Draco: Just because this would otherwise make nine consecutive chapters with the listed location of "Rainbow Road", I'm giving #TheVeryDefinitelyFinalDungeon its own designation.

Pokémon and protagonist © Nintendo. Character designs © Koei. Ransei © somewhere in the middle.

Ultra Kingdom - Twisted Citadel: A Duel of Wind and Fire

"Well, this looks... surprisingly cohesive."

Oichi was surprised at how solid the four-merge castle was when she and the others finally got near. The fusion of Chrysalia, Terrera, Spectra, and Dragnor's castles certainly looked unnatural, being segmented into four as it was and then supersized, but it didn't seem to be discordant; every quarter seemed to connect smoothly with the adjacent ones, despite the differences in the actual castles' construction back in Ransei.

Evia glanced at her wife. "Not that they've looked as haphazard on the inside as they do on the outside, so far," she observed.

"True," Oichi conceded. "A haphazard outside has usually been hiding a pretty solid inside. Which means..."

"No worries," Coursebreaker assured them. "The solid outside is not hiding a haphazard inside."

"That's a relief." Evia looked back at her legion. "Everyone ready?"

Kaguya and Mitsuki both raised their weapons with a cheer.

Gardevoir and Salamence gave joyful cries of agreement.

Coursebreaker, Driftwalker, Noivern, and Hatterene all nodded in assurance.

Oichi set a hand on her rapier as Wigglytuff pumped her arms at her sides.

Glaceon, Sylveon, Espeon, Flareon, Vaporeon, and Jolteon all pawed the tile, ready for whatever came next.

Evia turned her attention to what had once been the front gate of Dragnor Castle. "Then, here we go."

Pushing the doors open revealed what looked like the entrance hall of Spectra Castle - though with a few unpleasant additions. Most notable was the giant metal pipe that seemed to extend from beneath the second-floor balcony and into the floor; it seemed to have a seam running down its length, and it was lined with mechanisms that implied it was meant to be opened. Some kind of rapid transport, maybe? Behind the pipe were shelves that hosted a row of Poké Balls, each with a label beneath it to identify the Pokémon inside; two Poké Balls were in separate, enclosed shelves of their own, and seemed to be unlabelled.

Most prominent, however, were the banners hanging on the walls - each emblazoned with the same rainbow R as had been outside.

"What have we here?"

The familiar voice echoed through the entrance hall; something illuminated on the banisters of the railing, and a holographic figure stepped into existence before the pipes - Ghetsis. "With all the castles conquered but one, I had expected an army of the mightiest men and Pokémon that Ransei could muster. Yet who should arrive but a bunch of children and wanderers."

Evia drew her shield. "Bold of you to assume that they are not mighty Warriors in their own right," she scorned.

Ghetsis huffed. "And yet not one of them brings a Pokémon of legend!"

"Legends can be overcome," Oichi retorted.

"A bold claim," Ghetsis retorted. "But not, perhaps, an unreasonable one. After all, the Warriors of Ransei are quite legendary in and of themselves." He slammed his cane, and it made a sinister crackle over the holographic feed. "So let us put it to the test, shall we? You shall be the first target for Team Rainbow Rocket's greatest achievement - Project Nezha!"

"Nezha?" Kaguya echoed.

"Indeed," Ghetsis confirmed. "We have taken those who fight alongside their Pokémon, those who bear arms on the field of battle, and enhanced them well beyond what any human can achieve on their own! The result is no ignorant fool who succumbs to such fallacies as conscience or sympathy, but a true Warrior who will do whatever it takes to win!"

The concept that he spoke of sounded threateningly familiar to Evia. Ghetsis slammed his cane once again, and the pipe beneath the balcony opened, to reveal what lay inside.

"I present to you - Nezha Takatora!"

Within the pipe was a glass chamber of sinister green fluid - and floating in that fluid was an abomination. Takatora's hair had been bleached a stark white, with mechanical bands reaching out from the locks and arcing across the surface before vanishing back in with seemingly nothing to keep them in place; mounted over his ears were large, thick plates, one of which bore a rising antenna, yet they did not seem to be connected to anything. His body seemed to be clad in armour, but save for his arms, even the outermost plates were far too tight to his figure to possibly be worn over his body - the metal was his body, skin replaced with steel and circuitry, and none of them dared to even guess how deep into his flesh the changes reached. On the left side of his chest was a blue plate, imprinted with the emblem of a folding fan, beneath which something seemed to glow; only his face still had skin to it, and that didn't even extend to his neck.

