The Swords of Justice in Galar

After the trip to the Slumbering Weald, our heroes once more embark on their journey in the Galar region, as Ash continues on his quest to participate in the gym challenge. Today, they are in Motostoke, for the start of the Gym Challenge Ceremony.

"Wow, this is just like the Azoth Kingdom in Kalos!" exclaimed Ash as he marveled at the marvelous steampunk architecture.

"Pikachu!"

"You've been to Kalos, Ash?" asked Chloe.

"You bet! Kalos is a beautiful region, with a lot of strong trainers too and Pokemon. You guys will like it there," said Ash.

"What's it like?" implored Goh. "Are there any interesting Pokémon in there too?" He and Scorbunny took a sip from their drinks.

Ash put a hand on his chin. "Xerneas comes to mind," replied the raven-haired trainer. "We met it while we were in Avignon Town traveling."

Goh spat out his milkshake, right into Scorbunny's face. The fire-type responded by kicking his trainer in the shins.

"You met Xerneas? he asked, incredulous, unmindful of the growing throb in his leg.

"Yeah?"

"Pika?"

"Unlike Lugia who's become more approachable recently, it's very rare for Xerneas to reveal itself to anyone! What happened that it would appear to you?" said Goh.

"That Lugia was Silver's mom, we rescued her from Team Rocket a few years back so she's a bit more friendly to humans." Ash tapped his chin. "Hmm, I'm pretty sure the Lugia from the Orange Islands hasn't shown up to anyone since the Shamouti Incident. Oh! As for Xerneas, Diancie was looking for it to help restore her kingdom."

"You met Diancie too?"

"Yup. She was very kind and had this really cool Mega Evolution! She used it to fight back Yveltal and restore her kingdom and make it better than before!"

"Pika-pikachu."

"Nope, buddy. The one we rode against Hoopa was Silver, not the Shamouti one," said Ash.

"We do get in trouble a lot every time we meet a legendary Pokemon, don't we?" mused Chloe.

Eevee just wagged its tail wildly underneath her.

"Ehehe" Ash and Pikachu laughed bemusedly in reply. "Yeah, we got into trouble sometimes while we were traveling." He put a hand over his head, embarrassed.

But he gave Chloe a wide smile. "But you know, we also made a lot of new friends along the way!"

"Pikachu!"

All he got was a deadpan stare in reply.

"We were almost erased from existence that one time, Ash."

"Wasn't the first time that happened to me, to be honest."

Meanwhile, Bea listened closely to the pair's conversation and remembered the file Leon gave to her.

'He really does stumble upon Legendaries all the time,' she thought, recalling their encounter in the Slumbering Weald. Whether that was a good thing or a bad thing for her, she wasn't sure yet.

Bea decided it was a good thing for her.

As the group explored the Wild Area around Motostoke, they stumbled upon the three, now four, musketeers.

The Swords of Justice were passing by Galar that week. They were on their way to the Crown Tundra for a trip to the Crown Shrine, they said. Though the King of Galar no longer rules his people, as knights, the Swords of Justice still pay respect to the once and future king.

As Ash greeted and petted the newest member of the musketeers, she and Chloe found it hard not to join in.

Pikachu was bouncing on the head of the sword pony, who took it all in stride. Goh and Scorbunny, in the meantime, were enthusiastically discussing the Crown Tundra and telepathy with Terrakion.

"Guys, this is Keldeo," said Ash "Keldeo, these are Goh, Chloe, and Bea. Goh is the one talking with Terrakion and Chloe is the one holding the Eevee. Goh and Chloe are research assistants for Professor Cerise in Vermillion City, and Bea here is the gym leader of Stow-on-Side! She's really strong, and she also practices Galar Karate!"

"Pleased to meet you all," said Keldeo. He nodded to Bea and bowed to the fellow martial arts specialist, which Bea and her Pokemon returned.

"Keldeo met Iris, Cilan and me in Unova while he was running away from Kyurem." Keldeo frowned at the unwanted memory. "But he overcame his fears and gave Kyurem a well-fought battle! That earned him the right to become a Sword of Justice himself! Come over here and meet him!"

Hearing this, Keldeo puffed out his chest, while Ash patted his back proudly.

Bea lost all resistance and came rushing in. Chloe joined them shortly after.

