AN: Welcome to my current project! A collaboration between me and the wonderful Herodadotus! This is Pokemon: Purpose of Life! Half of a AU project, with Pokemon: Point of Order being the other half! If you like this, read that!


Chapter 1: Asphodel

Sitting in one of the famous Lumiose City cabs, Serena was very nervous. She had never been to a city so large, having only recently left her hometown of Vaniville for the first time, after her mother received a mysterious letter from the famous Pokémon Professor, inviting Serena to visit his lab and obtain a Pokémon of her own. Despite how nervous she was, she had to admit the city looked spectacular, with its organized streets and the central landmark of the partially glass-covered Prism Tower, showing Kalos' hope for a bright future to all who saw it.

"I should probably watch the video the Professor sent me one more time, just to be safe…" Serena muttered, before digging through her bag and pulling out her Holo Caster, an action that caused the cab driver to sigh with a muttered, "Not this again."

The Professor's image flared to life in front of her, and he began to speak earnestly. "Hello! Sorry to keep you waiting! Welcome to the wonderful world of Pokémon! My name is Augustine Sycamore! But you may know me as Kalos' very own Pokémon Professor!" With that, the image of the Professor threw the Pokéball he was carrying, revealing a creature Serena had never seen before she saw the Holo for the first time. It was almost transparent, and looked somewhat like a floating, feminine head, and it let out a song-like cry before floating to take a place behind the Professor's shoulder.

Despite this bizarre creature, or, Serena thought (for not the first time), because of it, the Professor continued, more excited than before. "This is what is now known as a "Ghost-Type Pokémon!" This world is inhabited by many creatures known as Pokémon, but only recently are any considered "Ghosts!" We humans have lived alongside Pokémon for eons, at times playmates, and at times as cooperative workers. And sometimes, we band together and do battle against others alongside Pokémon."

Serena thought this might have been an understatement, although she would never dare admit such a thing to his face, as Pokémon battling is easily the most popular sport in the world, and has been for centuries. The idea that despite the immense popularity of battling, a new type of Pokémon had slipped under the radar was both preposterous and intriguing, and was the whole reason Serena was willing to go this far out of her comfort zone.

As if acknowledging her curiosity, Sycamore continued, "But despite our seeming closeness to Pokémon as a whole, we don't know anything about Ghost Pokémon. In fact, the discovery of their existence has opened the door to many more secrets that lie just beyond our reach. To unravel the mysteries of Ghost-Type Pokémon, I've been undertaking research. That's what I do." With that, frankly cryptic ending and a flourish, the Holo shut off, having reached the end of the message.

Of course, Serena's initial reaction to the message, back in Vaniville, was far less understated, and far more frantic. She had packed in a rush, and her room was likely still a mess even two days later, but the thrill of the discovery, and, perhaps, the idea of finally getting her own Pokémon, had put her in a frenzy. One that only now, that the fullness of the situation, and the current distance from her home had set in, had been replaced with nervousness and a tentative hope. Hope to be a part of something legendary, something that would change the world.

But Serena knew better. School had taught her better. She knew that most trainers never got their fifth badges, and only 0.01% got their sixth. She knew that most ex-trainers just used their four badges as a job reference, to show that they could handle responsibility, and travel on their own. She knew that children were cruel, and she would likely not make any friends.

She was getting distracted, letting her worries take over. This was a chance to start anew, to prove herself. She had to try her best. She had to. The cab driver, hearing her mutter indistinctly, was very glad to finally announce, "We're at the lab! Get out!" She quickly opened the door, grabbing her bulky bag and thanking the driver, before getting out and staring at the building before her.

It wasn't as unique as Serena was expecting. It looked similar to any other smaller building she saw on the drive, just with more Pokémon symbolism. Heading in, she expected the inside to match the generic outside, but instead, it was far more in line with the image she had in mind. The receptionist was ushering a short, orange-haired boy into an elevator as Serena approached the counter.

As the receptionist returned, she smiled (a clearly fake smile) at Serena before asking, "May I please see your Trainer ID?" Serena paused, for some reason having expected to just walk in. She nodded, and, after a bit of digging through her bag, handed it to the receptionist. "Everything matches, and you are on the list. Excellent! Please enter the elevator and go to the third floor! The room might be a bit crowded, but I am contractually obligated to mention that it is perfectly safe to have up to 50 occupants in there."

Serena wasn't sure what to think of that, so she just nodded again and entered the elevator. She quickly saw what the receptionist meant when she said it was "a bit crowded", as there were around 20 other trainers in there. She suspected that the room wasn't made for this many people, but it could be worse. In the center of the room, fairly surrounded by the crowd, was what Serena believed to be a desk covered in a blanket, which Professor Sycamore was standing on.

