Keldeo and the Swords of Justice
Season 1- Episode 2
Furry Frustration
Keldeo and Coballion have once again returned to training the forest. But Keldeo is having a hard time hitting the mark.
Coballion ran through the trees. He weaved in and out through them, almost disappearing and reappearing at will. A Focus Blast whizzed by him and stuck a tree. Coballion ran into a clearing and turned. Out of the trees ran Keldeo, who looked very annoyed.
"Why can't I score a hit?!" he shouted in frustration.
Coballion kept his unreadable expression and said, "You aren't concentrating."
Keldeo fired another Focus Blast, which Coballion easily side stepped. As it hit another tree and exploded, Coballion said, "You are letting frustration cloud your mind. Calm yourself, and you will succeed. But in your current state, you will only fail!"
Keldeo clenched his teeth, beginning to get truly angry, and then fired another Focus Blast. Coballion lowered his head, and the Focus Blast whizzed over head and into the forest.
Mingled with the explosion was a cry of shock and fear.
Keldeo's heart skipped a beat as Coballion merely closed his eyes in resignation.
The pair stood as still as sleeping Regigigas for a tense moment, but then were given a shock by an enraged roar.
Out of the woods jumped a tall, blue and black dog-like Pokemon with iron spikes on his fists and on his chest. He landed between the two Swords of Justice, stood up tall on his hind legs, and snarled.
"You are both going to pay dearly for that little stunt!" he snarled.
He then formed spheres of blue energy in each paw, and pointed them at the surprised Swords of Justice.
POKE-MON! Swords of Justice
Four swords count it off!
One! Two! Three! Four!
Justice!
Super hero action!
Justice!
Never let us down!
Justice!
Poke-battling action!
Justice!
Evil's going down!
Four swords count it off!
ONE!
Life by the code of honor and chivalry!
TWO!
Always fight to set, the downtrodden free!
THREE!
Always stick together no matter what!
FOUR!
When all else fails, then it's time to kick butt!
I am a Sword of-
I am a Sword of-
I am a Sword of Justice!
POKE-MON! Swords of Justice
Four swords count it off!
One! Two! Three! Four!
Justice!
There's no one better!
Justice!
WATCH OUT FOR DARKRAI!
Justice!
They're bringing it on!
Justice!
Those four Pokemon!
One! Two! Three! Four!
One! Two! Three! Four!
POKE-MON! Swords of Justice!
Furry Frustration!
Keldeo stared at the Pokemon in their midst. "Wow. . .a Lucario!" he said in wonder and admiration.
"Focus on the situation at hand, Keldeo," Coballion said quickly as his eyes focused on the Aura Sphere pointed straight at him.
Lucario roared and let loose his two Aura Spheres. Both Keldeo and Coballion easily dodged them.
Lucario then extended the spikes on his paws into Metal Claws and went after Keldeo. Keldeo countered with Secret Sword and blocked Lucario's flailing claws. Lucario formed a Bone Rush in his paws and used it to pin Keldeo's horn to his chest. Keldeo didn't let that stop him. He used Hydro Pump from his hind legs to flip both him and Lucario over. Keldeo rolled away from Lucario and took to the air with Hydro Pump.
As Lucario looked up at Keldeo, Coballion charged forward and tackled him. Coballion lightly placed his front hooves on Lucario's chest, pinning him down. Coballion looked down at him and shook his head. Lucario blinked, smiled, and waved a finger as if to say "oh no you don't."
Coballion raised an eye brow at Lucario, and was even more confused when Lucario placed a paw on his chest.
The paw glowed.
"Oh no," Coballion said.
POW!
The Force Palm sent Coballion flying into a tree.
Just as Lucario got up, Keldeo came falling down screaming vengeance. Lucario just held up a paw-full of Aura Sphere at him.
Keldeo's eyes widened in fear, "No! No! No! No-!"
BOOM!
Keldeo was hit square in the face by the Aura Sphere. He found himself sprawled out next to Coballion.
"Hm, hm, hm, hmmmm."
