Pokémon Mystery Dungeon 4: Explorers of Space II
Chapter 1: Mission
"W-Where am I...?" A voice mutters to itself looking around in confusion. Everywhere it is pure white like a rising sun blinding the morning sky, but what confuses the being is that there is no sunlight at all. He has no idea where the light is coming from, least of all where he is. He is floating somewhere in midair, that much he knows.
What has happened before? Truth being told, the being has no idea himself. Hell, he doesn't even remember anything before going into this... place. He frowns; is he in heaven?
"Good of you to join us, young one," A feminine voice speaks up and echoes through the area. The being turns its head side to side to look for the source of the sound but is unable to find the owner. He frowns deeper.
"W-Who's there?" the being's voice speaks again sounding deep but holds a tone of confusion as he glances warily around him.
"Do not fear me, child," The female voice speaks to him again, holding a soothing tone that calmed him somewhat. "I mean you no harm. In fact, I merely wish for your help with something."
"Who are you? Show yourself!" the being demands, eyes narrowing in agitation as he glares around growing tired of being lead around in circles. Despite that he may be alone and has no idea what is going on, he isn't scared to take on anything.
The voice chuckles. "As you wish." Soon a bright light flashes and nearly blinds the being, making him shield his eyes. When it diminishes, he carefully peeks one eye open and what he sees makes his eyes widen.
In front of him is probably the most elegant looking creature he has ever seen. Judging by its kind lavender eyes and built frame, it is a female quinlike Pokémon with raven black fur covering most of her body. She has pure obsidian onyx hooves, nose, and a white face. She has a crystal horn on her forehead that twinkles under the light as she casts her purple eyes down at his much smaller form. The smaller being just stares at her in awe. "Who are you?"
The black being smiles. "Young one, you may know me as Blackfire, Arceus' long deceased mate and Goddess of Life." She introduces herself and bows politely to him. Hearing the last bit, the being's frown deepens.
"'Deceased?' As in dead? Does that mean I am also...?" He looks greatly displeased and Blackfire's smile deepens as she shakes her head. "Not exactly, dear. You are not dead nor are you alive. Rather, you're sort of in between at this very moment."
The being frowns. "How is that possible?"
Blackfire explains better. "You see, your spirit is out of your body at the moment by my power. Once I am finished speaking my terms with you, you are free to live your new life as you please."
"How am I...? Did you create me...?"
"Indeed I did. I need your help with something very personal, and once that favor is over you may go on with the remainder of your life as you please."
The being frowns, not liking the thought of being brought to life just to help a stranger with her own personal problems. But she did say that if he helps her he is free to go so it shouldn't be so bad. "OK, sounds like a good deal." He then frowns as he realizes that he has somewhat furry paws and is now confused; he knows that he is a Pokémon, but he couldn't figure out what kind of species he is since he doesn't know what he looks like. "Miss Blackfire, may I ask you something?"
Blackfire smiles kindly and nods.
"I cannot identify what I am, exactly. Would you show me my reflection?"
The Goddess smiles again and says, "Well, of course you don't recognize yourself; I made you entirely of something different. But of course I will show you what you look like." Out of nowhere, she summons water to float in midair as an act of being a rectangular mirror. Blackfire holds it out for the being as he stares at himself.
He looks like some sort of a wild mammal due to how much hair and fur he has. He looks like somewhat like a mixture of a hedgehog and a fox due to how spiky his hair appears. From toe to the waist he has extra brown-grayish fur sticking out while the waist is just thin fur and a large bush of extra dark black fur covers his upper chest and shoulders. He is as skinny as a toothpick by some standards but he looks quite athletic. From the elbow to the hand, he holds more brown-gray fur like his legs. He contains three red claws on each limb as he examines them. He then looks carefully at his face and examines it. He has red streaks over the edges of his lips, long snout, and just above his eyes like some sort of eyeshade. His sapphire eyes glow as he stares at himself and looks at the most noticeable thing, which is a huge chunk of red hair coming out of his head in the form of a large ponytail. The spikes have hints of black on them while close to the tip a light blue hair tie is holding the hair in place completely.
As he paws at his cheek, he stares at himself even more in confusion. He has never seen such a different creature before. "W-What am I...?" He whispers.
Behind him, Blackfire looks at his reflection with a soft smile. "My dear, you are the Master of Illusion, Zoroark. You have an ability to change into any being you choose at any time and you hold a great destiny before you."
Zoroark frown even more as he finishes staring at his reflection and turns to face the queen expectantly. Crossing his arms, he states, "Right. Your request. What is it that you wish of me to do for you, ma'am?"
