Okay, this is the third chapter of my Pokémon Mystery Dungeon fic. So far, it's not anywhere near as popular as 'The Man with the Gallade's Arm', but I never figured it would be. I'm not worried that it's not as big, but I think it might just be a sleeper hit. Or maybe a flop, I'm not really sure. But hey, live and learn.

So, this chapter, really starts something. I guess if I don't start getting reviews though, I'm going to stop posting altogether on it and go to the Fallout 3 fic. That one's coming along better I think, and I actually like it better at this point, since I'm fairly certain it'll pick up a bit better than this currently is. Really, I might just let this die pretty soon. And I think I know why I'm having trouble with readers. I'll have to fix that summary. Clearly that's the problem. I mean, the way the story presents in the summary is what draws people in, and this makes me think that it's half of the problem. The other half, is that the plot is kind of lacking. That's the only other thing I could say is wrong. I mean, when I give it a moment of thought, I really see that it's kind of tough to believe that a human could have been made into an cyborg, and the fact that the main character's nicknamed after the main guy of DBZ might be a little odd. My thought is, Infernape was modeled slightly after the Monkey King, Sun Wukong, in Journey to the West. Goku, from DBZ was also based on Sun Wukong. So I figured I'd give that a shot. If anyone doesn't like this idea, let me know. If I don't get feedback, I let things die.

Now, another thing, this fic is dying right off the bat. I get a few readers a day, if that, and I feel like it's going down in a hurry. Do I need to get to a lifeboat, or will people that like it review? If you like it, review. If you don't like it, review. If I don't know what you like, I can't improve. I try to do my best to appeal to as many different tastes as I can, so if something isn't to your liking, I can still fix the chapters I haven't posted. If you tell me that something in chapter two isn't what you liked, then you've been a fool and now I can't fix it if it's something big. You let it drag on too long, and now you're out of luck. Sorry, but I can't fix the past, but I can fix the future.

Disclaimer: Nearly forgot it this time. Basically, it goes like this folks. I do not own any of the rights for Pokémon or Pokémon Mystery Dungeon. This fic is purely for entertainment purposes and I am not making any money off of this. So if you think I can influence the next season of the show, or give some cool stuff for the new games, then I'm sorry, you're looking at the wrong guy. So, to summarize: I, Lord Genesis Shadow, do in no way own the rights to Pokémon, Pokémon Mystery Dungeon, or any of the Pokémon subsidiaries in this, or any other universe. Got it? Good. I'm out of here.
…

I stared at the ceiling. Alex had gone for a walk in the halls since we didn't have to get up early. It was one advantage of being on probation. We could show up for morning cheers, but only if we felt like it. It was Wigglytuff that had decided this, as a way to annoy Chatot apparently. She felt that though we were pretty much confined to the guild we could still have some choice to ourselves.

"Goku?" Liz asked tiredly. "Are you awake?" I looked over to see her staring at the ceiling as well.

"Yeah." I replied. "What's up?" She looked over at me.

"Do you think it was right to put us on probation for what we did?" She asked. I shrugged.

"Well, I can see a good reason for it." I said. "Those seeds are kind of addictive." She nodded. "They wouldn't want everyone hooked on them trying to get stronger."

"I hope the others don't think badly of us." She said. "This kind of thing could be real bad for our reputation." I closed my eyes and puffed out another ring of smoke. "You're right though. I feel like I really want another one." I nodded.

"Me too." I said. "But we'd best just avoid them, or better yet destroy them if we find them." I heard her shudder.

"I don't know if I could do it though." She said. I nodded. "We'd have to do it quick so we wouldn't be tempted."

"If I find one, I'll burn it." I said. "I won't give it a second thought. I won't let you or Alex get into trouble again if I can help it." She turned her head to look at me. "I'll let Chatot know that it was my fault about the Joy seeds."

"It wasn't your fault though." Liz argued. I shook my head.

"No, I handed you the seeds." I said calmly. "I should have given my report and asked about them." Liz shook her head.

