The New Normal - 17-10 - Interlude - Legendary Discussions

The New Normal – 17-10 – Interlude – Legendary Discussions

(Excerpt from the article: Unovan Mythology – an examination behind the tales of the Twin Heroes and the Legendaries of Unova)

Every child in Unova has heard of the tale of the Twin Heroes – the story of how an unidentified Legendary being had somehow split into two, with each of the two following after a different Hero. These beings were later recorded as Zekrom and Reshiram, representatives of the concepts of Ideals and Truth respectively. Furthermore, these Legendaries are apparently still dormant, but are waiting to be awakened by the right ‘hero’ that is able to perfectly resonate with their respective concept.

However, little is known about these Legendaries beyond this point – with everything else being seen as nothing more than conjecture. Yet we do have documentary and written evidence that describes more about these Legendaries, which is why this book shall attempt to piece together what is known about them.

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A common misconception is that Zekrom, the being of Ideals, is a pure-hearted and righteous Legendary. It is a simple misconception to have, as one of the oft repeated tales is how Zekrom had apparently annihilated past kingdoms due to their people having lost the ‘righteousness in their hearts’.

However, the written evidence reveals otherwise. Legendaries, as they explain, do not think in the same terms as us humans do. In other words, we cannot try to use our terms of morality and apply it to them. They simply operate at a different level than us. To them, their own concept is all that matters.

Moreover, a few written sources have indicated that, in the past, Zekrom has been awakened by what we would consider to be unrighteous people. This directly contradicts the idea that Zekrom can only be awakened by a righteous and moral hero.

Instead, they state that what Zekrom resonates with the most is not a morally good person, but rather, a person who firmly and unwaveringly believes in their own righteousness. This is a major difference, as an evil person may be completely certain of the path they take, ignorant to the fact that the path they walk only leads to suffering and misery.

For example, a misguided zealot who is unquestioning in their own beliefs would be just as likely to resonate with Zekrom and awaken it as a righteous and moral hero would be, even though the former would not be considered to be a ‘good’ person by our own moral standards.

Therefore, rather than a test of character being the determining factor for awakening Zekrom, it is in fact a matter of willpower and self-belief. This actually makes sense if you take into account the idea that a Legendary thinks differently to us.

This means that there is every likelihood that Zekrom could be wielded in the hands of a dangerous individual, so long as that individual truly and completely believes in the inherent ‘righteousness’ of their own actions.

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Moving on to their destructive potential, based on the tales and myths, it is said that Zekrom and Reshiram are powerful enough to destroy Unova with their lightning and flames respectively. And through the study of past texts, the common consensus among the experts is that these claims are all but confirmed to be true.

It is commonly agreed that the areas that are now known as the Chargestone Cave and the Desert Resort were formed due to the lingering energies from these two Legendaries. For Zekrom’s lingering electric powers were the cause of the constant electrification of Chargestone Cave, while the flames of Reshiram had devastated and destroyed the once-lush forests near Nimbasa City, causing the desert to appear.

However, despite how powerful that might seem, this level of power should be expected from a Legendary Pokémon. In fact, their inability to manipulate more esoteric concepts like Time and Space, as can be seen in the likes of Dialga and Palkia respectively, may suggest that the raw destructive potential of these two Legendaries might not be as devastating as their peers. Unfortunately, there were no visual recordings of the battle between Palkia and the Legendary Titan, or else we could have had a better idea of the scope and scale of a Legendary’s power.

And of course, this is all based on conjecture. We do not know for certain whether Zekrom or Reshiram would have other powers that have yet to be revealed to us yet that might help balance the scales in this regard. As always when discussing Legendaries, it is safe to assume that their power are beyond the limits of us mortals.

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Another misconception is that if either Zekrom or Reshiram awakens, then the other shall awaken in turn. There is simply no evidence to prove that this is the case. More than likely, this idea was born out of a mistaken assumption based on the fact that the two are considered to be evenly matched. Therefore, it is very possible for Zekrom or Reshiram to awaken independently of the other.

This is, frankly, a disturbing and terrifying thought to have, especially when you consider the destructive power behind either one of these Legendaries. This is because if someone were to successfully awaken either Zekrom or Reshiram, then there is no guarantee that the other will awaken so that it could be used to match up against the first. In such a situation, we may be very well forced to accept whatever fate comes our way.

After all, it is common knowledge that the only being that is able to take down a Legendary is another Legendary. One only needs to look at the recent battles that took place during Sinnoh’s Day of Calamity to verify this fact.

Therefore, should there unfortunately be a clash of such powerful beings, we may see for ourselves just why Sinnoh decided to label their battle against Palkia as the ‘Day of Calamity’.

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The Truth remained buried, long-forgotten to the annals of history. It’s all-enlightening flames would not burn through the shadow of lies plaguing the world.

Meanwhile, Ideals remained corrupted, held in the hands of a puppet on strings. Their noble intentions twisted and manipulated for someone else’s ends, as their Ideals remain blind to the Truth – rejecting its extended hand. And in the end, these Ideals would unknowingly seek to fight against the very goal that they hoped to achieve.

However, when the Truth remains hidden and Ideals fall to corruption, there will always be those that strive for their own sense of righteousness. Who would fight against those very same false Ideals for the betterment of their world.

A.N. Foreshadowing and setup! Also, as for Zekrom specifically, I decided to reinterpret the myths surrounding it. As stated in the chapter, even though Zekrom embodies ‘Ideals’, those ideals don’t necessarily have to be good or bad. It is only one’s will to see them through which is all that matters. Hope you enjoyed!