HELLOOOOOOO EVERYBODY! XD

Just as I promised, I have spent a good portion of my summer working on this! And surprise, this was the story I worked on the most! I'm still working on others, but for now, this one is all ready to go! I just hope you guys enjoy it. It's a fanfiction involving one of my favorite Pokémon and my least favorite female character. But in this story, I'm making Iris more tolerable than her 'Such a kid' self in the series.

Now it might be a little boring because there's not a lot of battling (Which is what Pokémon is about), but I tried focusing more on a plot. It may seem like a serious and depressing story at some parts, but hopefully it's positive to you guys. Like I said, I tried! And maybe at the end, I'll add something special if this story gets a lot of popularity!

(No, this story will not have a lemon! It's rated T for a reason! But I'll consider doing an alternate universe lemon in another story...)

But for now, I just hope you guys enjoy what I've made. I put some thought into it! Really, I did!

This is Rated T for strong language, not much, but still.

Also, a little tip:

"So, this is it then?" - Human Speech

'Wow, I expected something... more.' - Human Thought

"Ready for the worst mistake of your life?" - Pokémon (English Speech) Speech

'I'm itching for a fight you little shit!' - Pokémon Thought

(PS - This will be somewhat related to my If I Was In Pokémon fanfiction. I'll leave it to you guys to figure it out! OH AND UPDATES WILL BE EVERY THIRD WEDNESDAY! Gotta keep you guys waiting for more...)

Once more, I hope my loveable Pokémon fans enjoy this story!

Now READ!

Disclaimer: I DO NOT own Pokémon! But I will own my OC!

Prologue

An action must always have a consequence.

That was the rule of fate, a symbolic law which could have many versions that could be seen as different.

A good deed would most likely come with something equivalent to a reward.

A bad deed would most likely come with a negative result.

Sometimes, the roles could be switched to those of opposite meanings. Something thought to be good could end in tragedy or something thought to be bad could end with unexpected happiness.

But no matter the belief in one's actions and future, there would always and only be one solid truth; everything has a cause and effect.

It was one of the basic rules of the universe, a rule that everything has to follow. A rule that can enable change, be it willing or by force. It was a simple segment that would always be destined to revolve around one's actions that would have specific effects for the future. Karma or Luck, a metaphorical belief that decides what happens when a person performs a deed deemed to be good or bad.

However, for one of the few cases of cause and effect, a certain human's actions will have consequences that some would call a gift.

Others would call it a curse.

It all depends on how life is viewed...

"Ugh… where… where am I…?"

His eyelids twitched for a moment before they finally opened themselves.

Only to see nothing.

Absolutely nothing.

It was pitch black, a void of darkness that seemed to stretch on forever.

He wasn't sure what to think of it. He wasn't even sure where he was or if he was even upright or upside-down. He couldn't feel anything beneath his shoes that indicated any form of land or platform. So he could only assume he was floating.

Then the panic finally set in, his head whipping to the sides as his eyes tried to find any hint of anything. A person, an object that could tell him where he was-

A sharp breath shot through his teeth as he felt pain wash over him.

He blinked a couple of times, trying to ignore the throbbing pain all over his body. His legs felt sore, his arms stung from multiple places, and his chest felt like it was burning. But the most prominent pain was the relentless pounding within his skull. A hand, his right hand, brought itself to his face to soothe his aching jaw while his left began its attempt to rub the pain away from his temple.

He winced when he touched a certain part of his cheek.

Cracking open one of his eyes, it finally dawned on him that could see his own body. A surprised and startled face was made when he was able to see his right hand within perfect view, easily detecting the colors of his light brown skin against the pitch black around him. However, he grew weary of the thin lines of red cuts that traveled along his hand. As well as the blood on the tip of his fingers.

'I'm… bleeding?' He brushed his cheek again. This time he felt something warm and wet against his hand.

Why was he injured? Did someone attack him?

He brushed up his sleeve and was horrified upon seeing the bruises and cuts that lined up his arm- no, both arms.

He gave himself a quick lookover.

He was wearing his shoes, a pair of white Nikes. They were covered in spots of dirt.

He still had his light blue jeans. Both legs revealing tears in the fabric.

A dark blue hoodie, layered over a white t-shirt. There were clumps of dirt and rips as well. He could even seen a startling amount of crimson staining his shirt through the tears of his sweatshirt.

He had everything on his person, with the exception of his clothes being tattered from some type of incident. But then a thought came to him, an idea that sparked a sense of hope within him.

'Where is it!?' He thought.

Temporarily ignoring his migraine, the human's left hand flew to his pockets in search of his phone. After looking through numerous pockets, his heart dropped and his hopeful expressed morphed into one of horror.

His phone, the only thing that could've helped him escape, was nowhere to be found on his person.

"You gotta be fucking kidding me…" He breathed, feeling the darkness weigh down on his fears.

The human's arms dropped to his sides. A sudden numbness weighing them down. His glasses unintentionally slipped from his fingers, dropping down and disappearing into nonexistence.

There was nothing else he could do. He was trapped in a realm filled with emptiness, with no sort of means to find out where he was or how he even got there. He was alone.

His breathing picked up and his heart began to pound in his chest.

He couldn't even remember the recent events that could've led to this moment.

…!

A terrifying revelation dawned on him. He couldn't even remember anything about who he was! A past forgotten, a haunting reminder of another thing he was stripped of.

"No way out... I c-can't… what the hell is going on…!?" He muttered. His growing stress had caused his migraine to reappear with a whole new level of pain. His hands shot to the sides of his head, his eyes clenched shut as tightly as he could. Tears began to crawl down his cheeks.