Blackfire leans forwards and looks at him carefully for a moment before saying, "Zoroark, on Earth my daughter and son are living amongst other Pokémon in a happy life. One I fear that will be diminished. Because a new force is keeping me and Arceus from moving to anywhere and that neither of us can interfere with our children's lives again, I need you to watch over them for me."
Is it really that simple? Zoroark frowns again and drops his arms as he takes a few steps towards the queen. "Ma'am, I fear that you must be joking. You are asking me to babysit your own children in exchange for my freedom? I think that there must be more to it than that. What trouble is there that fears you that will exterminate your children?"
Blackfire's smile fades a little. Persuading this young man will be hard, she could tell. Like herself, he is just a stubborn and he knows not to fall for things easily. She respects that in every free will, but it is a tad bit frustrating when talking someone into doing something. "I fear of something that will return too soon. All I know is that it is attempting to destroy an ancient dimension that balances all life. If it is destroyed, then all hope for the future is gone."
"But what do your children have anything to do with it?"
"As they are partially Legendaries through me and their father, they are permitted to enter the dimension. Only they have the power other than Palkia herself to hopefully keep the area safe from harm."
"Well, why doesn't Palkia fix it herself?"
"I do not know; somehow space is being shattered and the dimensions to other worlds are starting to disappear. Because of this, Palkia is slowly losing her mind and sense of good will."
Zoroark groans and rubs his temple in agitation. "This isn't gonna be easy doing alone..."
"Oh!" Blackfire exclaims suddenly as if a thought has just occurred to her. "That reminds me. Since you are going down to Earth, you will need a team to help you along the way as well."
As on cue, she closes her eyes and focuses. Three small pools of light appear on what looks like the floor and three different beings appear looking around in confusion. The first is a Haunter, the second is a Luxio, and the last is a strange tiny creature similar to Zoroark somewhat. Instead of standing on two legs, it is standing on all four paws. It has somewhat of a dark mane across its neck and looks more fox if anything. It holds a cute tiny face and big blue eyes as it looks around in confusion.
"Welcome, boys." Blackfire greets the men and bows before them like she had with Zoroark. The large fox looks at the newcomers curiously as Blackfire speaks to them. "I am Blackfire, mate of Arceus, and this is Zoroark," She gestures to the fox, who grunts in acknowledgement while crossing his arms and holding a blank stare at the three beings. "In case you are wondering, yes I am the one who has brought you here; yes I am the one who gave you life, and yes you are free to do as you choose but after I ask a favor out of you."
She then explains everything she told Zoroark earlier, and when she is done the boys are quiet. "You want us to help watch over your daughter and son?" The Haunter taps his chin thoughtfully.
"They are the only ones that can save the dimension dilemma?" The Luxio asks as he stares at Blackfire and Zoroark carefully.
"And once that job is done we are free to live our new lives?" The little fox being asks padding over with big hopeful eyes at the Legendary.
"Correct." Blackfire nods. "And Zoroark will be with you during that mission, so I hope you all will get along nicely during the time."
They all think about it for a little while before the boys nod in agreement. It's not like they have anything else to do. "We're in." The Haunter shrugs. He then gives a toothy grin over at Zoroark and floats over to wrap an arm around his shoulder casually. "Looks like you're stuck with us for a while, Bub."
Zoroark looks greatly uncomfortable by being touched. Not wanting to be rude, he slowly removes the clawed hand and backs away while nodding in agreement. With a slight smile, he says, "Looks like it...er..." his smile fades as he realizes something and tilts his head. "But the first thing you guys need are names."
The boys look at each other before they grin and nod. After another moment of silence, they think of names and the Haunter bows dramatically while saying, "Just call me Drake."
"I'll be Lance." The Luxio states and nods his head. Zoroark nods and looks at the little one to wait for his response. The little fox thinks for a moment before saying, "Well... Zoroark sounds like a cool name, so how about I just be Zorua? That way everyone can tell who's who without too much confusion."
Zoroark stares at the little fox in shock. Did he just say that he thinks his name is cool? He has to hand it to the little guy; he is full of surprises. But he couldn't help but admit that the boy is cute. With a smile, he playfully ruffles the boy's hair and earns a giggle in return. Blackfire smiles at the sight.
"Very well. Zoroark, Zorua, Drake, and Lance, you all have a great destiny for each of you." Blackfire states as the boys line up formally and listen with total attention. "I want you to be at your best. Be strong even at the toughest times but have fun during your mission. I wish the best of luck for you all."
"Yes, ma'am!" Each male salutes respectfully and Blackfire smiles before closing her eyes. The boys are engulfed by a bright light before they disappear. The last thing they hear is Blackfire's voice calling out to them.
"When you look for my children, say that their mother Blackfire has sent you on Earth to watch over them. If they ask for proof, tell them that their mother is the one who brought Crystal back to life and promised to see her again. Crystal will instantly believe you."