"There was no way any of us could have known about that rule." She said. I sighed, letting smoke escape my mouth. There was nothing in the pipe, but somehow I was inhaling smoke from it. "We all could have had better judgment." I nodded. I looked at the ceiling for a moment before exhaling more smoke. "Where did you come from?" She asked. I looked over at her.

"Why do you ask?" I replied. She shrugged. "Well, I'm not really sure how to answer." She looked at me strangely. "Would it be okay if I answered when Alex gets back?"

"Why wait?" She asked. I sighed, no smoke coming out this time.

"It's a bit of a tale, and I'm not sure you'll believe me." I said. "And there's a lot about me that I'm going to keep from you for a while."

"Is it about your parents?" She asked. I chuckled. "What?"

"I really don't know my parents." I said. "I'm an orphan. I never met my parents, and I never had foster parents. I've been a loner for as long as I can remember." I sighed again. "I've been through a lot, and I'm not sure if I'm through that part of the forest yet."

"What forest?" She asked. I looked at her for a moment before looking at the ceiling.

"The forest of life." I said profoundly. "We all go through it, and we all hit bushes of trouble and pain. I'm still looking for a clearing to catch my breath, but I can't see it just yet." Liz looked at me with a concerned look. "But don't worry about me. I'm fine with my life so far. After all, I've made two great friends at a critical moment in my life." She smiled at me. "A hard life without friends is made harder by that fact."

"I'm glad we met you Goku." She said. I nodded. She looked at the ceiling. "Do you believe in destiny?"

"That all things are predestined to happen?" I asked.

"Yeah." She replied. "I think we were destined to meet that day."

"Maybe." I said. "Destiny makes bonds between many lives, but I think sometimes something comes along and throws something else into the mix." She looked over at me as I turned to look at the ceiling. "Maybe we met by coincidence. Maybe you and Alex were destined to form a team, and I'm just here by chance."

"No, if it weren't for you, I wouldn't have had the nerve to do much of anything." She said quietly. "Maybe I was the one who was just there by chance." I chuckled.

"Liz, I think that you have the nerve." I said. "You just needed a chance to discover it." I looked at her to see her staring intently at me. "I was just the catalyst to show you." Several seconds passed in silence when the door opened, making her jump. Alex walked in and sat on her pillow.

"Hey guys." She said with a yawn. "What did I miss?" Liz giggled as I sat up and stretched.

"Not much." I said. "But I guess I've got something to tell you both." I stood up and stepped away from my bed. I turned to look at them both as I pulled the pipe out of my mouth. They were both staring at me intently. I sighed and looked up at the ceiling. "I'm not really a Chimchar." I looked down to see them giving me incredulous looks.

"What do you mean?" Liz asked. "You look like a Chimchar to me." Alex nodded.

"That's the problem." I said. "I only look like a Chimchar. I'm actually a human." They looked at each other for a moment before looking at me. "I know it's hard to believe but it's true." I thought about it for a moment. "Well, it was true. Now, I guess I am a Chimchar. But I used to be a human."

"How is that possible?" Alex asked. I shrugged. "How could you have been a human? What can change a human into a Pokémon like this?" I shook my head.

"I don't know." I said. "When you found me, I was injured. I'm not sure what happened, but it doesn't matter now." I put the pipe in my mouth. "I remember my old life, but it has no meaning anymore. I had no friends, no family, and nothing dear to me."

"Nothing at all?" Liz asked. I nodded.

"I was pretty much a lost soul back where I'm from." I said. "I had no meaning to live. But here I can do something for the good of others. I can help ease the burdens of others." I let out a puff of smoke. "I hope you can forgive me for not telling you about this earlier." They looked at each other and looked as though they were having a psychic conversation. I sat down and closed my eyes. "Before you come to a decision." I could feel them looking at me. "I've more to tell." I sighed. "I don't know why, but I figure I might as well get this off of my chest." I opened my eyes and took the pipe out of my mouth. "I'm also not really a human anymore." I looked at the ceiling. "I was also an Cyborg."

"What's that?" Liz asked. I looked at the ground for a moment.

