Hideo made his approach once again, atop his Spectrier. This time, a Ralts sat upon his shoulder - at least, it appeared to be a Ralts. It was Uxie in its ever-present illusory disguise. Yes, it may be known to a good part of the League, but he didn't know what eyes may be watching out here, so caution was still necessary.

"A pleasure to speak to you again, King Calyrex," Hideo said, bowing to the king once more. "I heard this time, you're looking for stories about justice? I have one that should be fitting."

The boy took a seat, retrieving a storybook out from his bag. The "Ralts" on his shoulder dismounted him, looking over the book; it was a braille book, the boy flipping to a specific page, running his finger along the bumps.

"There once was a man with a very particular ability, granted to him by a powerful patron: should anyone attempt to harm him, they would be struck dead immediately. He was a cruel man, and he abused the power he was given, getting into fights and provoking people as much as he could. One day, he was arrested, and taken to court to face justice."

"And for his actions, his sentence was death. But he couldn't not laugh in their faces. 'There is no-one that could pass this sentence,' he said, 'For any that do so would die!'"

"But rather than be placed in a regular prison, they had prepared something special for him: he was placed down within a lone cell. There were no openings, save for the grate he was lowered down from. With what little light he had, he could see that there was nothing inside this cell, save for a single cup in the corner of the room, filled with a liquid."

"The man looked up at his jailer. 'Aren't you going to kill me?' he laughed."

"'No-one will come to harm you,' the jailer said. 'Inside of that cup is a poison, which you may drink. It will be a quick death. We will come back for you in sixty days'. And with that, the jailer covered the grate, leaving the man inside deprived of even the light."

"'Then you are all cowards!' the man shouted. He went to the cup, took it in his hand - and threw it at a wall. 'Come, now you have to try and kill me!' But there was no answer, and it was at that point that the man realized that the room was truly empty: there was no bed, no light, no food or water. All that was within this room was himself, and the now-shattered glass of poison, which could no longer harm him."

"It was the first time he'd ever felt fear, as he felt death's slow approach."

"Sixty days later, the jailers returned, and took his body out of the cell. He had long-since died, his execution carried out. Justice found him in the end."

With that, Hideo closed the storybook. "Always was a neat one to read," he said. "And it's one I'm finding a lot more relevant these days. There's a lotta people out there that think that they're safe from justice because they have some kind of special power or special privilege that puts them above others, but there's always a way for justice to find them."

With that, Hideo stowed the storybook away, the Calyrex letting out a "Cro rown!" as he walked off. Seems like the King liked this story as well.

Having returned from his Ranger duties, Josh had heard word that the Calyrex that served as his priest last week had returned to hear more stories, this time of justice and/or heroism. Thie time, he had something more planned and more recited in mind: the tale of the Hero of Johto. It was a tale he had once shared with Alexei Ivanov . It was a Johtonian folk tale that resonated with him well. It was about the three Pokémon he revered, idolized, and had crawled out of an unhealthy obsession with. At one point he believed them to be the three fastest land Pokémon in the world... until he discovered Raikiri. That mythical thundercat could hold his own against them as long as they didn't invoke Extreme Speed.

"Thank you for hearing my confession a few days ago," Josh bowed in greeting to the Calyrex. "Today, High King, I come to you with a tale from Johto, of the gods of my home region. How much of it is myth is uncertain, but it was my favorite bedtime story from when I was a child. It is about three heroes that bring a malevolent dynasty to justice in the distant past."

[player]https://fi.zophar.net/soundfiles/playstation-psf/legend-of-dragoon-the/922%20-%20Long%2C%20Long%20Ago.mp3[/player]

THEME SONG - "Long, Long Ago" - THE LEGEND OF DRAGOON OFFICIAL SOUNDTRACK

---

Long ago, when humans first started to tame Pokémon, the world had not seen war for hundreds of years. The region of Johto was a peaceful and prosperous place. But all of this happiness needed a source. That source was the Great One, Ho-oh, the guardian of all Johto's Pokémon. Ho-oh brought with her great abundance, uplifting the spirits of all her subjects far below.