He was wearing a mask over his mouth and nose, but as the fluid began to drain out of the chamber, it detached from his face and withdrew above. He didn't touch down as the chamber was emptied; a light emerged from his gauntlets and greaves, and glowing rings of hellish light manifested around his ankles and wrists. As the glass of the chamber began to recede, his eyes opened, revealing that the left was a void of lifeless grey.

Yet it settled on Evia just as his right did.

Evia grit her teeth. "So these are the depths you would sink to, that you could cling to your heartless mindset."

The two isolated Poké Balls on the shelves behind him seemed to be launched forward; they hit the ground, and with a burst of light, Pokémon emerged from each. One looked suspiciously like a Salamence, but its colours were more vibrant, and in sharper contrast to one another, with yellows mixed in among much brighter blues and reds; a dark, cape-like trail extended over its tail, and its wings, obviously feathered, were arced into the shape of a crescent moon.

The other was much more familiar - a Pokémon that looked like it might have been a Gardevoir or a Gallade... but constructed.

Oichi started. "Is that... Valiant?! Driftwalker, I thought you said he stayed behind in-!"

"No," Driftwalker insisted. 'This isn't the same one."

"What do you mean?" Oichi demanded.

"The professors, Sada and Turo," Driftwalker explained. "Their machines call forth Pokémon from different times - ancient prehistory and a distant future. They might seem unnatural, compared to contemporary Pokémon; a well-trained specimen might even seem unusually powerful. But they're not unique individuals - not in the eras they come from."

The mechanical Pokémon brought its hands together, and a handle extended from the blades on each of its arms; they joined and twisted, that the blades were facing opposite directions as the Pokémon seized the grip and brought it back at its side.

"Iron Valiant and Roaring Moon have more in common with Tyranitar than Zekrom."

Ghetsis slammed his cane. "Takatora! We promised you the power to overcome your enemy, and you have received of it! Now you must fulfill your side of the bargain. Strike them down!"

Takatora roared - a hellish, reverberating roar - and as Ghetsis' image faded, he swung one arm forward. The ring around it was flung off and soared towards Evia like a chakram; the Auroran raised her shield to meet it, and then moved to deflect the next as she drew her sword; to her terror, a third wheel arced around and nearly beat the plate off her arm, and she had to parry the fourth with her blade. All four rings soared back to Takatora, and he seized them with a whirling motion before lunging at Evia with a shriek.

Iron Valiant lunged at Gardevoir, and Kaguya quickly seized her Key Stone to set off Gardevoir's Mega Evolution; the Embrace Pokémon loosed a vicious pulse of Psychic, and this Iron Valiant had not the experience necessary to center itself in the blind spot of the force that ripped over it. Roaring Moon soared at Salamence, who charged forward to meet him in return; a Night Slash carved across the Dragon-type, but an Outrage in retaliation left the Paradox Pokémon tumbling backwards. Espeon and Glaceon quickly charged at Takatora's Pokémon to finish them off; a gale of Icy Wind knocked Roaring Moon out of the air, and a well-aimed Psybeam threw Iron Valiant to the ground.

Evia met Takatora blow for blow, and managed to avoid any damage except to her robes before she forced him back by slamming her shield into his chest. The way he was floating above the ground meant he had much less friction, and he was halfway back to the chamber he'd been floating in before he managed to stop himself. On seeing his Pokémon unconscious, he brought his hands up at his sides; a pair of holes opened in his palms, seemingly connecting to a hollow within his arms, and he lashed his arms out to the side, causing a pair of small discs to fly towards the Pokémon.

As they connected, the discs seemed to dissolve into light, and the Paradox Pokémon were rejuvenated by it.

Glaceon had no opportunity to react before a vicious Night Slash from Roaring Moon sent him flying; Iron Valiant quickly followed through with a Spirit Break to knock him out before crossing the battlefield to lunge at Salamence. Gardevoir tried to intercept him, only for Roaring Moon to fly at her next; another Night Slash left her and Espeon both slamming into the wall, and the Mega Evolution faded around the Embrace Pokémon as Iron Valiant knocked Salamence out of the air.

Takatora lunged at Evia before she had the chance to react, forcing her onto defense as Hatterene and Noivern moved to take the others' place. A Moonblast from Hatterene slammed into Roaring Moon to intercept him, leaving him reeling as Noivern unleashed a Hurricane to batter Iron Valiant. Neither of them was knocked out quite yet, and this time Takatora moved to prevent their knockout; as his rings clashed with Evia from arcs that no thrown projectile would take, another pair of discs flew from his palms to strike the Paradox Pokémon, the restoratives coursing through the Pokémon as they moved to counterattack.

He's trying to keep them fighting? Evia observed. But... if this is still Takatora...!

