Draco: Now I feel free to try and surprise you guys.

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

Ultra Kingdom - Rainbow Road: Shadows Cast on Silver

"Well, isn't this the best of both worlds."

Masamune's remark had Motochika stepping forward curiously, setting his shamisen against the edge of the stone spit on which the legion was standing as he knelt down. "It's an interesting song, to be sure."

The prismatic trail, which formed roads between the castles that Team Rainbow Rocket had claimed, seemed to have ended before the fused Avia/Yaksha castle, only to connect to it properly from behind. The reasoning was clear now that they had arrived; the battlefield was situated directly before the front gate, just as Yaksha's had been, yet it shared the 'floating islands' nature of the Avia battlefield. The springboards, unfortunately, were situated exclusively to let people get off of the central island and onto the surrounding spits of rock; travel in the other direction was seemingly unaided, leaving the Warriors in a conundrum.

Motonari turned to Masamune. "I don't suppose Lugia could carry us across?"

"Maybe," Masamune admitted, "but if we're going to be fighting here anyways, that seems like a bit of a waste."

"We should still go to the central islet, at least," Ginchiyo insisted. "If this is the battlefield, we'll need to be able to reach our opponents."

Muneshige crossed his arms. "They insisted on no more than six Pokémon to a side, per the Ransean custom," he recalled. "Perhaps we should..."

"Hold on," Magoichi mused. "Looks like they've noticed our arrival."

The gate of the combined castle had opened, and uniformed Trainers were stepping out. Amidst all the black-clad men and women with rainbow sigils was a short, elderly-looking man in a consuming coat, dark purple with gold trim; he was walking with a staff, yet his steps had a certain solidity and consistency to them, most unlike that of a man who actually required a cane for support. His head was bald, his ears were big, and he wore a pair of spectacles over a pair of seemingly closed eyes.

"Ah, the Warriors of Ransei!" The voice seemed to come from nearby, though Magoichi could see the old man's mouth moving as he spoke; a glance around revealed a pair of metal posts stuck into the edges of the spit of rock where they stood, with what seemed to be speakers mounted in them. "So you did arrive. Welcome, welcome. I am Greevil, the Grand Master of Cipher. The leader of Team RR has been kind enough to entrust command of this castle to me."

"He did not just say his name was Evil," Masamune muttered.

"Greevil," Magoichi corrected at a like volume. Then, loud enough for the Trainers to hear; "I can't help but notice that you've left little in the way of access to the battlefield. I hope you're not expecting us all to leap the gap."

"Oh, you must forgive me," Greevil insisted, stepping forward; a metallic bridge seemed to extend from beneath the castle-side rock, giving the Trainers a means to step onto the battlefield. "I thought to give my domain a bit of, shall we say, resonance with my old base of operations. I had quite a prominent following in the Orre region of my own world."

"Orre?" Ginchiyo echoed.

Greevil chuckled as he continued to walk forward. "Not familiar with it, are you? I'm not surprised. The region has little in the way of tourism, and still less to attract it." He reached for his glasses. "Pokémon thieves run rampant, and when a Pokémon becomes violent towards everything that surrounds it, people chalk it up to a ruthless Trainer."

Muneshige narrowed his gaze. "...As opposed to?"

With a sinister grin, Greevil came to a stop at the edge of the battlefield, opening his eyes as he turned to the Warriors - and revealing a sinister yellow glow from each.

"We of Cipher devised a means by which to take a Pokémon, and lock the door to its heart," he proclaimed. "Deprived of their emotions, of any semblance of kindness, they become mere fighting machines, unable and unwilling to do anything but battle! Their powers are amplified well beyond what their kin can do naturally, their every move laced with shadow that eats at any Pokémon not so endarkened for themselves - and even if that power may then stagnate, that means little if the Pokémon is mighty to begin with! Refined, these Shadow Pokémon are the mightiest weapon in my or any world!"

"Is it just me," Muneshige muttered, "or does that sound distressingly like an Umbra Heart?"

"Indeed," Ginchiyo returned. Then, to Greevil; "And for what purpose do you subject Pokémon to such cruelty?!"

