The Chosen of Fate!
With the appearance of Zacian and Zamazenta,
the seed called hope was finally ignited!
[Professor Magnolia: So that's how it is! The true heroes of Sword and Shield were never human! No wonder all my years of research failed to uncover the hidden truth.]
[Sonia: I once saw a record in an archive of Galar's royal secrets. It clearly stated that the heroes of Sword and Shield were Pokémon, not humans. The royal family sealed this truth away and rewrote history into a legend of human heroes saving Galar.]
[Cynthia: Those nobles who casually tampered with history really should be thrown into the trash! If Ash and the others hadn't obtained the true Sword and Shield in advance, we might not even have a chance to defeat Eternatus!]
[Caitlin: Eek, big sister—I'm a noble too~]
[Cynthia: And? You got a problem with that?]
Did Caitlin dare make a sound?
That little whip was still burned into her memory!
[Mustard: But something still feels off. Shouldn't the heroes of Sword and Shield be wielding a sword and shield? Even with Zacian and Zamazenta here, the Sword and Shield in Ash and Gary's hands haven't changed at all. Surely they're not going to cut down Eternatus with those tiny things?]
[Honey: Don't add pressure on the kids right now! Just believe in them!]
[Leon: Exactly—Master's wife is right! Eternatus and the heroes of Sword and Shield are both here now. All we need to do is wait for history to repeat itself, just like three thousand years ago!]
That said,
everyone still harbored doubts about Zacian and Zamazenta's true strength.
After all, the moment Eternatus completed Eternamax,
it had already surpassed ordinary gods!
Since this was a live broadcast—and Zacian and Zamazenta hadn't attacked yet—
no one truly knew their power.
Especially with the overwhelming pressure Eternamax Eternatus had displayed earlier—
No one dared voice their fears aloud,
afraid that this newborn hope might shatter instantly.
At this stage, all the audience could do
was believe in the legends.
Believe in the heroes of Sword and Shield!
Could the heroes entrusted with so much hope truly save Galar?
The answer was—inevitably—yes.
…
On screen—
Zacian's more-than-two-meter-tall body curled protectively around Ash,
like a mother wolf nurturing her cub.
Out of habit, Ash buried his head into Zacian's fur and took a deep breath.
Pikachu was even bolder—climbing straight up Ash's head and onto Zacian's!
Another legendary Pokémon conquered by the Yellow God—+1!
"I have waited for thousands of years…
just for your appearance."
"Ash, long time no see."
That gentle female voice echoed once more in Ash's mind.
Ash looked up in confusion, meeting Zacian's golden eyes.
Those eyes seemed devoid of emotion—
yet Ash saw unmistakable nostalgia within them.
Thousands of years…?
"Did we meet a thousand years ago?"
"That's not important anymore. I've found you now."
As she spoke, Zacian rubbed her cheek against Ash's face.
Pikachu returned to Ash's shoulder and rubbed its cheek against Zacian as well.
Strangely enough—
the usually unstoppable cheek-rubbing technique had no effect on Zacian!
Zacian then stood and walked to the edge of the Battle Tower.
At her side stood her younger brother, Zamazenta.
The sibling wolves raised their heads, gazing at Eternatus in the sky.
Listening to its mournful cries,
a trace of solemnity appeared on both their faces.
Then—
Red and blue light erupted once more from their bodies.
At the same time,
the Rusted Sword and Rusted Shield that Ash and Gary had been holding
slipped free from their hands.
The Rusted Sword landed in Zacian's mouth.
The Rusted Shield was taken by Zamazenta.
Bathed in light, their forms began to change.
The Rusted Sword in Zacian's mouth transformed into a King's Sword, gleaming with golden radiance!
The Rusted Shield in Zamazenta's mouth fused into his body,
merging with the mane on his chest to form a King's Shield!
Seeing this, everyone was stunned.
Indeed—
If Eternatus could evolve further into Eternamax,
how could the heroes who once defeated and sealed it lack corresponding forms?
At this moment—
Zacian and Zamazenta were fully unleashed!
Revealed before the world
were the true forms of the heroes of Sword and Shield—
The King of the Sword and the King of the Shield!
"So that's it! The sword and shield were never human weapons! They were catalysts—keys to summoning the true heroes and unlocking their full power!"
Gary slapped his fist into his palm, suddenly enlightened!
"Gary, let's go! This time, we finish Eternatus for good!"
Ash clapped Gary on the shoulder, snapping him out of his thoughts.
This was no time to study mythology!
