"What's the Candy Crystal Cave?" Row tapped one of the pages on the board. It was a request for another lost item like yesterday, but the location was listed for somewhere other than the forest.

"I dunno," Chester replied looking closer, "never heard of it."

"I can explain!" Miss Daisy spoke up, slightly startling the two as she suddenly appeared beside them. "See, it's a cave somewhere south, actually far from Vairfew and close to a town called Appleburg. Now the name is actually not entirely accurate, as while the crystals are made of sugar, they aren't really edible. Sableyes love it to bits though!" She then sighed, "Although..."

"Something wrong?" Row asked.

"See, normally we send out Team Beauty to go explore dungeons to survey and determine what rank they should be. And while they did explore the cave thoroughly, they never got to the bottom of it." The Leavanny sighed, staring at the board with an upset look, "Now they're too busy to finish the job... or do anything else. Everyone is actually." She shook her head, "Oh, but let me stop myself before I ramble on. You two can-"

"Can we explore to the bottom?" Chester spoke up, his eyes beaming. "It's only a one star dungeon, we can totally handle it!"

Miss Daisy hummed, "I'm not sure, I'll have to ask Mister-"

Suddenly, from above, Mister Messa landed on the ground in Hero Form with a sack as large as him slung over his shoulder. All three Pokemon jumped in surprise. "I approve!" He said cheerfully, giving a thumbs up. "It's only a small cave, and I think these two have what it takes! Go for it!"

"...Sir," Miss Daisy stared angerly at the Palafin, "I believe we have discussed going 'Aquatic Avenger' on your way to the bank? Namely why you shouldn't do it."

Messa looked deflated, "I-I know... but this sack is so heavy!"

Daisy rolled her eyes, "Just be quick then."

Mister Messa bowed, then dashed out the front door sending it swinging back and forth before finally closing. A silence fell over the lobby before Miss Daisy let out the loudest sigh she could manage, "So... that's a yes then. Go get your supplies then take the Donphan to Appleburg. I'm going to... go eat something." She walked off while placing an arm to her head in exhaustion.

Chester turned to face row, eyes still practically beaming with light, "Did you hear that? We're already getting special assign-" He paused as he noticed Row was staring off at nothing. "Row?" He asked.

Row shook his head, "Oh sorry, I think I mentally stopped at... whatever that was." He pointed towards the door, "You sure about this?"

Chester rolled his eyes, "Of course! Come on, I got some spending cash we can use at the Kecleon shop."

"The what?" Row asked, walking alongside him.

"Oh yeah," Chester cleared his throat, "see Kecleon's kinda have this big monopoly on running shops. They even run shops in dungeons! The Delibird shop we have at home is really special like that." He let out a small chuckle, "And don't try and steal from them. Saw this one guy try when I was a freshly hatched Chespin, and he got pummeled by several Kecleon's that came out of nowhere. And I mean that literally.

Row shivered, "I'll remember that..."

The sun shined down on the running Donphan, taking Team Hero towards their destination with professional haste. The cart being tugged was special, given that it was a completely open flatbed with small benches to strap onto. Row gently kicked his feet as he stared into the slowly fading view of the city. Chester meanwhile looked like he was about to rocket out of his straps. He slowed down as he pulled aside his bag, "I brought a book we can read on the way!" He said.

Row turned his head to see him holding up a book with a cover depicting a very cartoonish looking Pikachu doll with the title 'Pikaocchio'. "Is that book meant for baby Pokemon?"

Chester stared back with the angriest eyes, though the fact Row wasn't getting an actual angry feeling off of him made it clear it wasn't serious. "So?" Chester patted the front cover, "It's still good! You ever even read it?"

Row blinked. "I... wouldn't know, but I'm going to say no."

"Ok! So there's this Pikachu right? But he's actually a Pikachu doll made by this guy. And he goes on this big adventure to become a real Pokemon!" Chester explained, even waving his hand around to generate excitement.

Row placed a hand under his chin, "That... does sound nice." He slightly shifts himself closer to his friend, "Can you read it to me?"

"Gladly!" Chester flipped open the book and started reading. He went all out, gesturing and even giving voices to the characters. Row simply sat and listened.

The story turned out to be a lot more enthralling than he thought, with its tale of Pikaocchio encountering all sorts of Pokemon and danger on his adventure. And the whole time Row couldn't help but relate on some level with his quest of self-discovery. "And so..." Chester continued, ready to finish his reading, "Pikaocchio gave all his money to the Magcargo. Then that night he had a dream... of the blue Jirachi giving him a hug. And when he awoke..." Chester stared Row right in the eyes, "he was a real Pikachu!"

