Why do you think you were condemned?" Cynthia takes this advantage to quickly but quietly carve out a spearhead from a pumice rock.
"You have a lot to know about."
"Yes I do." At that moment, Cynthia leaps out to strike Tamerlane with the spearhead. But Caliban sees this coming and controls her using a Telekinesis move. That move proves to be fatal that Cynthia drops from midair.
"Foolish."
"Why did you even take me here?"
"You shall see." Tamerlane then takes paces to the edge of the islet. He looks to the ocean below, embracing the crashing of the waves. Cynthia remains uncertain at what her captor's plans are, let alone what is the backstory of her captor. She could only witness her captor stand on the edge and wait for him to drop towards the ocean.
Tamerlane dives to the body of water, fully drowning himself to the ebbs of the vast ocean. He flaps his legs back and forth, going to deeper fathoms. At that point, the lack of oxygen and risk of hypothermia would lead a swimmer to redirect to the surface. But Tamerlane keeps plunging to the deep abyss.
Still paralyzed from the Telekinesis, Cynthia crawls towards the edge to see what Tamerlane is doing. "What do you think your master is doing?"
Caliban growls at the upset of threat coming from the Sinnoh Champion's voice.
Back on Caliban, after hundred fathoms below, he reaches the site of his beloved home, the Ratma region. Much like the infamous sunken continent Atlantis, Ratma was sunken to the ocean for reasons that have yet to be exposed by those who survived.
Tamerlane finds bliss at the sight of his home region. He then swims over it until he recovers the ancient temple that his ancestors have protected. The temple is pyramid in shape, akin to Mayan temples. At the top of it is a receptacle where it holds a specific gem for that temple. The ruthless conqueror then pulls the only gem that is functional for that matter: the Dark Gem. It is the most powerful gem for Dark types, wherein a Pokémon can gain all Dark type moves at a touch and meditation to the gem. Tamerlane places it to the receptacle and waits to unleash its power.
Sure enough, the temple lights have shone and the island becomes activated. But the region remains submerged but he expects it to be. In an unprecedented move, Tamerlane unleashes a Z-move out of his fists to connect him with Caliban in the surface.
When Caliban feels Tamerlane connecting to him once more, he roars loudly that it reaches to the roofs of the sky, trembling Cynthia. Caliban then uses Teleport to bring back his master.
Tamerlane appears to Cynthia out of thin air.
"You better not be causing more trouble!"
"Trust me. There is not trouble in wanting to see your home." At the command of Tamerlane's hands and his firm meditates, and the combination to Caliban's raw power, he unleashes a powerful Psychic attack that he punches to the ground.
It is then transmitted across the ocean ebbs to the Dark Gem that has resided below. Somehow, after Tamerlane touched the Gem, the latter detects the move signature and is receiving command from Tamerlane's command.
Tamerlane then projects for the gem's powers to be unleashed, allowing the island to be lifted out of its thalassic traps. The ocean shakes as a geological shift occurs. The Ratma region is being lifted up to the surface after a thousand years.
Tamerlane and Caliban pour out all the Psychic moves to bring back their home. But Cynthia, wishing to stop them, could only witness the gigantic implausibility that is happening before her eyes. She redirects her eyes to the ocean where out of its crystal clear surface emerges the temple's receptacle for the Dark Gem, the highest point of the Ratma region.
The entire land mass is lifted out of the water and onto the surface, right before their eyes.
"Witness Ratma," Tamerlane announces.
The region finds its footing as a piece of land connects to the islet the three are standing on, forming a bridge.
On that ancient land, the true powers of the Dark Gem starts to take effect. Its land forms, preserved and fossilized, are brought to life once more. Every Pokémon that are native to the region return to their natural habitats around the small region. All of the creatures are unnamed and unclassified by modern Pokémon nomenclature. But they are distinctive from their goblin-like features and prehistoric appearances. The Pokémon roam around, resuming the activities they did before they were petrified. That is except for the pterodactyl-like Pokémon, who flock towards Tamerlane and Caliban holding a paralyzed Cynthia as they walk towards the island.
"My precious ones, feel the glory. We have returned."
Cynthia is speechless at the amount of newly discovered she is seeing.
They mobilize towards an amphitheater-like area adjacent to the temple to address to the Ratman Pokémon. "All of Ratma, please gather around."
At his command, the Ratman Pokémon swarm away from their habitats and assemble towards Tamerlane's whereabouts. He waits until all of them chant in glorious cheer for their return.
"You have taken command at them…" Cynthia enunciates.
"They know me. That's they have come," Tamerlane responds.
"How come we never know about this?"
"That is something that you region people should atone for."
"Why?"
Tamerlane never answers that question. He moves back to leading the other Ratman Pokémon in their glorious reawakening. "My oppressed beings, do you feel glorious that you feel the reinvigoration of life?"
The Pokémon of all shapes and sizes and types chant.
"It has come a long way that we all feel alive once again. We all deserve a second life when our Pokémon brethren took it away from us."
The creatures holler in support.
"Exiled us. Thought of us as savages. Casted us away because our philosophies do not align to theirs. And made a fool of our home!"
As the Pokémon chant again, Cynthia tries to figure out what Tamerlane is talking about.
"But the whole world is gonna see! The whole universe shall never forget what they have done to the Ratman region!"
It is followed by a roaring cheer from the Ratman beings.
"Let me show you what they have done." Tamerlane then pulls out one of Cynthia's Pokéballs and brings out Garchomp. The latter creature is puzzled at what he is seeing.
Cynthia is shocked and troubled at this moment. "What are you doing? Let go off him!"
But Tamerlane ignores her. He then lifts up the Pokéball to the sky, unleashing another roar from the Ratman crowd. "This is a Pokéball. The humans from the other regions used it to capture innocent Pokémon and use it for their own gain. This Pokémon in front of you is well-trained and well-skilled because the humans kept in captivity. Do you want that?!"
The Ratman Pokémon roar in support.
"That's not true!" Cynthia argues.
Garchomp suddenly makes the first move to protect itself from the rest. But the Ratman Pokémon trample over him to his disadvantage.
"Garchomp! Let go off him!"
Tamerlane, with a sneer on his teeth, replies, "As you wish." He then walks near the Pokéball to address to the rest. "Captivity shall be no more. Join in my cause and we can achieve the best for our Pokémon!" With that roaring conviction, the ruthless conqueror steps on Garchomp's Pokéball.
"NO! GARCHOMP!"
Garchomp roars in pain of being disconnected to its Pokéball. The Ratman Pokémon hold it off, until the draconian Pokémon is released from its bonds and reverts to its wild form.
The Ratmans release it, as the metal Pokemon ravages around, confused and angered at where it is. It comes across Cynthia and nearly strikes her. But Tamerlane calms it down.
"Go on, my friend. You are free from your master," he assures.
With that, Garchomp flees away from the premises and off to the Ratman forested wilderness.
Cynthia is angered at this gesture. "You will…never…succeed…You're a fiend!"
Tamerlane then dictates the next course of his plan, "Now, my friends, the only thing we need to free our brethren from their captivity is through finding the remaining Seventeen Power Gems that are found in all regions. Sweep the regions. Bury them to the ground if you need to! But bring me those gems. And all glory will be for Ratma!"
With that, the Ratman Pokémon form armies and forces to invade the regions around them. The return of Ratma has commenced. War has begun.