"A machine." I said. "An artificial life form. I was in an accident and had to have most of my body replaced with metal parts." I looked up at them and then at my lap. "I had friends before that, but after becoming half machine they stopped being my friends. I became stronger, faster, I could see things nobody else could see, hear things nobody else could hear." I looked at them. "I was able to think faster, and I could come up with answers I never would have thought of before. I'm damaged, I'm fragile, and I'm sorry for not telling you earlier."

"Is that why we beat that Hariyama and that Vileplume?" Alex asked. I shrugged.

"Kind of." I replied. "I was able to react faster, and they were a lot stronger than we were. If I were all natural, I guess we would still have had a chance, but then we would have all been hurt as well." They turned back to each other and looked like they were having another mental conversation, occasionally looking over at me. 'Will they still let me be their friend?' I looked at my lap and then at my pipe. I put it in my mouth and inhaled.

*Substance: Smoke*
*Non-harmful, no chemicals detected*
*Smoke is empty substance*
(Just like I've always been)

"Jack?" Liz asked. I looked up to see them looking at me. "Why didn't you tell us this before?"

"I was worried that you wouldn't like me if you knew." I said. I looked away. "I haven't had anyone care about me for a while. I guess I thought that you wouldn't be my friends if you knew." I felt something grabbing my face. The force turned my head to look at the girls.

"You're our friend Jack." Alex said. The sensation let me go and I looked at her for a moment. "What you were doesn't make a difference."

"I'm still an Cyborg." I said quietly. "On the outside you can't see it, but on the inside I'm still full of metal and wires." They shook their heads.

"That doesn't matter." Liz said. "You're still our friend. Whatever you used to be or whatever you are doesn't change that." I smiled.

"Yeah, and we're all in this together." Alex said. "No matter what happens we'll always have each other." I nodded. She yawned and closed her eyes. "We'd better go to sleep. It isn't good to stay up all night." Liz nodded and lay back down on her bed. I stood up and went over to my own bed. I put the pipe away and settled into a resting position. I pulled up some more coals around myself and closed my eyes.

"Thanks." I said quietly. "Thank you both for everything."
...

I woke up, sat up, and stretched. I opened my eyes and reached for my pipe. I pulled it out and placed it in my lips. I let out a puff of smoke with a sigh. I looked around and saw that the girls had already gotten up. I looked at the window and figured that it was some time past the morning cheer. I stood up and stretched. I looked to see their packs still beside their beds. I walked to the door and heard a trio of muffled voices.

*Audio enhancement: 35%*

"We should make sure that he isn't hurt." Chatot said. "If he thinks he's a machine that was once a human, he may be crazy."

"But Chatot, he wouldn't say something if he wasn't telling the truth." Wigglytuff said. "He doesn't look like the type who'd lie like that."

"I'm concerned that Hariyama may have used something to make him think that." Chatot argued. "He may be under the influence of something." I sighed. I grabbed my Rescue kit and slung it over my shoulder.

"I'm just worried about him." Alex said. "Please, I just want to know that he's okay." I went over to the window and jumped up to it. I sat against the edge and let out another puff of white smoke.

"I should have known better." I muttered. "There's no way to prove my story, so I'll probably be labeled insane, get kicked out of the guild." I looked out the window. 'If I am, I'll just leave and never come back.' The door opened and I looked over to see them all walking in.

"Jack, we have something to discuss with you." Chatot said. I nodded.

"About my having been a human before this." I said. He nodded. "It's true, all of it. I used to be a human, I was in an accident, and I was made half machine. If you don't believe me, I'll just have to go elsewhere." Chatot looked dumbfounded. "I can survive this fall quite easily." I stood up and looked out the window. There were a number of branches I could grab to slow my descent and there were trees at the base of the mountain the guild was built into that I could land in. There was even a lake within my jumping reach to break my fall. I looked to see them all staring at me. Alex looked ashamed, Wigglytuff looked worried, and Chatot looked confused.

"Can you prove your stories?" Chatot asked. I shook my head.