They spent the evening outdoors. Tents were set up, huge bonfire was made, and a large batch of delicious curry was cooked on top of it. As everyone joined in on the hearty meal, Keldeo had something to say to the raven-haired trainer.

"Ash, can I come with you?" asked Keldeo telepathically.

Everyone but the other three musketeers spat out their food.

"Sure, but what about your duties as a musketeer?" said Ash, curious. "And Goh, don't give me that look, you have a Suicune."

"Hm, we did hear of a Suicune who was rescued from poachers, but she chose not to be released as protection from future captures," said Cobalion. "Could that Suicune be yours, Goh?"

"She's not mine, she's her own person...er, Pokemon," said Goh. He looked down. "Capturing Suicune was a hard decision. Me and Ash met a Zapdos earlier who was empowering the electric-type Pokemon in Kanto, so I knew how important legendary Pokemon are to the world. Suicune won't be able to do her duties if I caught her, but we couldn't just stand and watch poachers hurt her either."

He smiled. "I caught her, but after she recovered we didn't stop her from leaving the lab. So she's out there doing her job, but since she's technically registered to me, she won't be captured in a Pokeball anymore."

As he finished, Ash, Chloe, and Bea smiled at him, while Cobalion, Terrakion, and Virizion nodded approvingly.

"That was an admirable action, Goh," said Virizion. "You care more for Pokemon than even you realize, never forget that even as you move towards your goal."

"Thank you, Virizion."

"Moving back to the matter of Keldeo. The duty of the Swords of Justice is to do good wherever they go, to serve the cause of good, and prevent evil from growing strong," returned Virizion. "Ash, you and your friends have been doing much the same thing, as Goh here has demonstrated."

"Also, Keldeo has taken a liking to you," added Terrakion. "Since he's finished his training, we thought it would be best for him to travel the world for a bit, you know, experience it for his own eyes."

Keldeo smiled brightly.

"But we have also been following the news," said Cobalion. "Both human news and what we have learned from other Legendary Pokémon."

Ash and Pikachu frowned, while Bea had her full attention to the legendary.

"What is it?" asked Ash.

"It was good fortune that we came upon you here, so we can warn you ahead of time. We are sorry Ash, but there's trouble ahead," said Virizion, looking anxious. "Necrozma and Kyurem were especially restless. They said that an old foe was beginning to reawaken."

"Never a dull moment," muttered Ash as he and Pikachu shook their heads. "Who is it? Is it a Pokémon? Is it evil?"

"Evil might be stretching it," replied Terrakion. "But Eternatus is certainly not good by any stretch of the word. Kyurem said the dragon was hostile to everything. He said you'd have better luck convincing Gandhi to disarm his nukes than to get Eternatus to not attack you on sight. We think he's just displaced, and this world just doesn't fit him, but we can't do anything to help until he's calmed down."

"Who's Gandhi?" asked Goh.

"Never mind."

"So, his name is Eternatus?" asked Ash. He looked to Bea, who took out her phone and started taking down notes.

Terrakion nodded. Bea noted that the name sounded familiar.

"What would make it act like that?" asked Ash.

"We suspect someone is trying to wake him up, but we don't know for sure," admitted Cobalion. "Once we meet Kyurem again, we'll ask. But in any case, Ash, keep alert."

"Right. Is that why Keldeo wants to come with me?"

Virizion chuckled. "No, he really just wants to join you. You should see him every time we go near a human town. He'll always go to a Pokémon Center and ask about—"

"Virizion, not in front of Ash!" shouted Keldeo, earning a hearty laugh from Terrakion.

"Anyway, you've really inspired him Ash, and as someone whose earned the praise of many Legendary Pokémon, we think it would be an honor if he could join you on your journey," finished Cobalion.

Ash looked at the youngest musketeer, who had the look of an eager Lillipup, and smiled widely. He took out a Pokeball.

"Well, there's always room in my team, welcome to the club, Keldeo!"

I do not have any solid plan for this story. It's really just a bunch of one-shots that I each wrote by the seat of my pants.

Keldeo here acts as a replacement for Lucario. He even has a form change like Lucario does. I liked Lucario's development in Journeys, but I just thought Keldeo needed a chance to shine.

I hope this chapter made sense.

Thanks for reading!