Lucario was laughing darkly as he extended his Metal Claws and hit them against each other as if to sharpen them. Both Keldeo and Coballion quickly righted themselves and prepared to continue the fight.
"Stop! Stop! Stop!"
Everyone turned to see a large bipedal fox-like Pokemon approaching them. It's body was gray and black, and it had red claws. It also had a huge mane of crimson hair with black tips.
"Enough of this! They meant us no harm! Do you even know who they are! They're the Swords of Justice!"
Keldeo and Coballion recognized the female Pokemon as a Zoroark, and she appeared to know the Lucario well.
Lucario looked at the Zoroark, and then at Keldeo and Coballion. He blinked his red eyes, and sighed. He bowed his head and said, "I am. . .sorry. I should've known it was all an accident. It's just, that Focus Blast hit so close to my mate and son. . ."
All of a sudden, a small Zorua popped out of the Zoroark's mane. He fixed his eyes on Keldeo and Coballion and gasped. He jumped out and ran over to Keldeo, jumping up and down and speaking rapidly via Telepathy, unlike his parents.
"Wow- wow- WOW! The Swords of Justice! That's amazing! Can ya tell me about your adventures! I wanna know!"
"It knows Telepathy like us. . ." Coballion thought in amazement.
Keldeo smiled at the youngster and laughed, "Heh-heh! Well sure! Hey, would you like to know about the time I battled with The Great and Mighty King of Dragons, Kyurem!" Keldeo spoke deeply to make it seem dramatic.
Zorua's blue eyes widened and sparkled with wonder. "Wow. . ."
Suddenly, Terrakion and Virizion came thundering in.
"What's going on? We heard a battle going on!" Terrakion said.
Coballion shook his head, "It's over now. Keldeo was a loose canon again. He sent a Focus Blast that nearly hit this Lucario's mate and son. Thank goodness they weren't really hurt. He would've fought us to the death."
Lucario stepped boldly in the midst of the three elder Swords of Justice, "Yes, I would have! They mean the world to me and I love them more than anything. I won't stand to have anyone harm them!"
The Sword of Justice stared at the angry Lucario with apprehension. But then, Lucario smiled and the anger seemed to flow out of him.
"But, I know now it was all an accident. You are the Swords of Justice, and truth and honor flow though your veins," he said good naturedly.
"Interesting way of putting it," Terrakion commented.
Virizion kicked Terrakion in the leg, causing him to flinch. She then walked over to Keldeo, who was chuckling, albeit uncomfortably, as Zorua felt around in his thick orange hair while giggling.
"Oh, he is absolutely adorable!" she said enchantedly.
"Who? Zorua or Keldeo?" Terrakion joked.
"Hey!" Keldeo said indignantly.
"Come on, Keldeo! Tell me about Kyurem!" Zorua said.
Keldeo smiled and began narrating those unforgettable events.
Zoroark smiled and moved over to Lucario's side. "He sure has taken to Keldeo quickly. But then again, you are the Swords of Justice. You are all very good Pokemon."
Lucario's tail suddenly shot up. "That's it!"
Zoroak looked at Lucario in confusion, and he quickly took her by the arms and led her some distance away. The pair had a whispered conference with one another, their back to the others. The whispering went up and down in volume, and it was difficult to hear with Keldeo having story-time with Zorua, during which the little fox would "ooh" and "ahh" periodically.
Eventually, the conference ended, and the pair went back to the Swords of Justice.
"Listen," Lucario said calmly, "You nearly hit my family with a super effective Fighting-type move."
"That was Kel-" Terrakion began, but Virizion silenced him with another kick.
"So, I don't supposed such honorable Pokemon as yourselves wouldn't mind doing us a favor," Lucario continued.
"Such as?" Coballion asked.
Lucario looked over at his mate. Zoroark closed her eyes, breathed in and out, and then smiled and said, "It would be easy for you to look after my precious child for a day, wouldn't it?"
This was one of those times when you could hear a pin drop.
Or it would have been if Keldeo and Zorua hadn't been talking excitedly on how they both knew Ash and Pikachu.
"Are you asking the Swords of Justice to. . .baby sit?" Coballion said in shaky tone. Terrakion mouth hung open slightly and his left eyes was twitching. Virizion had a thoughtful expression on her face.