Row teared up and sniffled, "T-That's..." His vison cleared as he looked ahead, "Oh, that's Appleburg!"

Buildings of wood and stone rose up in the distance, alongside a clearing devoid of trees that gave a perfect view of a distant coastline. The Donphan parked up by the marked stop, and Team Hero disembarked. Chester quickly ran to the center and span around with his arms outstretched and a big smile on his face. Row could feel just the biggest aura of joy coming from him, which only served to put a smile on his face as well.

"First time here?" Row asked.

"Uh huh!" Chester stopped and stood still with his hands on his hips as he stared towards the beach, "Not really a water guy, so I never went to the beach."

"Isn't your dad a Sobble?" Row stood next to him.

"He doesn't like swimming either." Chester chuckled before putting on a more serious expression, "Anyways, cave time!" He pointed over to a big rocky area, "And I think that's it!" And with a quick smile exchanged between them, Team Hero ran towards it.

CANDY CRYSTAL CAVE

1BF

"Huh." Row nodded as he looked into a reflection of himself in a massive pink crystal. It sparkled with sugar granules and almost shined even without sunlight. "Pretty."

Chester coughed, "Y-Yeah, Sableye's really must go crazy for these." He coughed some more, pounding his chest as he approached Row from behind.

Row sighed, "You licked one didn't you?"

"I couldn't resist!" Chester argued, "But man the sugar... it's like licking a bag of sand!"

Row smirked and shook his head, "Come on, let's get to bottom." He walked over to one of the many winding paths down the cave, "What Pokemon do you think live here?"

Chester shrugged, "Um... maybe Zu-"

*BONK*

Right on cue, a Zubat zipped right down the hall and right into the Chespin's face. He let out a massive scream as the Pokemon began nibbling on his forehead. Row panicked, and without thinking let loose a thunder punch right at the Zubat. The Zubat fell to the ground knocked out, while Chester had another coughing fit. "...bat." He finished, clearing his throat.

"I can see why they got the big team do to this." Row looked down the hall again, "We should get through this as fast as possible."

Chester nodded, and a plan was quickly formed. The two began their sprinting, passing through the paths and the various rooms and occasionally grabbing any stray items they may find. It wasn't long before they found the way down, though not without constant interference by angry Zubats...

CANDY CRYSTAL CAVE

3BF

"Welcome!" The chipper voice of a Kecleon reverberated around the room. In the center he had a big carpet with a bunch of items from seeds to jellybeans. Chester took a moment to look through his wares, taking interested in one of the seeds.

"Blast Seed!" The Kecleon grinned, "Just throw it and boom!"

Chester slapped some cash into the Kecleon's palm, "Sold!" He grinned as he pocketed the seed in his bag. "Anything you want Row?"

"I'm good." He scratched his chin, "Hey uh, is it true you guys beat up thieves?"

"Yup!" The Kecleon responded like he was just asked what his favorite food was, "We make sure no thief gets away unscathed! That's the Kecleon guarantee!"

A single bead of sweat dripped down Row's forehead, "I'll... remember that." He quickly grabbed Chester's hand and pulled him away. "For shopkeeps they sure have this... aura of menace to them."

"I mean who else would set up shop in a mystery dungeon?" Chester laughed.

CANDY CRYSTAL CAVE

5BF

"Are those Geodudes?" Row pointed into the room, spotting three closely bunched together Geodudes who seemed just as angry as the Zubats they've been running into constantly at that point. Chester rolled his neck, "Sure looks like it. This should be a piece of cake!"

He took a step forward and punched the palm of his hand, drawing the Geodudes towards him. One took a swing directly at his head, but he quickly ducked out of the way and countered with a jab. Another was more interested in the watching Ralts and quickly dived straight for him. Taken by surprise, Row outstretched his fist for an ice punch, freezing the Geodude and knocking him out in one strike. Chester looked back and grinned, "Ice one!"

"..." Row blinked, "You've been saving that pun haven't you?"

"Maybe." Chester punched the attacking Geodude again, knocking him to the ground. And with one well placed slam put him out of the fight. Now all that remained was a lone Geodude who was hanging back, watching this all unfold. Team Hero turned to him, and within a second he was already dashing out of the room as fast as his body could carry him.

"That takes care of that then!" Chester flexed his right arm, and the tiniest hint of a muscle appeared.