"Got it~" Gary waved casually—
But his gaze sharpened instantly.
"Zacian!"
"Zamazenta!"
Just like Mega Evolution—
Red and blue light erupted from Ash and Gary as well,
identical to the radiance surrounding Zacian and Zamazenta!
The light flowed into the two wolves.
At this moment—
Their hearts were perfectly synchronized!
Ash and Gary felt as though they had become the crimson and azure wolves themselves—
Viewing the battle for Galar's future through Zacian and Zamazenta's eyes!
"Zacian—Behemoth Blade!"
"Zamazenta—Behemoth Bash!"
As the commands rang out—
The Kings of Sword and Shield moved at once!
The King's Sword in Zacian's mouth was instantly enveloped in massive blue energy,
condensing into a dragon-slaying greatsword!
Zacian leapt high,
slashing straight toward Eternatus's claw-like cluster of heads!
At that moment—
The stars seemed to converge upon the blade,
the vast galaxy gathering into a single strike!
A star-bright slash burst forth!
Brilliant blue sword light tore through the sky!
Even the Darkest Day itself was shaved away by the edge of that blade!
Eternatus's core immediately gathered terrifying crimson light,
trying to block the slash with a beam!
But it was facing—
Behemoth Blade of the King of the Sword!
The radiant slash split the beam cleanly in two
and carved deeply into Eternatus's five heads!
One Behemoth Blade—
Not only cleaved apart the beam that Ash and the others had been helpless against,
but also left deep sword wounds on Eternatus's Eternamax form!
So this was the power of a god whose domain was battle?!
Even Eternamax Eternatus couldn't face Behemoth Blade head-on!
At the same time—
Zamazenta erupted with magma-like crimson radiance!
The mane fused with his shield expanded outward, then compressed again—
Forming a shield capable of blocking any attack!
Thick red light coated the shield.
Zamazenta took a step back—
Then charged skyward at Eternatus!
The explosive power he displayed left everyone speechless.
The sturdiest shield
was also the sharpest spear!
Zamazenta slammed into Eternatus before it could react,
crashing directly into the freshly carved sword wounds!
BOOOOM!
With a single collision,
scarlet shockwaves rippled across the heavens!
In just one exchange—
The once-invincible Eternatus was completely suppressed!
Its grievously wounded state
was the perfect testament to Behemoth Blade and Behemoth Bash!
This…
was the true power of the Kings of Sword and Shield?!
Absolutely astonishing!
[Steven: Unbelievable! The destructive power Zacian and Zamazenta are showing rivals Groudon and Kyogre!]
[Wallace: Not quite. Groudon and Kyogre are disasters incarnate—on par with Eternatus in raw scale, perhaps—but they don't possess Eternatus's ability to shroud an entire continent instantly.]
[Wallace: What Zacian and Zamazenta possess is attack power. Eternatus tanked a full-force strike from Ash, Gary, and Leon—three Champion-level Trainers—without a scratch! Yet against Zacian and Zamazenta, it was gravely injured in a single round! Such terrifying offense may only be comparable to Rayquaza's evolved form!]
Most viewers weren't familiar with Zacian and Zamazenta.
But Rayquaza was different!
That was one of the most famous gods in the world!
There was even a saying:
If you gaze into the night sky, Rayquaza is surely watching you from above the clouds.
And Rayquaza's strength was beyond question.
Legends of it existed worldwide—
even Paldea spoke of a crystal-shining black Rayquaza!
With comparison came shock—
Who would have thought these two not-so-massive gods
could stand shoulder to shoulder with Rayquaza?!
[Cynthia: No—more than that. Eternamax Eternatus surpasses Groudon and Kyogre entirely. Even their Primal Reversions can't compare. And Zacian and Zamazenta, capable of severely injuring Eternatus with ease, clearly occupy a different tier.]
[Cynthia: In academia, gods that possess authority over domains are classified as Tier-One Deities. Zacian and Zamazenta are clearly in that category.]
[Cynthia: But Eternatus exceeds even Tier-One—it stands above the gods themselves, likely second only to Arceus, the creator of the world.]
[Professor Magnolia: Then how do the heroes of Sword and Shield still defeat Eternatus?]
[Cynthia: Simple. Sword and Shield represent offense and defense—those are Zacian and Zamazenta's divine authorities. Unlike other Tier-One Deities, they don't govern natural laws like oceans or land.]