"Let me explain," Lucario said, "You see, Zoroark and I have not exactly. . ." Lucario began looking around nervously, "Um. . .mated yet."
Zoroark blushed through her dark fur.
"What? But then where did Zorua-?" Virizion began.
"The child had been left alone and abandoned in my woods. I adopted the precious child a while before I had met my strong handsome warrior," Zoroark said with a smile that made Lucario blush this time. She then turned serious and said, "The point is, I do not want my child to wake up one night and see us doing. . .that. So I needed to find somewhere Zorua could stay during our. . .personal intimacy." Zoroark then became very grave and said, "After the kinds of things my son and I have been though, I really don't trust anyone anymore. . .but I know the honor-bound Swords of Justice will guard my son with their lives."
Lucario nodded, "Well then, will the Swords of Justice repay their debt?"
Terrakion clenched his teeth. "Repay our-? OW!" Virizion kicked Terrakion for the third time.
"Indeed, when one of us makes an error, the Swords of Justice as a whole are at fault. So, we shall gladly do this task for you," Coballion said.
Virizion smiled and nodded, "Indeed. It will be a pleasure to have such a happy little child here."
"Well, I- OWCH! Will you stop kicking me like that! I was going to say, 'I agree! It'll probably be fun having the kid around!'" Terrakion ranted at Virizion.
"Sorry," Virizion said in embarrassment.
Keldeo came close with Zorua riding on his back. "Wait a minute, Zorua is gonna stay with us for a while?" Keldeo asked.
"Really?!" Zorua gasped.
Zoroark picked Zorua up and held him. "Yes, Zorua. You get stay with the Swords of Justice! You get to see them train and everything!"
Zorua blinked, "What about you and Papa?"
Zoroark smiled and said, "Meema and Papa have something very important to do. I'm sorry, my son, but you're just too young to see it. You'll understand when you're older. We'll be back tomorrow, cross my heart. The Swords of Justice will take good care of you until then. Promise to stay with them until we get back?"
Zorua thought about what his mother had said, then he nodded slowly and said, "Okay, Meema. I'll stay with them. And maybe I'll get really strong like you! Cause they're almost as strong as you, Meema! Just like Papa!"
Zoroark laughed and said, "Well, we'll see. Give Meema a kiss."
Zorua leaned in to lick his mother face, and she held him close and nuzzled him. After a final lick on the forehead, she handed Zorua to Lucario.
"Be a good little Zorua," he said as he hugged his son tightly and ruffled his tuft of red hair.
Zorua growled and playfully bit his father on the ear gently. Lucario chuckled and placed Zorua down, who scampered excitedly next to Keldeo.
"Remember, Swords of Justice," Lucario said sternly, "If our son is injured, sad, uncomfortable, or unhappy in any way, I will-."
"You will do nothing," Zoroark said sternly. Lucario seemed to instantly back off.
The Swords of Justice watched Zoroark as she turned to face them.
"I, however. . ." Zoroark said, and her eyes flashed electric blue. Suddenly, the Swords of Justice found themselves facing none other than Kyurem. He roared as a wave of icy cold washed over the Swords of Justice. The whole area froze around them as they huddled together for protection. And then, as soon as it happened, it ended. The frozen plants thawed out instantly, and where Kyurem once was stood Zoroark.
Zorua jumped up and down excitedly and cheered, "Yay, Meema! That was the greatest!"
Zoroark smiled at her soon, then turned to the four Pokemon she was entrusting him to. "Keep that in mind," she said to them, "Well, we shall return tomorrow morning. Farewell until then."
And with that, Lucario and Zoroark departed.
"Oh my gosh," Virizion said breathlessly.
"That was an illusion? It felt so real!" Terrakion said in shock.
Coballion breathed in deeply, "I'd hate to fight against her, or Lucario, or worse, both at once. . ."
"That's my Meema!" Zorua said happily. Then he looked at Terrakion and said, "Wow! You're huuuuuge! Can I see you train!"
Terrakion chuckled and said, "Sure thing. Come on Keldeo."