"...My fist hurts." Row shook his hand, "Don't think rock breaking is for me."

"You get used to it." Chester smirked as he began walking to the nearby stairs.

CANDY CRYSTAL CAVE

6BF

"We should train together some more." Chester said, placing a hand onto a nearby wall and tracing it as he walked, "Thinking we could try durability."

"How's that work?" Row asked, quite surprised at the suggestion. "Do we hit each other?"

Chester went silent, then snickered, "Just a little."

"Has your training actually worked?" Row tapped his chin, "Like, do you really feel stronger?"

"Of course it has!" Chester looked over to him and grinned, "In only a month I got went from lifting a small rock to a big rock!" His smile faded as he looked off to the side, "I mean yeah I tend to break stuff, but that just means I'm getting stronger right?"

"I guess... Just suddenly getting worried about you possibly overworking yourself."

"Heh, don't worry. I've been taking breaks, eating right, and sleeping nice! No way am I going to burn out!" The Chespin waved his hand, as if to swat away his friend's comment. "Now come on, I have a hunch that the final floor is coming up!"

Row shrugged, "Hope so." He looked around him, a new question popping into his mind... "Did Team Beauty really not have the time to explore this whole place?"

Chester shrugged as well, "Must be getting busy over there. Wonder why."

CANDY CRYSTAL CAVE

7BF

The hall in front of them stretched out, with a bright light at the very end. The walls sparkled and shimmered with embedded crystals, with what seemed to be sugar granules trickling down from them. The two walked down it, their eyes adjusting to the sudden change in lighting. And when they could see clearly, they were greeted by a chamber of massive shining crystals of a rainbow of colors.

And standing right in front of them was a figure clad in a black cloak, their back towards them. They seemed to be staring at particular crystal while lost in thought.

"Hey?" Chester called out, "Are you ok?

The figure flinched in surprise, letting out a sharp yelp. "Jeez, you normally sneak up on Pokemon like that?"

"Sorry!" Chester cringed, "I- We just are-"

"We?" The figure tapped on the crystal in front of them, seemingly more interested in that than seeing what's behind them.

"Yeah, we're Team Hero. We're part of the Sacred Strength guild." Said Row, "Are you lost? Do you need help?"

The figure didn't reply, but their tapping noticeably got a lot more forceful upon mentioning the guild. Finally, they stopped and huffed. "No no, it's fine." They said, "Just doing a little exploring on my own." Slowly, they turned around, revealing the figure to be a Scrafty. "So what's your guys dea-" His eyes widened upon seeing the two standing behind him.

"Hold on." He squinted, then pointed to Row, "Ralts..." Then he pointed at Chester with his other hand, "Chespin..."

"Y-Yeah that's what we are." Row looked over at Chester, who looked just as confused as he was.

"Sorry, just not used to seeing Pokemon of your like around." He laughed, "Anyways, don't worry about me. I can find my own way out." He began walking towards the exit, but not before looking back one more time to examine the Pokemon still standing there. "You two stay safe now you hear?"

The two watched him fade into the distance before turning back to look at each other.

"That guy was weird." Chester said bluntly.

"I... really can't say anything." Row shivered, "We should... probably just teleport back."

Without hesitation, the two grabbed their badges and quickly went back to base to report their findings.

LB

The Scrafty stared out from the beach, the waves gently grazing his feet. He pulled out an orb decorated with a picture of a Loudred's mouth. He squeezed it, then put it to his ear.

"Jefferem?" He said. "You busy? I gotta report something."

The Scrafty laughed, "Nah, cave's a bust. But you will not believe who I ran into! Actually, two whos." He continued laughing, "It was them! The Ralts and Chespin who beat up the Bisharp!"

"I know right?! And get this, they got into the guild! Team Hero they call themselves!" His laughter turned into full blown howling that lasted for several seconds before he finally caught his breath. "Whew, talk about coincidence!" He coughed, clearing his throat as his tone turned serious, "So what do we do? Boss still isn't too happy about losing that cash, and if theres one thing he hates more than losing it's not getting payback."

"No, too obvious." He scratched his chin, "Actually, the apple-rok told me about some baby Pokemon... Seemed like the Chespin was reaaaally not too happy about them getting into trouble..."

The Scrafty laughed again, "Ooooh good idea! See this is why you're the brains of this operation. Alright, we find the right time then we make our move. Until then, talk to you later." He squeezed the orb again and pocketed it. He stared back out into the water, gazing beyond into the horizon as he smiled.

"Almost feel bad for them. Almost."