"I have no evidence except my word." I said. "And that should be enough. I know my own life, and I know I was human before I became a Chimchar." Chatot looked at Wigglytuff.

"I'm not sure what to say Jack." He said. "It's impossible to check out your story you know." I nodded. "Then we're just to take your word for this?" I nodded again.

"If you don't and decide I'm insane." I started. I turned my back to them and looked over my right shoulder. "Or if you think I don't belong in the guild, I'll jump and you'll never see me again unless I want you to." They all stared as Liz walked into the room.

"Jack, you can't just expect us believe such an outrageous story like this so easily." Chatot argued. "There is a Pokémon we can call. He can see into the future or the past. He can even see into your old life. We can have him prove or disprove your story." I smiled.

"Liz." I said. She looked at me. "Would you trust them with this?" She looked around. "Would you? If you don't trust them, you'll find me somewhere familiar to us both." She looked nervous.

"No." She said. Everyone looked at her. I smiled as they all looked at me.

"All right then." I said. "You know where you can find me Liz." I looked down and grimaced. I looked back at Chatot. "Call your specialist. Tell Liz who it is. I'll go see him and maybe I'll come back." I looked back down the cliff. "Sayonara!" I jumped out as Chatot began flapping his wings. I flew past the first branch, missing it by inches. "Oh crap!" I grabbed the second branch, which promptly snapped in half. It slowed me down enough to catch the next three in sequence. I flew past the leaves of the first tree branch, but I managed to catch the second one. I felt the branch bending so I let it go and grabbed the one below it. It bent but did not break. "Thank you oh merciful tree." I pulled myself up and walked over to the trunk. Thankfully my coral pipe was still in my mouth. I let out a puff and did a diagnostic.

*System status: Nominal*
*Physical status: No damage detected*
*New attack learned: Fury swipes*

I looked down and slid quickly to the ground. Chatot could fly and he would probably be here soon to see if I had survived. I ran at a careful speed, dodging trees and making sure that I couldn't see Chatot.

"Jack Goku!" Chatot yelled. I looked up and zoomed in to see him coming down with Wigglytuff puffed up and floating down behind him. "There must be a better way to do this! We can talk this out!" I ran away faster, ducking under bushes and jumping over low branches. I looked behind me to see them landing by the tree I had landed in. I clambered up a tree and began going from branch to branch in another direction. I would double back and they would lose me for sure.
…

I looked out at the lake behind the building. I had come over under cover of night and I hid where I couldn't be seen. I was now hoping that Liz would remember the clinic where we had first introduced ourselves. I figured about a week of a wait would do me some good to concentrate. We had only known each other for a few days, but I felt a strong bond with her. Alex however seemed more distant. She was worried, but I always wondered if she had trusted me from the start.

I looked over the roof to see a number from Pokémon heading my way. Among them were Chatot and Loudred. I zoomed in on them to see that Alex was pointing to the clinic. I jumped down the back and ran a long way into the forest nearby.

'Better safe than sorry.' I thought. I looked to see Chatot checking the roof. 'Great minds think alike.' I looked around and decided that I was too exposed. I climbed up a tree and looked out through a small gap. Chatot was looking around, but thankfully I hadn't left any footprints.

"Well, he hasn't been up here." Chatot muttered. Alex looked out near where I was. She seemed very worried. I held no doubt that she was sorry, but I was having a hard time feeling sorry for her. Chatot landed beside her and placed his right wing on her back. "It's okay Alex. You were worried that he might be sick, or worse. You did what you thought was right. It's not your fault." She pushed his wing away. "I know you're concerned, but he could be dangerous." She turned away and held her arms to her chest.

"I still feel bad for not trusting him." She said. "I feel horrible. I've betrayed a friend and I don't even really know why." I felt a tear forming in my right eye but I shook my head. "You won't hurt him will you?" Chatot shook his head.

"No, we will bring him in with sleep powder and hypnosis if he resists." He said. "We just want to be sure he's telling the truth. There is a legend that a human that would be transformed into a Pokémon who would save our world from destruction. So far, everything points to this legend being true. If Jack is indeed this human, then we must help him any way we can." I wanted to hear more, but I saw that he was hopping away. I could just barely hear him as he was. "You must go with Liz when she goes to meet him. You don't have to report to us, but we will give you some items to help you get to Xatu. If he is who we believe he is, then we must help him however we can."