She leapt clear over his head when he tried to lunge at her, landing behind him as Vaporeon and Jolteon moved to get his Pokémon's attention. A Hydro Pump washed over Roaring Moon, and a Thunderbolt came down on Iron Valiant; both turned towards the Eeveelutions as they dashed away, and Evia parried a couple more blows from Takatora's rings before leaping backwards as the Paradox Pokémon advanced, ending up between her and the enhanced Warrior.

Takatora lunged at the Auroran, shouldering the Pokémon aside, and she felt his Links break as he made to swing at her again.

Her heart sank as they proceeded to strike at her Pokémon anyways, Iron Valiant striking Jolteon down with a Spirit Break as Roaring Moon flung Vaporeon into the wall with a Night Slash.

The two turned their attention back to Driftwalker and Coursebreaker's Pokémon; this time they charged straight through the incoming attacks, and neither Hatterene nor Noivern had the opportunity to react before they were struck down by the Paradox Pokémon. Takatora lashed his rings against Evia's defenses as she tried to keep fighting, and she had no chance to even cry out in warning before Iron Valiant turned its attention on Kaguya.

Kaguya raised her hand in terror.

And a light appeared between them.

The battlefield seemed to go silent as everyone realized what was happening; even Kaguya was shocked, and Valiant's aggression seemed to falter, lowering its joined blades. Mitsuki seemed inspired at the same moment, raising her hand towards Moon before it could try and attack the next Pokémon, and the dragon turned towards her in surprise, shocked by the growing connection.

Slowly, both of the little Warriors made to step forward - and it was then that Takatora noticed what was happening, rounding on Iron Valiant and swinging his leg into a kick to hurl the ring at the constructed Pokémon.

And it ripped through Valiant's head.

Kaguya screamed in pain, her unformed Link shattering as her body writhed; metal showered on the ground at Valiant's feet as it stumbled aside, body twisting without command as it fell to the ground lifeless. Mitsuki abandoned her own Link and charged towards her friend, yelling Kaguya's name, and Roaring Moon barely had the opportunity to try and reassess the situation before another of Takatora's rings came at it, ripping straight though its chest. The dragon screeched in pain, its wings curling around it as it tumbled aside, and it hit the ground with a scattering of crimson as the projectiles returned to Takatora.

"No!" Oichi lunged forward, rapier drawn. "Son of a bitch!"

Takatora flung all four rings at her in sequence; Oichi beat one aside with her buckler, deflected the second with her rapier, and then leapt clean over the third, landing with a roll so the fourth would soar over her. Driftwalker quickly moved the shaft of her spear, hooking all four rings and then slamming it into the ground to trap them so they wouldn't return to him; Oichi thrust her rapier straight at Takatora's face, only for the enhanced Warrior to dive aside and bring his gauntlet towards it.

It hooked under the plate, and with a twist of his arm, the blade snapped off the hilt. Oichi had no opportunity to react before Takatora brought his other hand back and swung it at her face, throwing her backwards; he promptly pulled the broken blade out of his gauntlet, seizing it in an icepick grip as he made to lunge at the fallen healer.

The blue plate on his chest shattered - as a broader blade ripped through it.

Takatora's mouth fell open in shock, blood spilling from the corners of his mouth; the circuitry seemed to die, and whatever was keeping him aloft faltered, his feet connecting with the ground. His rings went limp against Driftwalker's spear, falling to the ground, and the rogue Warrior turned in terror to find Evia immediately behind him.

Her eyes alight with a golden nova.

"Not my family, you bastard!"

She wrenched her sword out of his torso with a scream of metal on metal, and Takatora stumbled before she brought it into a vicious swing. It ripped through his body, even as it flung him aside, and there were two distinct impacts as he collided with the distant wall... and then fell to the ground.

The light in Evia's eyes faltered, and she sheathed her sword and dashed towards her wife. "Oichi! Kaguya!"

"I-I'm fine!" Oichi insisted, forcing herself to rise. "But, Kaguya!"

Mitsuki was kneeling, holding Kaguya in her arms. "She's hurt. I don't know how, but she's hurt!"

"She was in the midst of a Link with that Valiant before he attacked," Coursebreaker insisted. "Her mind is disrupted. Thank the Alpha the Link wasn't complete, or it would have broken her."

Oichi slammed one foot into the ground, and a soft light extended out from her, washing over everyone's Pokémon. "Let's move into the next room," she insisted. "The last thing we want is Ghetsis showing up to gloat while she's trying to recover." She picked up Kaguya, and led the way into the next chamber.

Leaving the dead where they lay.

Draco: Oh, frick all, that hurt to write.