He looked a bit less elegant than in the holo, but Serena guessed that nobody would look elegant while standing on a desk. As if he could read her thoughts, Sycamore suddenly spoke, "Hello, everyone! I'm afraid not everybody is here yet, so if you could socialize amongst yourselves, that would help speed things along greatly!"

Serena, having no intention to even attempt to socialize, began to reach into her bag to find something to kill time before she was suddenly surprised by a loud, "HI! My name's Shauna! What's yours?" With a very dignified squeak, Serena looked up to see a brightly dressed trainer right in her face. "Hello? I'm Serena. Can you please give me a bit of space?"

"Oops. Sorry about that!" Shauna took a single step back before immediately returning to almost yelling. "I'm from here in Lumiose! This is Trevor! Where are you from?"

"I'm from Vaniville. And who is Trevor?" "He is!" At that proclamation, Shauna seemingly reached into the crowd, and pulled out the same orange haired trainer Serena saw enter the elevator before her. "Trevor! Say hello!"

Trevor, for his part, seemed content fiddling with his Holo Caster, and in fact, did not say hello. Shauna looked like she was about to yell at him when Sycamore interrupted with a flourish and a loud "Hello again! I'm glad to see that all 41 of you made it safely! For those of you who forgot, I am Professor Augustine Sycamore! Some of you" with that, he glanced at Serena before continuing, "would have met me sooner, however I only recently returned from a two year trip to Johto, where I made the discovery that caused this meeting! Although, "discovery" is not the right term, as Johto has been aware of Ghost-Type Pokémon for at least a millennium now!"

"Some of you seem shocked by that figure, but I assure you all, it is true! Of course, the "whys and hows" of Ghost Type Pokémon, while fascinating, are not why you are here! You are here to receive your very own Pokémon! However, before we can hand them out, I believe introductions are in order. Come out, Misdreavus!" With that, Sycamore threw a pokéball onto the floor, where it opened with a dull pop. Much to everyone's surprise, nothing emerged from the pokéball, leading to much confusion. Serena moved slightly to try and get a better look when, from the back of the room, a scream-like cry rang out, and the floating Pokémon from the holo flew through the crowd and settled at the professor's side.

Serena felt that deliberately surprising a room full of children might have been cruel on Sycamore's part, and the trainer crying in the corner might support that idea. Although, she supposed, that could be unrelated. Either oblivious (or, Serena thought was more likely: uncaring) of the chaos he caused, Sycamore continued. "This is Misdreavus, a Ghost-Type Pokémon, and my aide in Ghost-Type research. With her help, I have caught 3 additional Ghost-Types that are searching for a trainer. It is my hope that, by traveling alongside them, we may learn more about this potentially near-extinct type of Pokémon." With this, three Ghosts floated up through the desk, and began circling Sycamore. Two were identical, sphere-looking Pokémon, while the third was jagged and had detached hands. "May the bravest among you come forth now and seek to meet your possible partner Pokémon!"

Serena wished she was surprised when Shauna bounded forward through the crowd and shook the hands of the jagged ghost, but she wasn't. She also wasn't surprised when Sycamore loudly announced "Ah, Haunter! A mischievous Pokémon, perfect for someone as energetic as you, Shauna!" When Shauna seemed unharmed by the ghost, several trainers approached the other two, with them eventually getting approval and additional comments by Sycamore. Serena stopped paying attention after Shauna's ghost started laughing at the trainers, so she had no idea what their names were.

Serena only started paying attention again after Sycamore started yelling. "Alright, now that all the Ghosts have picked their trainers, it is time for my final surprise!" Oh Mew, Serena knew that if his previous 'surprise' was any indication, this was going to result in more crying children. She was almost right, as Sycamore stepped backwards off the desk, and pushed it over, almost hitting multiple trainers and revealing two large crates. One was filled with Pokéballs, and the other was filled with…

"That's right!" Sycamore looked almost painfully smug as he announced: "Each and every one of you is getting a brand new Pokédex! With 41 Pokédexes, this will be the largest amount of Pokédexes ever given away at one time! Easily beating the previous record of 9 Pokédexes given out by Professor Oak 4 years ago! While we are on the topic, I would like to personally thank my good friend Lysandre, who's support allowed us to obtain 34 of the Pokédexes here today! Lysandre Labs is where any trainer should search for sturdy, high quality equipment!" Of course Sycamore was a sellout. Serena couldn't bring herself to be surprised anymore.

Sycamore continued, "Now, normally I would call you up one-by-one and hand you your Pokédex and Pokémon, however, that would take far too long today. So instead, I'm going to ask Misdreavus here to help us out!" At once, every Pokéball in the crate floated up and arranged themselves in front of a trainer. Then, with a loud crack and a giggle from Misdreavus, each trainer was hit in the face by the Pokéball in front of them.

There was more crying. Serena was ready for the day to be over, even if she was one of the two trainers not hit by a Pokéball, for some reason. Misdreavus then repeated the same process, minus the throwing, with the Pokédexes. This time, Serena did receive one, which made her current lack of a Pokémon even odder.