When humans first realized that Pokémon could be trained to assist with everyday life, the world advanced. As time flowed on, technology fueled by Pokémon continued to grow. Human greed blossomed in the cultural and economical revolution. Two empires grew: the East, centered around Blackthorn Castle high above the rest of the region, and Ecruteak Castle in the West.

Tensions grew between the East and the West as both sides discovered that Pokémon were excellent fighters. The East was well-positioned, not only having the geographical advantage due to their castle stronghold being located in the mountains, but also by having exclusive access to dragon Pokémon. The East's aerial cavalry were called the Blackthorn Dragoons, and they were nigh unstoppable in battle. With flying steeds faster than the swiftest Rapidash, stronger than the most stout Tauros, and with the most destructive elemental weapons in the region, any Western settlement that stood in the way was doomed before the battle started. Their power shrunk the size of the Western Empire.

With the East's mastery over their Pokémon, they conquered town after town under their rule. Blackthorn had cornered Ecruteak to their stronghold. Even with the power of the Dragoons, though, their generals and emperor knew that the West's final stronghold would not fall easily. They mustered their strongest forces, including dragon Pokémon of all kinds, ready to execute a deadly three-pronged attack. Little did they know that the West had an even more powerful ally on their side than even dragons: the very gods themselves.

As the dragon Pokémon began to lay siege to Ecruteak Village and her castle, three mysterious warriors rushed in from the northern horizon, each mounted atop a large Beast Pokémon. The first, Raikou: tiger-like, with lightning-bolt stripes, carrying with it storm clouds. The second, Entei: lion-like and burly, spewing purifying Sacred Fire. The third, Suicune: leopard-like and adorned with an icy crystal for a crown. The Beasts could run far faster than any Pokémon man had known, and attacked viciously, using the elements of fire, water, and lightning. These three brave warriors stayed true to the Pokémon. They were known as the Beast Riders.

Armored with mystic plate that was so lightweight it did not slow their steeds one bit, they wielded fearsome swords modeled after their divine steeds' crowns. One in the shape of a lightning bolt, little could withstand the electricity that danced from its blade. One in the shape of a burning flame, little could withstand its holy fire. One in the shape of an ice crystal, little could withstand its chilling, purifying mist.

With the revelation of such fearsome allies being at their foes' side, Blackthorn's emperor ordered an all-hands effort to conquer the West's final stronghold. The battle was bitter and bloody. The West's chosen warriors trampled over and cleaved through swaths of the East's soldiers and Pokémon. Though they had greatly reduced the East's numbers, even they and their Beasts had their limits. Defending the Emperor's quarters at the top of the Brass Tower, the weary trio raised the swords against the tyrant's Dragonite. The gods had their limits, too, a searing HYPER BEAM threatening to melt their bodies and crash into the tower's support beam.

The electric tiger, with his last breath, summoned a vicious column of lightning around the tower and those fighting around it. The tower burst into flames as a result, both emperors and their best remaining soldiers vaporizing in the maelstrom of plasma. Lugia, the legendary bird Pokémon that was said to roost atop it, fled to the southwest on grave injuries, never to be seen again. The fires raged relentlessly, causing the tower to collapse into the ground. After three days and three nights, a miracle befell the city: a torrential downpour put out the flames, revealing a smoldering ruin of what was the home of the Beast of the Sea.

When the downpour ended, Ho-oh flew above the ruins of the tower, shining a rainbow straight into what was left of the tower basement. This light branched off into beams of yellow, blue, and red. The colored lights changed shape, the Great One giving new life to the legendary Beasts that sacrificed their lives for her.

It is said that in times of trial and tribulation, three warriors chosen by Ho-oh will ride across the land, quenching war and promoting peace.

They are the Beast Riders, and they are the guardians of Pokémon.