Keldeo and Terrakion were in a rocky ravine, while Virizion, Coballion, and Zorua looked on from a ledge.
Terrakion reared up and fired Stone Edge at Keldeo. Keldeo turned around and used Hydro Pump from his rear hooves to deflect the Stone Edge back at Terrakion. Terrakion turned and ran, ducking and jumping to dodge the stones crashing behind him. Keldeo shot a few Focus Blasts at Terrakion. Still not looking, Terrakion quickly rolled to the left, dodging the first one. He then ran fast towards the wall of the ravine and bounded off of it, dodging the second one.
Terrakion stopped and laughed, "Ha-ha! See Keldeo! You gotta be aware of your surroundings! Always vigilant on what's coming up behind you!"
CRASH!
Terrakion's breath was knocked out of him as his head was forced down into the ground. His neck hurt, forcing him down to his knees. He looked up to see a medium sized boulder on top of his head.
"Terrakion! Are you okay?" Keldeo asked as he approached him.
Terrakion used Sacred Swords to push the boulder off of him. "Where did that-?" he began as he looked up. He soon realized that he was right below the ledge where the Zorua and the others stood. Virizion was staring at Zorua in shock, while Coballion was scowling.
Zorua blinked in confusion and called down, "I thought you were always aware of everything?"
Terrakion's eye began to twitch again, "Did you push that rock?"
Zorua shrugged, "I was just trying to help you train and dodge stuff all cool like! Like Keldeo was doing!"
Terrakion ground his teeth, "You know what I'm gonna do to you when my head stops hurting? I'm gonna take that rock and-"
Keldeo quickly silenced him with a Hydro Pump to the face. "Heh-heh-heh, uh, angry Zoroark, Terrakion. Angry Zoroark. . ." Keldeo said nervously.
Terrakion grumbled darkly and then said, "It's fine, Zorua. Just, leave the training to us. Just. . .watch, okay?"
"Okay!"
In the tall grass, Virizion and Keldeo were training as the others watched from a rock platform in a nearby lake.
Virizion shot Razor Leaf at him. Keldeo stood on one leg and spun around with Hydro Pump, deflecting the Razor Leaves with water.
"Wow!" Zorua gasped, and then without warning, he jumped into the tall grass.
"NO! Get back here, Zorua!" Terrakion shouted.
Keldeo stopped spinning, and charged at Virizion with Secret Sword. Virizion charged at Keldeo with Sacred Sword. However, they were stopped dead in their tracks when another Keldeo jumped in between them.
"What the-?" Keldeo gasped. He soon realized that this Keldeo had a black fox tail. "Zorua?" Keldeo gasped.
The Keldeo giggled, and then jumped onto one leg and began spinning while spraying water around. Unlike the real Keldeo, the Zorua Keldeo spun around so fast that he became a blurring water tornado. The speedy Illusion suddenly crashed into Virizion, causing her to spin around wildly as well.
"Zorua, stop!" Keldeo shouted.
The Illusion stopped, and the Keldeo flipped and turned back into Zorua. Meanwhile, Virizion was still spinning around on one leg and yelling.
"I'll stop her!" Zorua cheered, and he hit the spinning Sword of Justice with his signature Scratch attack. Interestingly enough, the attack caused Virizion to stop on a dime.
"How do Baltoys do it?" Virizion whimpered, and she fell down flat on her face.
Keldeo lay down a mat of moss he stripped from a tree next to the Swords of Justice's four beds of leaves.
"I would never have expected an awful day like that," Virizion said to Keldeo.
"It wasn't that bad," Keldeo said.
"Keldeo, after I recovered from being turned into a Baltoy and we split up to look for berries, and you took him with you," Virizion said while motioning back at Zorua, who was busy turning into each of the Swords of Justice.
"And you lost him," Coballion said sternly.
"I'm sorry. . ." Keldeo said sadly.
"Sorry doesn't fix what he did!" Coballion said angrily.
Coballion was walking in search of some Oran Berries when Virizion approached her and said, "Hey, Coballion. . .do you like me?"