Sycamore spoke up once more with a flourish, "Well, now that everyone has received their Pokédex and Pokémon, I would like to offer a few words before you leave. This is a time you will always remember, where you will make friends for life and see unforgettable sights. This is a time to explore, learn, and most importantly: catch Pokémon!" As the swarm of trainers began to leave, Sycamore yelled out, "Oh yes, Serena, Trevor, Shauna, please stay behind!"

When the crowd was gone, Serena joined the others near the Professor's still overturned desk, where he pulled out a briefcase and opened it, revealing three Pokéballs. Trevor spoke up "Those are the starter Pokémon, correct?"

"Well reasoned, Trevor!" Sycamore beamed. "Yes, these are the reserved starters. Shauna was supposed to receive one as well, but Haunter seems to fit her just as well." Shauna was about to speak up and likely yell quite loudly, when Haunter interrupted, letting out a loud laugh. Serena noticed that, rather than a normal laugh, it sounded like "HauHaUhAuHau!" Which, she supposed, could be part of why it was named Haunter. Sadly, this wasn't enough to stop Shauna from yelling while standing right next to Serena. "Well, yeah! Jolly and me are gonna be the greatest team! None of you stand a chance!" She named her Haunter "Jolly"? Serena wasn't sure how she felt about naming an ultra-rare, newly discovered Pokémon something so… childish, but it certainly was in character for Shauna.

Sycamore laughed. "Well, I suppose that sets the stage, doesn't it? A nice, friendly rivalry. Like me and Siebold back in the day. Yes, you three are the High Priority Trainers this year. Shauna, you received the highest practical score in the application test. Trevor, you received the highest written score. And Serena, you received the highest score in both when you applied two years ago. I'm sorry to say that you weren't called in back then due to a typo in my report to my assistants, and the mistake wasn't caught as I was beginning my study in Johto then."

Serena felt sick. She got the highest score but didn't receive a Pokémon… because of a typo? She went back to that nightmare of a school… because of a typo? She didn't even have a name for what she was now feeling, it was a mix of hatred, sadness, disappointment, and relief that left her feeling dizzy.

Before she could say something stupid, Trevor spoke up for the second time that day. "You're not 14? No, of course you aren't. Even I wasn't allowed to apply early. So that would make you 16 now, right?" Serena, not trusting herself to talk, simply nodded, earning a "I thought so" from Trevor. Feeling calmer now, she looked Sycamore in the eyes and asked, "So I get first choice, right?"

"Well, of course! I'm glad you aren't upset!" Sycamore pointed at the Pokéball on the left, "Chespin", the middle, "Fennekin", and the right, "Froakie". Serena reached out and grabbed the Pokéball containing Chespin, before moving to the side to allow Trevor to choose. He stepped forward, and was briefly still, seemingly lost in thought, before reaching out and choosing Fennekin before he too stepped back.

Sycamore closed the case, before speaking again, this time with a serious look on his face. "As the three High Priority trainers this year, I have a request to make of you. You see, my decision to return to Kalos now was not entirely because of the league year beginning. A trusted archaeologist, working on a new site in Western Kalos, reported something extraordinary: what they believe to be a ghost-type Pokémon. I would like the three of you to, at some point in the next 10 months, go to the dig site near Kingstowne, and search for this Pokémon."

Really? He wants Serena to go to some town she hasn't heard of before in search of a Pokémon they don't even know the appearance of? Trevor instantly agreed. Then, Shauna did. Everyone glanced at Serena. "Fine."

"Excellent! Now, before you go, I have a more immediate offer to make." Oh Mew, what was he going to say? "I am going on an expedition tomorrow morning to search for ghost Pokémon in the Lumiose Catacombs! The catacombs are massive, and normally sealed, but I have gotten permission from Lumiose's gym leader to allow entry and the legal capturing of any Pokémon we see! Of course, there are some conditions. The gym leader will be coming with us, and after 6 hours, we will meet up with an agent of Interpol and help them with some task. This is a once-in a lifetime chance! I would highly recommend you come, but it is up to you."

Seriously? The first task was mildly inconvenient, but he wants Serena to enter catacombs? No way. Trevor had already agreed, and Shauna spoke up. "Uhh Catacombs are like tombs, right? No thanks. Me and Jolly are gonna find some more friends and get some badges!"

Then Sycamore used his ace in the hole. "If you accept, I will give you one of these:" he reached into his coat and pulled out two cards with a fancy logo on them. "A three-night stay key in a suite in Hotel Richissime." Serena spoke up instantly and grabbed a card. "Done. I'll be there."

Sycamore grinned. "Excellent! I will see you two at 6 am sharp, at the base of Prism Tower!" Serena suddenly regretted saying yes.