"To take over the world!" Greevil proclaimed. "Not on the power of my subordinates, or any creature that might be able to turn on me, but with Pokémon that heed my orders alone! Pokémon that can never be freed of my control!" He shook his head. "Our tests revealed that a Shadow Pokémon might be freed of its darkness in time, and so we continued to work to prevent that possibility!"

He turned around with a flourish of his cape, no longer pretending to support himself on his cane but brandishing it like a weapon. "The first such Shadow Pokémon, immune to purification, has already been completed. It had just arrived at my base of operations when a horrid light pierced through the clouds that surround Citadark Isle, and I found myself in this realm they call Ultra Space. The man in charge of Team RR tells me that he has his own plans to conquer the world - and this, this arrangement of castles floating between worlds, is his testing ground."

Greevil turned back to face the Warriors. "He asked for my assistance, and promised that in giving it, I would be given an opportunity to test the might of my Shadow Pokémon against an opponent I would never encounter in Orre. The Warriors of Ransei, who are said to battle alongside Pokémon of legend! What better way to prove the superiority of a Shadow Pokémon than to overcome the Pokémon that stand above all others!"

"Then we shall prove you wrong," Ginchiyo proclaimed. "Prove that one who can bond is far superior to one who can do naught but fight!"

With a grin, Greevil spread his arms, prompting the uniformed Trainers behind him to throw Poké Balls and draw weapons. A Swellow appeared before a man who readied a belt of throwing knives, and a Marowak before a woman who brandished a large club. One woman sent out a Poliwrath and donned a pair of knuckle dusters, and another deployed a Starmie before readying a large forked blade; the last man sent out a Delcatty and drew a flail.

"Do tell me how you mean to prove anything," Greevil insisted. "Just as I surrounded Citadark Isle with storms and waves to drive off any who would approach, so too is my domain here surrounded by the emptiness of Ultra Space! If you wish to oppose me, you must first reach me, and you cannot do that without my inclination!"

Masamune, Ginchiyo, and Muneshige all traded disdainful glances and sighed in exasperation, and the Avian turned back to Greevil. "See, that's where you're mistaken, Evil. You're in my domain."

He made to step off the spit of rock - and a blur of white ascended before him, taking him with it. Greevil watched in surprise as a massive winged figure soared around before approaching the spit again; Magoichi, Sceptile, Motonari, Celebi, Motochika, and Keldeo all made to leap on as it passed, and then arced around towards the battlefield. Ginchiyo snapped her fingers over her head, and another figure emerged from the gap, with jagged golden wings; this one soared straight up and rolled backwards, seizing her and Muneshige as Staraptor flew ahead.

Zapdos dropped off the Violitians, and Lugia descended to allow the others to drop down as well.

"The One-Eyed Dragon rules the skies," Masamune proclaimed, drawing his sabers, "in Ransei and Ultra Space both. I wouldn't be coming after my home without a way to take it back."

Greevil's grin was somehow even wider. "Oh, this... this is a more glorious opportunity than I could ever have hoped for!" He flipped up a cover on the head of his staff and pressed a button. "What better way to prove the superiority of Shadow Pokémon than to have them overcome their own kind!"

Masamune's confidence faltered. "Own... kind?!"

A screech emerged from the castle, and the gathered Warriors turned their attention skyward as a dark figure soared over the castle - dark, but otherwise identical to that of the Silver Stormbringer at Masamune's side.

"Code name XD001," Greevil proclaimed. "I present to you, Shadow Lugia! This is the first of the Shadow Pokémon that cannot be purified! It shall head my army of Shadow Pokémon... but first, it shall be rid of you and yours!"

"You..." Masamune lashed his swords out at his sides. "You son of a bitch!"

He charged forward, and Lugia screeched as he soared skyward; the Shadow Lugia loosed a blast of dark wind that soared ineffectively into Ultra Space, and then ascended after him as Greevil nimbly leapt away from Masamune's swings. The woman with the forked blade raised it to swing at Masamune's blindside, only for Motonari to shoot it out of her hands with his crossbow; Celebi quickly soared forward, loosing a Magical Leaf towards Starmie before it could try and strike back. Sceptile leapt at the Poliwrath, slamming her hand to the ground to unleash a Leaf Storm that battered him and Marowak both; Maogichi took aim at the knife-thrower and sniped the first projectile out of his hands before raising his rifle to meet the swing of the club-bearer.