Coballion gasped as a faint blush appeared on his face, "I . . .I. . .where is this coming from?! I'm surprised at you Virizion! I mean. . .well. . .what are you-?"
Virizion giggled and said, "You're blushing! I knew it!"
Coballion's eyes widened. That voice. . .
"ZORUA!"
The Virizion flipped and turned back into Zorua, who then ran off into the forest, calling back, "Don't worry! It's okay to be shy. I'll do it for ya!"
"Wha-? NO! GET BACK HERE!"
"That annoying little. . ." Coballion grumbled.
"You have no idea how embarrassed I was when he found me!" Virizion said angrily.
Virizion looked up from the berry bush to see Coballion approaching her. He let our a wolf-whistle and said in a strange deep voice that sounded a little off, "Hello beautiful!"
Virizion's eyes widened and her face turned red. "Wh-wh-what?!"
"Sorry for taking so long," Coballion said with a wink, "So maybe tonight, when everyone's asleep, we can stare and the moon together."
"ZORUA!"
The real Coballion ran in, causing Zorua to gasp and return to his true form. He ran off, with two of the Swords of Justice hot on his trail.
Terrakion smiled and said, "Well, he's quite the little matchmaker, isn't he!"
Terrakion was silenced by two Sacred Swords being pointed at him.
"You're lucky you got to him first, Keldeo, or else. . ." Virizion said fiercely.
"We'd be on the run from his enraged parents," Keldeo said plainly.
Coballion sighed, "He's right."
"I told him that meddling in other Pokemon's lives is wrong! He's learned his lesson, really!" Keldeo said convincingly, "He's not a bad little guy. I think he meant well."
Coballion sighed yet again, "Let's just get some sleep and never mention this again."
"I'm all for that," Virizion said irritably.
As the elder Swords of Justice went to their leafy beds, Keldeo turned to his bed, only to see Zorua snuggling down in it.
"Uh, Zorua, that's my bed," Keldeo said gently.
Zorua blinked his eyes at Keldeo.
Keldeo motioned to the moss mat, "You sleep there."
Zorua blinked again, and then narrowed his eyes at him. "You don't expect me to sleep on that?"
Keldeo stomped the ground and said, "But this is my bed."
Zorua snuggled down deep into the leaves, "But that thing over there looks sooooooo hard! And this is soooooo soft. . ."
"It's not hard," Keldeo said kindly with a smile, "It's very comfortable."
"Really?"
Keldeo nodded and kept smiling brightly, "Yeah!"
Zorua smiled, "Then you should sleep on it, Keldeo. You deserve it."
Keldeo blinked slowly, then he shook his head violently and spluttered, "I - you - but - that - this - you can't -ARGH! Get out of my bed!"
Zorua's lip trembled, "But, it's nice and soft. . .like Meema's fur."
At this moment, Keldeo realized three things. One, his parents would kill them all if Zorua complained about a sleepless night. Two, he couldn't say no to an adorable little Pokemon who still had memories of his mother and missed her; this hit him hard. And three, cuteness is EVIL!
Keldeo sighed and smiled again, "I understand. I'm sorry. You can sleep here."
Keldeo then rubbed Zorua's back gently. Zorua sighed contentedly and smiled at him.
"Goodnight, Zorua," he said, "and remember what you learned today."
"Goodnight, Keldeo. I will."
And so, Keldeo went to sleep on the thin moss mat, and mentally kicked himself for trying to make another living creature sleep on something so uncomfortable.
It took Keldeo a long time to fall asleep, so he woke up late the next morning.
"Ow. . ." Keldeo moaned as he stood up stiffly. His knees were sore, and so was his back. He walked over to the shallow lake where everyone else was gathered around a bunch of berries.
"I feel terrible. . ." Keldeo moaned.
"We know, I saw what you did last night," Terrakion said, "So we managed to get a Lum Berry for you."
Keldeo quickly looked to the pile and saw the green berry on top.
"Alright!" Keldeo cheered. He knew that eating that berry would rid him of his status ailments, which in this case would be a sore back and sore knees.
"Wait a minute! Where's Zorua?" Virizion asked urgently.
