Even though dusk was still a ways off, the light in the forest was unusually dim.
Before entering the forest, it didn't feel like much. But once inside, the canopy of towering trees blotting out the sky gave Lucas the illusion that he'd already stepped into night.
The river in the Slumbering Weald snaked like a long serpent, as if it were the forest's lifeblood, branching toward every corner within.
At the moment, Lucas had recalled Vulpix into its Poké Ball. He wasn't riding Spectrier; instead he was strolling through the forest with Luxray like it was a post-dinner walk.
Dim as the light was, he had to admit the air here in Slumbering Weald was exceptionally fresh.
The mingled scents of river, soil, and trees produced some subtle alchemy that could only be described as refreshing.
Lucas glanced at Calyrex, who had switched back onto Spectrier, and thought: worthy of a Legendary, indeed. He himself had been on horseback all day and felt like his bones were coming apart, hence choosing to walk and stretch—but Calyrex looked perfectly fine.
Lucas didn't know whether he had the makings of the Sword Hero or the Shield Hero, so he let Calyrex lead the way and didn't fuss over it.
In the game, the Slumbering Weald map isn't very big; a few turns and you reach the heroes' resting place. Yet Calyrex led Lucas from dusk to nightfall within the woods.
Only when moonlight pierced the dense canopy and scattered dappled shadows over the forest did Luxray suddenly let out a cry. Prompted, Lucas looked around.
He didn't know when it happened, but a gauzy mist now blanketed the surroundings, rendering the sky-blotting trees hazy, as if fairies from a story might emerge from the deepest fog at any moment.
Lucas's focus sharpened. If he was right, Zacian and Zamazenta would appear any second.
"Wait here. They will come to see us."
Calyrex's slightly imperious voice sounded. Though it no longer intended to live as Galar's king, it decided to address those two valiant warriors with its former bearing.
After they stopped, the mist only thickened. When it grew so dense one could barely see a hand outstretched, two lithe figures slowly strode from the fog.
Their steps were so silent even Luxray hadn't sensed them—like ghosts.
On the left came a Pokémon draped in a long blue mane.
It stood like a giant wolf, with scar-like white markings across its body. The upper halves of its slender limbs connected to pink braids from its ears; a big pink tail, like a broom, hung behind.
On the right came a Pokémon clad in red fur as sharp as armor. It too bore scar-like white patterns. A plume of blue fur like a crest adorned its head, and its angular red-blue face resembled a small shield.
They were Zacian and Zamazenta, the battle-scarred heroes who repelled the Darkest Day, only to have their glory stolen by Galar's royalty, now slumbering in Slumbering Weald.
Like knights before a king, they came to Calyrex and lowered their bodies, as if offering a knight's salute.
Calyrex's gaze fell upon them; doubt flickered in its eyes, but it suppressed it, and spoke with solemnity: "Valiant ones who repelled the Darkest Day, no need for such formality."
Zamazenta and Zacian exchanged glances, joy rising in their eyes. The king knows everything… Could it be summoning them back to serve at its side?
Sensing their thoughts, Calyrex intoned, "I am no longer Galar's king. Your hopes will likely be disappointed. Besides, you are kings in your own right. You need not bow to me."
Their expectant expressions froze, turning to bewilderment.
They instantly sensed Calyrex's change in self-reference and were left at a loss.
The king… is no longer the king?
Yet their eyes remained steadfast. Even with the titles of Sword King and Shield King, they still wished to serve Calyrex.
Knowing it could not change these two stubborn ones, Calyrex continued evenly, unruffled by their shifting emotions: "And rather than serving at my side, have you not noticed?"
"That power still lies buried beneath Galar's earth. Sooner or later it will return. It has already spread to the Crown Tundra. The next Darkest Day will be fiercer and stronger."
"But in your current state…"
The memories from that time had been blurry when Calyrex first woke, but as its power returned, the fragmented recollections grew clear.
It remembered: because of the crisis, it ordered the finest smiths to forge a sword and a shield for Zacian and Zamazenta, and imbued them with its royal power before bestowing them.
Like the white and black neighs of its steeds, once armed with blade and bulwark, Zacian and Zamazenta grew stronger; their specialties—attack and defense—advanced dramatically, their forms altering as if evolved.
They became Zacian, the Sword King, and Zamazenta, the Shield King.
To save the vast forests and their lives that the Darkest Day would plunge into despair, it exhausted itself to relocate them.
While rescuing those lives, it also secured a battleground where Zacian and Zamazenta could fight without restraint.
Afterwards, it fell into slumber; upon waking to find a sky not shrouded in dreadful vortex, Calyrex knew they had succeeded in repelling the darkness.
"Waa-oo—" (The sword and shield the king gave us were damaged in that war and lost their power entirely.)
Their wolfish howls weren't imposing at all—more like aggrieved.
With tails drooping and spirits low, Zacian and Zamazenta, spoiled by Calyrex translating for everyone, struck Lucas as a pair of big doggies.
In canon, Lucas recalled, their hierarchical relation hadn't been stated; many believed Calyrex had no ties to Zacian and Zamazenta.
But whatever the old setting, it now seemed clear: they were knights pledged to Calyrex, heroes who accepted royal arms to challenge the Demon King Eternatus.
Zacian's Rusted Sword and Zamazenta's Rusted Shield were forged at Calyrex's command.