The next knife was thrown straight at his weapon, hard enough to detach his bayonet; Swellow quickly dove towards Sceptile in a vicious Brave Bird, leaving him open for a Bone Club from Marowak. Keldeo charged at Delcatty, swinging his horn into a vicious Secret Sword, and Staraptor quickly dove at Swellow with a Brave Bird of his own as Zapdos descended between the Water-types for a hellish Discharge.

Everyone present seemed to rapidly decide who the priority target was, as the Thunderbird promptly found himself on the receiving end of a bombardment. A Hydro Pump from Starmie slammed into one side, and a Dynamic Punch from Poliwrath narrowly missed the other side, slamming into the soil; Delcatty slammed into Zapdos' beak with a painful Double-Edge, and Swellow's next Brave Bird slammed into him from behind. Ginchiyo and Muneshige found themselves on the defensive as the Trainers gave them everything they had; Muneshige managed to tangle the mace around his weapon and wrench it from the man's hands as Ginchiyo parried a barrage of throwing knives.

Magoichi managed to disarm the club-wielder and kick her weapon off the battlefield before rounding his rifle on the knife-thrower; a well-aimed shot clipped his belt of knives, knocking it off his chest and leaving him grasping at his shirt. Motochika was left meeting blows from the fist-fighter on his shamisen before Zapdos promptly unleashed another Discharge on Pokémon surrounding him, knocking them all out; Celebi and Keldeo lunged at Marowak while he was busy trying to get out of Sceptile's attack radius, finishing off the Bone Keeper Pokémon with a one-two bombardment.

The Trainers seemed to realize that their battle was lost; each of them withdrew their Pokémon, and fled towards the castle, dashing across the bridge that Greevil had left in place.

Masamune was still crossing blows with the self-proclaimed Grand Master, whose walking stick was far more durable than it had any business being; the old bastard's nimbleness and small frame made landing even a single blow far more difficult than it had to be. Fortunately, the One-Eyed Dragon didn't have to land a blow; the clash above, hidden by the aurorae of Ultra Space, would decide the battle, and judging from Greevil's hellish grin, he had none of the perspective that a Link afforded a Warrior.

The aurora scattered, and a dark shape descended through the gap; the Warriors' Pokémon leapt aside to clear the space as Shadow Lugia slammed into the island, unconscious.

Greevil's grin vanished. "Lugia!"

Masmune took advantage of his distraction to throw the walking stick out of his hands; Greevil was left stumbling away from the swordsman as his staff landed right against the edge of the battlefield. The brighter Stormbringer descended to the battlefield, alighting with a loud cry; the other Pokémon surrounded the Shadow Pokémon as their Warriors moved to back up Masamune, who sheathed his sabers with a huff. "It's over," he proclaimed.

"Don't think I'm ruined yet, boy!" Greevil snapped, storming towards his fallen staff. "Win or lose, the man in charge of Team RR promised to send me back to my world! If one Shadow Pokémon is not enough, then I will create more! I will steep more Pokémon in the darkness, I will create more XD Pokémon, until such time as-!"

CRACK!

The gunshot ripped through Ultra Space, and Greevil screamed in pain, slamming his stick to the ground to support himself. A terrified look down at his right leg revealed a bleeding hole, and he turned in shock to find Masamune holding a pistol, glaring at Cipher's leader with one eye.

"I think I was mistaken, earlier," Masamune mused. "With what you've done to the castles, here in Ultra Space... This isn't just my domain. It's Kotarō's." He opened up his pistol, reloading it. "And that Yakshan has never been the type to let something like risk of permanent injury decide where he takes a swing."

Greevil was terrified. "You wouldn't-!"

"You wanna go back to Orre?" Masamune demanded, closing the chamber. "Back to your base of operations, where you can keep doing something like this to Pokémon that did nothing to you?! You want to take over the world!?"

The One-Eyed Dragon raised his pistol again and pulled the trigger; another gunshot echoed in the emptiness, and Greevil screamed as the bullet ripped through his other leg. Magoichi brought his rifle down and fired for himself, and the shot slammed into Greevil's staff, knocking it out of his grip and leaving it tumbling off the edge, into the emptiness.