Suddenly, a Cryogonal charged in and roared. Everyone back up in surprise from the sudden appearance. Then the Cryogonal flipped, revealing a furry black tail, and turned back into Zorua.
"Ha-ha! I gotcha!" he cheered. Then his eyes focused on the big green berry. "Ooh! That looks tasty!"
"NO!" Keldeo shouted. But he was too late. Zorua jumped forward, landed on the pile, squashed most of them into mush, grabbed the Lum Berry in his mouth, chewed, and swallowed.
"Eh. . .not bad. . ." Zorua said nonchalantly.
Keldeo's knees buckled and he fell down hard.
"Ow. . ." moaned, then his face turned beet red.
"Uh. . .Keldeo?" Terrakion asked nervously.
Keldeo rose slowly, his cheeks swelling as he held his breath. Keldeo stood there shaking with frustration for a short while, then he let out his breath and appeared to calm down. Then he put on his best smile and said, "Zorua, you realize you squashed our breakfast, right?"
Zorua blinked, and looked at the squashed mash of berries. "Oh. . .I'm sorry. . .I didn't mean to."
"It's fine!" Keldeo said, "How about we go and look for more! Just you and me, hey?"
"Keldeo, I'm not sure-" Coballion began.
"Unless the other Swords of Justice want to deal with- I mean, look after you," Keldeo said slyly.
The other three exchanged glances.
"Okay, fine, but hurry back," Coballion said.
Keldeo nodded, "Sure thing. Come on, Zorua! Let's go for a ride!"
Keldeo bent down low and allowed Zorua to climb on. Zorua cheered as Keldeo galloped off in search of berries.
"Wow. . .Keldeo's taking it all well," Terrakion said.
"Indeed, he's shown great patience with the little. . .for lack of a better word, child," Virizion said.
Coballion looked down at the mass of berries, "I suppose. Well, let's get rid of this mess. It offends the eye."
Keldeo galloped into a clearing and skidded to a halt.
"Get down now, Zorua."
Zorua jumped off and looked around, "I don't see any berries."
Keldeo turned to look at Zorua and said, "We don't need any berries. We've got something more important to do."
"Huh?" Zorua asked.
"You wanna be as strong as your mother, right Zorua?" Keldeo asked.
Zorua nodded and said, "That's right! I'm gonna be strong, and make Meema proud!"
"Well," Keldeo said with a smile, "Then we should have a battle to make you stronger!"
Zorua's eyes widened, "A battle? Really?"
Keldeo stepped forward and grinned, "That's right! But don't worry, I'll tone down my attacks so we can have some fun. Now, what attacks do you have?"
Zorua smiled and held up a glowing red paw, "Scratch!"
Keldeo cocked his head, "That's it? Can't you at least tackle?"
Zorua though for a moment, then nodded, "Yeah, I guess I can."
Keldeo shrugged, "Okay, so we've go that. But maybe I can get you to unlock a new move that's just waiting to burst out from within you!"
"Cool!" Zorua gasped.
"Alright then! Try deflecting this!" Keldeo said, and he fired a weak Focus Blast. Zorua jumped and pushed it into the ground with his Scratch attack. It popped like a balloon and knocked Zorua up a few feet, but he nailed a perfect landing.
"Not bad! Okay! Now try and tackle me!"
As Zorua ran towards Keldeo, he thought to himself, "Pushing down that Focus Blast. . .it felt. . .so natural. . .so. . .right. . . ."
A Stone Edge and Razor Leaf blew the mashed berries off the rock, and now the Sword of Justice were waiting for Keldeo to return.
"Where are they?" Terrakion asked impatiently.
"Right behind you."
Everyone turned to see Lucario and Zoroark standing in the shallow water.
"Oh boy," Terrakion thought as he began to sweat.
"What a time we had, alone together. My heart races just from thinking about it. . ." Zoroark said dreamily, her eyes partially glazed over. But then she shook it off and said, "But now, I just want to hold my precious child again."
Lucario looked around the area, and then closed his eyes to use his Aura Senses. "Well, where is he?" he said sternly when he couldn't detect Zorua's Aura nearby.