[Cynthia: But that doesn't make them weaker. On the contrary—they're absurdly strong. As battle gods, the Galar twins possess unrivaled destructive power. In terms of offense, only the Creator God might rival them. That's precisely why Eternatus can't withstand their attacks.]
[Mustard: So every strike from Zacian and Zamazenta is a law of battle itself? Does that mean the Rusted Sword and Shield are crystallized laws?]
[Cynthia: Exactly.]
Silence fell.
Suddenly—everything made sense.
Why heroes needed sword and shield.
Only by wielding them
could their true power be revealed!
…
On screen—
Living up to expectations, Zacian and Zamazenta devastated Eternatus with overwhelming force!
Under relentless assault—
Eternamax Eternatus grew weaker and weaker!
Strike while the iron is hot!
Everyone knew this truth.
Almost simultaneously, Ash and the others launched a new wave of attacks!
This battle saw Ash and Pikachu use Ten Million Volt Thunderbolt for the second time!
Paired with Mega Blastoise's Hydro Cannon—
It was devastating!
Water conducts electricity!
Under this strike, Eternatus was on the verge of collapse!
Less than a minute had passed since Zacian and Zamazenta entered the field—
And the entire battle had been completely overturned!
"Ash! Catch!"
Just as Ash was reeling from shock, he heard a shout.
Turning around, he saw a disheveled Rose throwing a Poké Ball toward him.
Though confused, Ash reached out and caught it.
"This is a specially made Poké Ball. It contains materials designed to resist Eternatus's Dynamax particles, preventing it from breaking out."
Rose smiled despite his ragged state.
The boy before him had saved Galar—and saved him.
At the very least,
he wouldn't have to spend the rest of his life drowning in regret.
"Thanks."
Ash lifted the Poké Ball slightly.
Nearby, Gary felt his teeth ache—
this guy's luck was as ridiculous as ever!
Looks like the competition to capture Eternatus was another loss for him.
Then—
The Poké Ball in Ash's hands suddenly expanded!
The sudden change made Gary instinctively try to help—
But the expected weight never came.
Ash hoisted the massive Poké Ball above his head almost by himself!
"What the heck?! Why are you so strong?!"
"Huh? Isn't everyone like this? Don't tell me you can't do it?"
"Who says that?! I'm just as strong as you!"
"Hey! Ash, why'd you let go?! Throw it already!"
"Oh—right, here I go!"
Both of them bent their bodies, Gary's face turning red as a tomato—
Before the enormous Poké Ball was finally hurled skyward!
The Poké Ball struck Eternatus dead-on.
Upon impact—
Eternatus's terrifying form turned into red light and was sucked into the ball!
Then, before everyone's eyes—
The Poké Ball shook.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Click.
An explosion of cheers followed!
What did this mean?!
It meant Ash had successfully captured
the Pokémon that had threatened all of Galar!
At that moment—
The sky shrouded in the Darkest Day returned to light.
Sunlight bathed the land, symbolizing rebirth!
The gloom over Galar was gone.
Galar was reborn!
More than that—
The instant Eternatus was captured, it reverted from Eternamax.
The Dynamax particles that had formed its colossal body scattered across Galar once more.
For at least the next thousand years,
Galar would no longer suffer from an energy crisis.
Only after the Poké Ball landed
did Leon and Rose finally let out long breaths.
From this day forward—
The heroes of Sword and Shield had names!
Ash and Gary were Galar's heroes,
the kind destined to be carved into history!
"Ash, this time—you win."
Gary, prideful as always, still accepted defeat.
A loss was a loss—and losing to Ash wasn't that embarrassing.
Besides, he'd participated too.
A small loss didn't count as losing!
Ash picked up the Poké Ball containing Eternatus and raised it high.
Sunlight poured down upon him!
"I captured Eternatus!"
At this moment, their mission complete,
Zacian and Zamazenta reverted from their King forms.
Zacian walked to Ash's side, rubbing her fluffy head against him.
She then placed the Rusted Sword back into Ash's hands.
"Keep it safe. We'll meet again soon."
With those words, Zacian fulfilled her purpose.
Before Ash's eyes—
Zacian and Zamazenta turned into blue and golden streaks of light, vanishing above the Battle Tower.
Then—
The screen suddenly went dark.
Lines of text appeared.
[Chosen of Fate—Ash and Gary, destined to become heroes]
[By the name of heroes, you saved Galar in its darkest hour!]
[Hero of the Sword — Ash, reward obtained: Secret Art! Behemoth Blade!]
[Hero of the Shield — Gary, reward obtained: Secret Art! Behemoth Bash!]
…
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