---

"And that, High King Calyrex, was my favorite bedtime story from my childhood," Josh exhaled. He wondered what kyle lopez and Isaac Merlo would think of the story if they were around to listen to it. "If you would like, you may join me in prayer to the Great One." He dropped to his knees and began reciting well-penned words out of reverence of the Emergent's Patron.

El had been a bit of a late comer to the tree - but in arriving during one chill evening, they had been met with a fascinating sight.

A Calyrex - but unlike the one from the dreams of Galar, this one appeared to be in the prime of health. In addition to this, while it seemed to remember people who had been caught up in the dreams... It was only those who had lived the other dream - that of the Sword's. But all the same, they were awed at the sight of the lapine Legendary - and was eager to learn more about them.

So, when the request for a story came along, they were eager to provide. "Justice and heroism... It, uhm... Kinda makes me think of the Galar dreams, actually." They muse out loud - a funny coincidence, really. "It was... It's something I actually find a lot of fond memories in, even if those memories are a bit fragmented and hazy." Bibidi had done what she could, to help preserve as much of the memories as either of them could.

"It was hard, for sure, to survive in the dream - especially in the early days. We were kinda on the back foot, and not everyone got along from the start - being split between Rocket and League... But when we started to find our footing and settle in? We were able to work together. We were able to do good for the people who counted on us, and be the heroes of this big crazy 20-year story." There was a sense of pride, that El felt about said good, even if the people it was for had simply been part of the dream...

"Working together, helping innocent villagers and their towns survive... We'd been able to take down two major threats to the dream, the Skeleton and the Black Knight, things that... I don't think either side would've been able to do on its own. Even with Zamazenta on our side." El smiled bright with this, though... The smile would drop a little as they sighed - musing out loud "I... do wish that that sort of camaraderie stuck around, though. The fighting between Rocket and League, it doesn't feel like it'll ever lead anywhere good for any of us. Some trouble in the first day was even caused by some fighting, in fact."

There is a brief pause, as El tries to recall. "There was this... Statue? Shrine? I don't wholly remember - but it was up on this snowy mountain, and had gotten destroyed in all the fighting, and... I think it was one of the only things that was keeping that Calyrex from the dream alive. From losing their mind to... That poison, that seemed to be trying to take over the dream."

El pauses for a second, mulling it over a little more. "And during the fight against Kyurem not long ago - even though we had been more or less on the same page at first... There was fighting then, especially when Palkia had emerged - even though there was a giant, terrible, beast bearing down on us. In fact, after the Galar dream, someone close to my brother had gotten kidnapped by Rocket - which led to him having to stage a rescue. One that almost got him killed..."

El is quiet for a short time, thoughtful... Before letting out this long, heavy, sigh. "I'm... Not sure why people are like this. Sure, there's probably a ton of reasons that people are in Rocket - and it's not as though they're all entirely bad people. But then there's the ones who start fighting when we're all in the same boat in the end, and it just... Is a little frustrating." They slowly shake their head "They... May not always be here to be 'just' or 'heroic' - a lot of Rockets do really terrible things..."

"... But they can see the stuff that's been going on too, don't they? That the stuff that's happening and threatens us doesn't care about either side of this... This stupid conflict...?"

Though, even that being said... "But it's not like it's only Rockets that I'm frustrated with, honestly. There's those on the other end of the spectrum - working with the League or just individual civilians - who just... Feel like they're biting at the bit for an excuse to fight Rockets, too." They think back to the League party, to paxton concordas - who had been more than happy to throw threats at someone just for being an ex-Rocket.

El sighs again, before smiling somewhat melancholic to the Calyrex. "Sorry; all of this reminiscing got a bit sad, didn't it?" They try to brighten their smile a little, though - mentioning "But even with all of the troubles, there's still so many good people - people I'd happily call 'heroes' - out there. I'm happy to know a lot of the people that I do, really - I admire them so much - and... I have a lot of hope, for the future."