"He went with Keldeo to look for berries," Coballion said calmly.
Then there was the sound of an explosion.
The hearts of the Swords of Justice all skipped a beat.
Zoroark's ear twitched.
"That sound. . ." she whispered, and then she ran off in the direction of the sound.
Lucario glared killer intent at the Swords of Justice, and ran off behind his mate.
"Oh crud, oh crud, oh crud," Terrakion thought in a panic as he, Coballion, and Virizion followed after Lucario and Zoroark.
Before long the group had arrived at the clearing, and what they saw completely shocked them.
There Zorua stood, in the middle of a circle of scorched earth. A few feet away lay Keldeo, slightly dirty and out of breath. He smiled at Zorua and said, "Wow. Not bad."
Zoroark gasped and ran over to Zorua, scooping him up in a hug.
"I knew it! I couldn't possibly mistake it! You've learned Night Daze! Oh, I am so proud of you!" she said, gushing with pride.
"Wait, so Zorua. . ." Lucario said softly, then he slowly turned to Keldeo. "How did you. . .?"
Keldeo righted himself and said, "Well, Zorua wants to get stronger more than anything. So, I decided to help him. I had him knock down weakened Focus Blasts, and suddenly, he created his own stronger, red blast on the ground with his own power! It was really amazing."
Zorua smiled and nodded excitedly as he nuzzled his mother, "That's right! Now I can use Night Daze just like you Meema! Isn't great!"
Zoroark looked over at Keldeo and said, "I don't know how to thank you, honorable Sword of Justice."
Lucario turned to the other three Swords of Justice and said, "Well. . .forgive my distrust and temper. I should've known our son would benefit under your care."
The three of them smiled. Coballion said, "Well, Keldeo deserves most of the credit. He did everything he could to make sure Zorua was comfortable and happy."
Lucario smiled, turned to Keldeo, and bowed respectfully, "Well then, I must thank you greatly."
Keldeo smiled back, "Well, it was no problem at all. I'm glad to have met Zorua."
Zorua rode happily in his mother's thick mane as Zoroark and Lucario waved good bye.
"Thank you so much for this," Zoroark said.
"You truly are honorable. Farewell!" Lucario called back.
"Bye Keldeo! We'll always be friends! Forever!" Zorua shouted happily.
The Swords of Justice looked on as the family departed. Terrakion turned to Keldeo and said, "Well, how were you able to tolerate him?"
Keldeo smiled and said, "As Coballion said, I can't let frustration cloud my mind. When I calmed myself, I succeeded in channeling my anger into energy to do something constructive; instead of getting angry, I worked on helping Zorua. That way, I made sure Zorua was happy, which means his parents wouldn't have to go off on us."
Terrakion and Virizion chuckled.
Coballion nodded and said, "Very good Keldeo. But how about we see if you can apply that lesson in battle."
Keldeo gave a cocky look and said, "You bet! I'll score a hit on you this time!"
Coballion gave a small smile, and ran off in to the forest, with Keldeo in hot pursuit.
And so, our heroes have made friends in Lucario, Zoroark, and Zorua, and Keldeo has learned a new lesson. And so, the Swords of Justice go on with their training, as their journey continues!
Darkrai opened his eyes as Shuppet and Mismagius approached him.
"Yes?" he asked.
"Master," Mismagius said, "The Sticks of Justice have allied with our old enemies, Zoroark and Zorua, and her new mate, Lucario."
Darkrai thought silently, and then said, "Ah yes. . .Zoroark. You described her to me when I first took you in. . .she sounded. . .amazing. . ." Darkrai then cleared his throat and said, "Well then, where are they now?"
"They left," Shuppet said, "Back to their den."
"Good. . .I'll send a Lampent to keep an eye on them," Darkrai said, "I'll make plans to. . .retrieve my Dark Queen. . ."
Darkrai then opened his right claw and stared at the horn fragment that he held close to him ever since he first got it.
"But that can wait. . .what we need now. . .is special equipment. . ."
Darkrai then laughed lowly, his evil plan forming in his mind.
TO BE CONTINUED. . . .