'Maybe I should go back.' I thought. 'It would be a lot easier on the others.' I watched as they walked away.

"I'll tell Liz that we should come by tomorrow." Alex said. She looked right where I sat. "I want to get this over with so we can get our friend back." I wanted to smile but I saw tears forming in her eyes. "I want to apologize to Jack. I just feel so bad about betraying his trust." She shuddered as Chatot looked at her. "I feel so dirty and wrong about this whole thing."
…

I sat on top of the clinic staring at the stars. They were different than the ones I remembered, but they were beautiful nevertheless. I looked down and saw two figures headed toward the clinic. I zoomed in to see Liz and Alex arguing. They were out of my audio range for another minute and the darkness kept me from reading their lips. I leaned back and looked up at the sky.

'When you lose trust in those around you, you may as well have leave of them.' I thought. 'If distrust leads to someone getting hurt, you may as well have been the one to inflict the injury.' These words had been spoken to me by a friend who had left me because of my mechanical parts. 'And to not trust a friend, is to say that you were never a true friend.' I looked down to see them just within range of my audio enhancement sensors.

"I said I'm sorry Liz." Alex said tearfully. "I feel horrible about this, I really do. I just felt like he might have been dreaming what he told us." Liz stopped and turned around.

"Then why didn't you say that to his face?" She asked. "Why didn't you ask him? Didn't you think he'd tell us the truth?" I shook my head and slid down to the ground. "He saved our lives twice Alex. We should have at least trusted him not to lie about his past." She turned and looked at me. "We'll talk about this later." Alex lowered her head as I began walking toward them. "Goku, are you okay?" She looked me over as I approached. I nodded.

"I'm fine." I said. "That fall wasn't too bad." I chuckled. "I missed the first branch, but I'm okay. What about you two?" They looked at each other for a moment but Liz looked away, making Alex look at the ground again. "I heard you arguing." They both looked at me so I gestured to my left ear with my left hand. "It's one of the perks of being Cyborg. I can hear things a good distance away." Liz nodded as Alex looked away. "And Alex." She turned her eyes to look at me. "Apology accepted." She looked at me with a quizzical look. "I know it must have been difficult telling Chatot about me. I don't know why you told him, and I don't really care." She sniffed as Liz looked at her. "I'm used to having people not trust me, but I still trust you." I held out my right hand to her.

"So, we're okay?" She asked. I nodded. She smiled and took my hand. I looked at Liz.

"Don't be so hard on her Liz." I said. "She was just worried about me." Liz looked at the ground. "If you can't trust your friends, then who can you trust?" She nodded and looked at Alex.

"I'm sorry Alex." She said. "I just didn't think that you'd tell the others without Goku telling you that it was okay." They exchanged sad looks and I looked down at my hand.

"Um, Alex?" I asked. She looked at me. "No rush, but uh." I looked at my hand again. "Can I have my hand back?" She blushed and let go of my hand. "So, where is this Xatu fellow?" They looked at each other. I pointed at my ears again.

"He's on a mountain." Liz said. She pulled out a map and pointed at a nearby mountain range. "We just need to get to the top and he should be there waiting for us." I nodded. I looked at Alex.

"Any supplies from Chatot?" I asked. She looked at me for a moment. "Don't make me point at my ears again." She blushed and looked at her bag.

"A bunch of Oran berries, some Pecha berries, and five Reviver seeds." She said. "He said he wants you to be ready for anything in case you turn out to be…"

"A legendary hero." I finished. She nodded as Liz looked at me. "Every legend hides a few facts. I'll be asking Xatu about the legend. If I am this legend, then I'll be counting on the two of you to help me get that far." They looked surprised. "If I don't have you two helping me, I'm not going to last long." They both blushed. "I don't know a thing about this world, so without you two helping me, I'll be lost and helpless."