Lucas and Luxray listened intently to this conversation that seemed to bridge time itself.
Hearing that the sword and shield it had bestowed were damaged, Calyrex frowned and closed its eyes, a rhythmic blue glow pulsing about it.
Zacian and Zamazenta fell silent and looked to Lucas, who was holding Cosmog for Calyrex, and to Luxray—new faces. Unlike Glastrier, they didn't interrogate—just signaled with their eyes to keep absolute quiet.
For Calyrex was invoking its divine power, gazing upon a future it did not yet know.
As with the Darkest Day: had it not foreseen the future, ordered the forging, relocated forest and life, even if victory came, Galar would have paid a far harsher price.
After a moment, Calyrex opened its eyes, first fixing Zacian, then settling on Zamazenta.
Zacian shot her foolish brother a disdainful look. That idiot must've done something in the future to displease the king again.
Under the stares of sister and king, sweat prickled down Zamazenta's back; his mind ran wild.
Did I do something dumb in the future?
"Sigh."
Calyrex heaved a soft sigh, then looked at Zamazenta again with a stare, making him go rigid.
"The warrior your sister chose has a heart warm toward Pokémon, barely qualifying as the Sword Hero and able to awaken the Rusted Sword.
"But your choice—what was that about?
"How can such a greedy human be called the Shield Hero, yet still make the Rusted Shield shine again?"
Though it could glimpse the future, Calyrex exercised great restraint, careful not to lightly alter its course.
The first time it broke that rule was the Darkest Day—unable to bear the vision of Galar in misery, it chose to change history.
This time, no longer Galar's king, Calyrex decided to be willful again—alter the future a second time.
It didn't speak to the nervous Zamazenta, but turned to its friend Lucas, relayed what it intended to change, and sought his opinion.
Lucas sucked in a sharp breath.
The greedy Shield Hero… Could Calyrex mean that infamous… certain tycoon?
If even Calyrex calls him greedy, he must be purebred in every world.
Calyrex looked earnestly at Lucas. "My friend, how would you change it?"
Zacian and Zamazenta whipped their gaze to Lucas, shocked.
The king called this human its friend!?
Spectrier and Glastrier looked like, "Wow, you two are easily amazed," feeling they were a step ahead of those show-offs.
Lucas paused, then suggested, "Why don't we first retrieve the broken, depowered sword and shield, then decide after inspecting them?"
Silence fell all around.
Spectrier, Glastrier, Zacian, Zamazenta—every gaze turned to Calyrex, awaiting the nod.
Calyrex tipped its head. "Then lead the way, brave ones."
Zacian and Zamazenta bowed and took point.
Following the river to the forest's deepest part, they came upon a broken archway.
The atmosphere was tranquil and serene. Moonlight filtered through leaves and fell here; fireflies dotted the air, adding a dreamlike touch.
Moss carpeted the arch; even the standing stone had been worn by time—its carved text and patterns eroded and unreadable.
Before the stone, two rusted, broken arms were staked into the ground:
Zacian's sword, and Zamazenta's shield.
With their permission, Lucas handed Cosmog to Calyrex and approached the stele. He stared at the sword and shield—little more than scrap iron—and said nothing for a long while.
Calyrex wasn't impatient. While waiting, it surveyed the surroundings, approving. "You picked a fine place to sleep."
Quiet, deep, undisturbed. Very good.
Flattered, Zamazenta and Zacian both perked up, though their reactions differed greatly.
Zamazenta's drooping tail spun like a fan—no sense of reserve.
Zacian held herself with more dignity—though the slight twitch at her tail-tip betrayed her.
Glastrier and Spectrier scoffed at these two sycophants. They'd always vied for favor. Luckily, since they could fuse with Calyrex, their status was secure.
At last Lucas spoke. "These two have just been stuck here like this?"
"Waa-oo—!" (Of course. After we drove away the calamity, we retreated here with our battle-broken, depowered arms to await the king's awakening—or the heroes' arrival!)
With Calyrex translating, Lucas asked, "So how do you identify the heroes?"
That stumped them. They traded looks, then hesitantly howled:
"Awoo" (Whoever can pull them out is the sword's or shield's hero)
Lucas: "…"
He didn't waste words. He chose to test his hunch.
He stepped up to the Rusted Sword and Rusted Shield, glanced at the two, then grabbed the dusty hilt and grip with both hands—and with no effort at all, lifted them free.
Holding the two relics, Lucas looked at them, amused. "Are you going to acknowledge me as a dual Sword-and-Shield Hero?"
Zacian & Zamazenta: "!!!!"
Impossible!?
The two big dogs' eyes turned vacant with confusion.
Calyrex, however, caught on and mused, "The last vestiges of power within the arms have been drained by the passage of years. They no longer have the power to discern a hero."
Lucas nodded. "Exactly. So, in the future you saw—knowing that greedy man wasn't the Shield Hero—when the Darkest Day came, Zamazenta had no choice but to appear and borrow a bit of the Sword Hero's power from Zacian to activate the Rusted Shield."
Bold as Lucas's claim was, Calyrex found it unexpectedly reasonable. Thinking along that line, everything fit.
Admiration glinted in Calyrex's eyes. "How will you change this future?"
Setting the relics down, Lucas headed to the river to wash his hands. "We take the Rusted Sword and Shield. Choosing the heroes should be up to us."