Prologue

I'm not strong, I've never been strong and I'll probably never be strong. It's just not who I am. I'm creative; I can come up with anything on the spot, whether it be a lie or a plan. I can be fast when the moment calls for it and I seem to have a talent for narrowly escaping death. But strength, well let's just say that it's never been my forte.

So what was I supposed to do then, when I was thrust into a world where everything depends on strength? Where the only way to achieve anything is to become the strongest? A wise friend once told me that strength isn't physical, it comes from within. It took me a long time to understand what she meant but when I did, let's just say that it made all the difference.

***

"No, let go of me!" Hands were everywhere, clawing, grabbing, there was no escape. Cold, strong fingers clutching, reaching for me.

"Leave her be!" I twisted my head furiously to see the speaker but my world was dark. I was surrounded and although I could hear voices, all I could see was the hands. They lunged for me and I had nowhere to go.

"No!" The cry was torn from me as one cold hand grasped my neck, forcing me to the ground. I struggled, fighting desperately to get free but was no match for the hand. I kicked and clawed but nothing seemed to hurt it.

"Release her!" The pressure was cutting off my air and I gasped, trying to gulp in as much sweet oxygen as I could. If I didn't manage to get free soon, I wasn't sure how much longer I could hold on.

"Stop it, our battle is not with you!" The hand's grip tightened and my vision began to dim. Is this how it was meant to end, before I ever began?

"Maybe, but my battle is with her!" I was cold now; I could feel it in my limbs. It was like I was sloughing through deep water. A strange exhaustion was seeping into my bones; I couldn't fight it any longer.

"This has to stop!" Was it my imagination or was the darkness beginning to retreat. The hands, were they changing? They looked smaller now, and blue, not white. There was only one pair; the rest disappeared into the darkness.

"You, you're with them?" She was wounded and the pressured lessened, allowing oxygen to enter my airways. I coughed, choking on the sweet air.

"Let the girl go, it doesn't have to end this way." It was getting lighter too, too bright. The harsh change hurt my eyes.

"It has to; she can't be allowed to live!" All at once the darkness returned and the hands transformed. They were white and strong, applying pressure once more. Immediately my air was cut off but I had found another gear. The precious oxygen I'd managed to inhale had restored some of my frail strength.

I twisted, clawing at the hands with my own. I could feel something within me, something hot that wanted out. My entire being tingled and the hands pulled back ever so slightly.

"What are you doing?" I thrashed, fighting against the restraining hands. Every fibre of my being hurt and although I wanted to scream I couldn't, the pain was too much. Something inside of me was fighting to get out, and it was coming close to victory.

"No!" Yellow fire erupted from me, burning my body and the hands. I could hear someone screaming and others calling, for me I wasn't sure. The voices faded and darkness consumed me, surrounding my entire being. All that existed was the yellow fire, burning everything. The pain was more then I could bear, it ate away at me until there was nothing left. And then I was falling.

***

She's here. The word's rang loud and clear in the rogue's head. With a startled growl she jumped to her feet, already looking for the enemy before she realized what was going on. Annoyed, she shook her head and sighed, her stomach grumbling from hunger. It had been at least a week since she'd had a proper meal. No doubt this constant ache was the reason she was hearing voices. She'd heard that strange things can happen when you're hungry; hallucinations must be one of them.

She settled herself back down on the ground, curling up in a tight ball in an attempt to keep warm. Closing her crimson eyes, she tried to remember what she'd been dreaming of before being jerked awake. Try as she might, all she could bring to mind were fleeting images of a meadow, someplace warmer than here. Disappointed that she couldn't remember, she tried instead to sleep, to bring on a new dream.

She's here. There it was again, that voice. This time it didn't frighten her, although she hadn't been expecting it. All she did was open her eyes and wait, certain that there was more to the message. There was doubt about it, this was no hallucination brought on by her hunger.

She's here. The voice repeated for a third time. Irritated, she got to her feet and left her little clump of bushes. The grass was cool against her paws and she shivered, hesitating for one moment. She wanted to return to her shelter, but duty propelled her forward. Grumbling, she came to a small clearing in the woods, where the moon was visible through the break in the vast branches of the trees.

"You've said that three times now, anything else?" She asked dryly, looking up at the silver orb. For a moment, there was nothing but silence and the rogue lowered her head. She wished it was all a hallucination, she'd rather hear voices that made no sense then voices that compelled her to do something.

She's here, find her. She lifted her head, her scarlet eyes widening in surprise. This was not what they had agreed upon; her mission was to await her teammates' return. She had made it clear that she wanted nothing to do with their baggage.

"No," she growled, "no, she's on her own." She wasn't sure if her teammate could see her glare, but she glared nonetheless. She would not be dragged into their quest, not if her life depended on it.

She needs help. The rogue snarled at the response, her fur standing on end. Clearly her partner had forgotten who she was talking to.

"We all need help," the rogue said. "Why should I help her?" Her partner didn't answer right away and the rogue debated walking away. If she wasn't familiar with her teammate's stubbornness and persistence then she would have.

Because we can't, and she needs somebody. The rogue was silent, digesting the words. She didn't want to get involved; she hadn't wanted her friends involved and had done all she could to convince them not to. They hadn't listened to her warnings and now they were in trouble. Why should she help the girl that had caused this all, that had taken her friends from her?

"If I help her," the rogue began, "will it really save us all?" It was silent in the small clearing except for a gentle breeze. The clouds were rolling in and had all but covered the moon. The rogue could feel her partner's connection disintegrating and before it disappeared, she managed to hear one last thing.

I hope so.

***

And with this I welcome you to my story, to our story. I'd be lying if I said this was solely about me. There were so many who helped me, and this is as much their story as mine. As my good friend Aries once said, our story cannot exist without their stories. In any case, I guess you could say that this is all of our stories. We all started at different places, but we all ended up together.

***

Author's Note: I've been debating for a long time on whether or not to write a Mystery Dungeon fic, so here it is. This story will have some elements of the games, but overall, it's my own plotline. I apologize for the short prologue; I promise that the first chapter will be longer. I hope you enjoy,