Chapter 8

Darkrai watched the world from the Hall of Light, smiling to himself at what he saw. So many Pokémon were turning to his cause as his allies went from place to place, recruiting new powerful allies to the fold.

Far away, he saw Lunar Island. His counterpart, Cresselia, the very Pokémon he had been born from, was readying herself for the invasion a small group of his followers would soon mount. Meowstic, Rhydon and Pyroar were the three leaders of this attack, and Darkrai had every faith in them. The most important thing for a leader to have was trust in his foot soldiers.

Cresselia was a necessary trouble to deal with. If she was left for too long, she would regain much of her power taken from her when Darkrai was born, unbeknownst to her. The sooner she was placed in the Nightmare Realm with her master Arceus, the better. Once she was gone, virtually no Pokémon would be able to stand in Darkrai's way. He was far superior to those three fools, the Swords of Justice. All other self-proclaimed "legendary" Pokémon took nothing to do with the rest of the world, and just slumbered peacefully in their respective domains. Soon this world would belong to Darkrai.

All Pokémon will bow to me… he thought to himself with malice, and those who do not will die…

"What job do you guys think we should take today?" Asked Froakie, as he, Chespin and Fennekin stood at the request board, examining the notices.

Fennekin pointed at one. "Look at this one!"

Chespin and Froakie saw where she was pointing, and began to read.

Dear Guild hero(s):

I come to you asking for help. I need a strong Pokémon to escort me through the Hollow Canyon, as I am far too weak to get through there myself. It is absolutely vital that I reach there in time, as there is someone I must talk to who lives on the other side of the Canyon. This is a very dangerous task, so I would preferably like a team to help me get through the Canyon.

Thank you in advance, Slowpoke

Slowpoke was an aspiring explorer who showed up at the Guild sometimes. He often spent so long staring at the request board trying to figure out which job he should do that it was almost the end of the day before he finally decided, and by that time the job had already been done by another Pokémon. He was a very nice Pokémon, though, and Chespin counted him among his good friends.

Chespin looked back at Fennekin. "That job does sound good, but it's quite a long way to get to the Hollow Canyon, and it's very dangerous there. I wonder who's so important for Slowpoke to talk to… Do you really think we should try and help Slowpoke get through?"

Froakie seemed to be weighing the dangers in his head. He finally spoke, "I think we're up for it! After all, we make an excellent team, remember?"

Chespin smiled. "Okay, then, we'll take the job! Let's split up to make preparations, then we'll head off in about thirty minutes! I'll go and look for Slowpoke!"

Fennekin and Froakie nodded, and the three of them went their separate ways.

In a cluster of bushes behind the old Kecleon shop, a pair of eyes watched as a blue Pokémon stood at Kangaskhan's Depository, withdrawing some items.

That's one of them, the Pokémon thought. They must be heading out on a job. I'd better round up the gang, so we can tail 'em…

The Pokémon then laughed to himself, and then silently cursed himself for making a sound.

Froakie stared at the bush for a second as he passed. Did he really just hear a bush laugh? He thought about investigating it, then remembered that he had to head for the meeting spot. He sighed at himself for thinking a bush could talk, and then headed onwards.

That was so close… the Pokémon thought. When the coast was clear, the large pink Pokémon with sharp tusks and beady eyes emerged from the bushes. He then went off to alert his gang that the targets were moving.

"Er… Hi, Chespin and Fennekin. This must be your new friend, er… Froakie, was it?"

"Yes," Froakie said, "It's nice to meet you, Slowpoke. You're in capable hands on your trip through the canyon, I assure you. If trouble does arise, we'll do everything in our power to protect you."

"Er… Thanks, Froakie! It really, er… Puts my mind at ease, knowing that someone will be on this journey with me, protecting me!"

Froakie smiled. "Happy to help!"

Chespin admired Froakie's kindness towards Slowpoke, whom he had just met. He was proud of how his friend was so determined to help this Pokémon in need.

"Well, then, shall we get this show on the road?" Fennekin asked with a wide smile on her face.

"Er… Yeah! Let's go… Through, er… Where are we going again?"

"Hollow Canyon, Slowpoke." Chespin said.

"Oh yeah! There…" Slowpoke muttered blankly. All four of them then started to laugh, and set off from Treasure Town to start their journey.

Meanwhile, two other friends were on a journey of their own. Lucario and Luxray had been through dungeon after dungeon, facing countless powerful Pokémon on their journey to the Hall of Light.

"This brings back memories," Lucario said between gasps. They had been travelling for hours without rest, and had already come so far from home. Dark clouds spread on the horizon, giving their journey an air of ominousness.

"Memories? Of what?" Luxray asked.

"All our old adventures. Remember that time we went to the future?"

"Yeah… It was so scary, we almost died so many times. Remember when we had old Dusknoir and all those Sableye on our tail?"

Lucario laughed. "Yeah… But everything did turn out all right in the end."

Luxray looked at him confusedly. "Are you kidding? We haven't seen Grovyle or Dusknoir since then! We could use their help if they were still around, given the situation lately."

Lucario's brow furrowed, thinking of Grovyle, his old partner who had recruited him to help him gather the Time Gears. They had been best friends, even though one was a human and the other a Pokémon.

"Do you think they could be…?"

"Dead?" Luxray asked, "No, I don't think that. I think they're out there somewhere, even after all these years. I think they're trying to get back to us. Celebi, too. She and Dialga are still keeping time under control, so I have a feeling all of them are still around. Maybe we'll even be reunited with them someday!"

Lucario smiled. "Yeah, I'd really like that… Anyway, shall we rest for an hour or two? I'm getting tired from all this travel."

"Sure!"

As the two friends lay down to rest, Luxray looked at his closest comrade.

"To tell you the truth… I'm scared about this mission. I don't want to die, but I want to try and defeat Darkrai… For the good of this world. His conquest can't be allowed to move any further."

"You're right, old friend. You and I stand a chance against him, though, and I'm pretty sure we're two of the few Pokémon in this world who can."

"You really think we can win?"

"Well, to be honest, I'm not completely sure. However, I have an ace up my sleeve that might be able to help us in the battle."

"An ace? What ace might that be?"

Lucario gave his partner a smile. "You'll see when the time comes, old friend. I hoped I would never need to use it, but I fear it may be necessary against Darkrai."

Luxray looked at him, intrigued. "Well, I hope it's as powerful as you make it out to be, partner, or we're all in trouble!"

Lucario laughed. "Get some rest. We'll both need it."

As the two heroes drifted off, Luxray thought of home.

I hope everything's all right back at the Guild… I hope Chespin, Fennekin and Froakie are doing well… They'll make something of themselves, those three… I just hope I'm here to see it when they do.

A/N: I hope you enjoyed Chapter 8. Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: The Three Fated Heroes is truly back on track again, and this Chapter had three different points of view in it, showing three different key segments of the storyline. Stay tuned for more of Chespin and friends' mission, as well as Lucario and Luxray's mission to the Hall of Light. Chapter 9 will be coming soon!