"You can crawl for every inch. See how many people let you walk over them like that."

One of Greevil's hands slammed into the ground as he forced himself to rise; the other dug into his coat. "I'm... under no obligation... to obey you, whelp!"

Something was thrown into the air - a tiny, diamond-shaped crystal. Masamune and Magoichi both raised their firearms and found the triggers clicking on empty chambers, unable to do anything to stop it from soaring towards Shadow Lugia; as it collided, a crack spread across the point of impact, and a light flowed out that seemed to rejuvenate the endarkened Stormbringer.

This time, Masamune's Lugia had no opportunity to evade; a blast of dark wind ripped skyward from Shadow Lugia, and it left the Silver Stormbringer reeling, collapsing to the ground. Greevil seized the edge of the battlefield as the Shadow Pokémon rose into the air with a loud screech, and a sinister grin was stretched across the Grand Master's face. "So long, Warriors of Ransei!" he snapped. "I shall look forward to striking you down - at least, the you in my world!"

He flung himself over the edge.

Shadow Lugia made to soar after him.

And Celebi rose up to bar his path.

No one had a chance to realize what was happening before the Time Traveller reached her hands forward, setting them upon the sharped silver crests that encircled Shadow Lugia's eyes. A light began to flow out of Celebi's body - the light of one who had witnessed countless ages - and from it, ephemeral phantoms of her own figure seemed to soar out, converging across Lugia's darkened body. The Shadow Pokémon had no chance to so much as cry out before a blinding light consumed him, shining across Ultra Space and briefly blinding the Warriors gathered there.

When it faded, there were two Silver Stormbringers upon the battlefield - both with feathers of white.

Motonari gasped in surprise as Celebi released Lugia, arms limp at her sides. "You are forever full of surprises, aren't you?"

The Time Traveller turned to him with a tired smile.

Ginchiyo started. "Do you... feel that? Masamune, can you..."

"Yeah," Masamune confirmed. "I can feel his heart, now." He chuckled. "Looks like we had the key to that locked door."

"Pity the doorman," Muneshige mused, turning back around.

Motochika stepped to the edge of the battlefield, setting his shamisen against the edge and kneeling down to peer at the emptiness that Greevil had thrown himself into. "...Seems his song is over," he mused. "And good riddance. Such a baleful melody I've never heard."

Muneshige sighed, turning back to the two Lugia. "What do we do with the one he left behind?"

"Gracia said she had a road through Ultra Space, right?" Magoichi mused. "Maybe we can ask her to send him home."

"That's not a bad idea," Masamune agreed. "But let's save it for the morning." He turned to the castle. "Assuming we can find the barracks in this place."

Draco: The crux of Team Rainbow Rocket is that all of the quote-unquote "admins" carried out their plans, unopposed by any ordinary Trainers like Red and Hilda, and were on the cusp of their respective ultimate victories when they got sucked into Ultra Space. Maxie, Archie, Cyrus, Lysandre, and Ghetsis were all actually causing - or, at the very least, about to cause - major widespread catastrophe with those plans. Lusamine, if not being contacted by the Ultra Recon Squad, is also causing catastrophe with her decision to open up Ultra Wormholes all throughout Alola just to meet with a Nihilego. Sada and Turo, similarly, were willing to let Paldea be ruined by their Paradox Pokémon in their selfish desires to create their respective 'paradises', so that's also a castrophe waiting to happen.

But Rose is just being way too preemptive about a potential energy crisis. Like, Leon is 100% on board with that. The only reason there's a conflict is that Rose insists on doing it the day of the tournament (which is a Big Frickin' Deal™ because, you know, association football parallel), and he doesn't give any hard evidence that they have to do it today to prevent the issue. His 'ultimate victory' is just Eternatus under his control and pumping out power. The only negative effect that might accompany him achieving his goals is some abnormal Dynamax, and since I already had both a plague of Dynamax and a battle with Eternatus in Ancient Ruination, I can't use that for a Rainbow Rocket plot.

So if I want to fill the castles for this story, I've gotta reach outside the core series.