He had nothing… absolutely nothing...

…

...

…

"Human," A smooth and strangely calm voice caught his attention. "There's no reason to be alarmed. Please. Relax…" The human hesitated to open his eyes, believing his mind was playing tricks on him.

Reluctantly, his eyes had opened themselves.

He gasped.

Gone was the empty black void, now there were colors illuminating all around him.

They were more like strings; glowing strands of color that ranged from shades of golden yellow to neon green. And each of them were moving slowly, as if they were sentient and knowing to his presence.

As he gazed upon his new surroundings, he took notice of a single string that floated towards his face. The golden string had wriggled itself to his forehead and a thin light pulsed through it.

Almost like a heartbeat...

All the pain throughout his body was suddenly replaced with blissful relief. He looked down at himself and found the cuts and bruises to be gone as well.

"What in the world…" He whispered, running his fingers along his now smooth skin.

"I take it the pain has vanished?" The voice said again, making the human jump from his fascination over his unnatural regeneration. The human turned his head and found himself staring at something… words couldn't even describe what he was seeing at the moment.

"I'll take that as a yes."

Before him - floating just as he was - was an entity he couldn't possibly fathom. And somehow he knew that even if he had his memories, this was definitely not something he'd have encountered in the past.

If he had paid any attention to himself, he would have noticed that he could see perfectly fine with the aid of his glasses.

It was something that resembled a type of equine, a qilin. It had four legs and each of its 'hooves' had some sort of gold plating on them. While most of its body was covered in white fur, there was a grey underside to its mane, chest, and tail. On the center of its forehead, was a golden piece and wrapped around its waist was a golden cross-like wheel…

Although the qilin was at an intimidating size that would instill fear into whoever gazed upon it, there was a peculiar 'glow' surrounding it. Almost resembling an aura of some sort. And the human could feel its warmth as the light bathed over him, filling him with a sense of serene calm and tranquility. A sense that felt foreign to him.

As the man looked up, he took a moment find the courage to speak. "W-Who are you?" The human's voice croaked. There was still a hint of fear as he stood before the unknown entity. "And where am I?" The human had tried to keep his anxiety to a bare minimal. But being unable to recognize where we was, who he was, and why he was floating in a weird space was making it more difficult than he had hoped.

The voice came back. "I go by many names, human. However, you may call me Arceus." There was no mouth. Only green eyes with red pupils that stared intently at him. But the voice was loud and clear.

And feminine.

"As to where we are," The being - now identified as Arceus - knelt down as if she was sitting, lowering her head to get a closer look at the man before her. And said man gulped as she neared. "This my home. A realm of infinite transcendence." The godly being paused for a moment before she continued, in a seemingly grim tone of voice. "And you are here for a reason."

It took a moment for that to sink in before the man spoke again. "What do you mean 'for a reason'?" The human repeated with an underlying sense of dread.

"What we are currently in is a realm far beyond space and time. Another universe if you wish to call it." Arceus began to specify, taking note of his puzzled expression and a hint of growing terror within the human's eyes. To be in an unknown place - an entirely new universe - was something a bit too heavy to easily register. She gave him a moment's silence for him to take that in as well. "And within this realm, I have patiently awaited the time of your arrival."

"..." His expectant stare was all she needed for a clue to continue.

"I watch everything, human." Arceus' voice turned soft. "Renown by humans as a Goddess or a being of the highest power, I am capable of seeing what happens on Earth. And I have seen the events that led to our meeting. Events that I am a bit reluctant to tell you."

"If you know who I am, please… tell me." He could almost see the sorrow in her eyes and that made him a bit afraid to ask. "I need to know-"

"I cannot." Arceus denied with a shake of her head. "The second you awoke in this world, your life back on earth had very well ended. To tell you now would only bring tragedy." The horrified face she received caused her to dip her head in apology. "I'm afraid to confirm your fears, but yes... You are dead."

"H-How? What happened?" The human felt his stomach drop.

"... perhaps it is best for you to witness that for yourself." The ring wrapped around Arceus' body began to shine bright before another golden string extended toward the human. Like before when the pain was taken away, he felt an unknown energy wash over him.

And just like that, he remembered.

He dropped to his knees as the memories came back to him all at once. Tears once again built up in his eyes as the events were replayed within his mind, not in person, but through a 3rd person viewpoint. But because of the endless showcase of memories, he was finally able to take in what his face looked like.

He had short curly black hair. Through his glasses, his eyes were a dark brown and he had a thin black mustache that connected past his mouth to the beard below. From what he could make out, he was a young man that looked to be in his twenties or maybe even thirties…

An image he got to see too many times.

It was brief, so brief that he didn't even understand what happened the first few times he watched.

He had been running through town in the middle of a rainstorm. Without proper protection against the rain, his clothes had stuck to him like a wet blanket. But he didn't let it stop him from running. Not when he was running alongside a kid with glasses just like him, who luckily had a raincoat covering him.

He was holding the boy's hand in a tight grip as they ran.

Wherever they were running to, he hadn't a clue. He saw their mouths moving as they ran, but he couldn't hear anything from them. The memories were showing him what happened, but weren't given him any clues as to who he or the younger child was.

But he did notice a figure in the middle of the street.

Both him and his past-self did.

Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted an orange colored lizard-like creature stumbling in the middle of the street. It's tail had a flame at the tip, a flame that flickered weakly against the heavy winds.

It was a Charmander; one covered in bruises and holding a cardboard sheet above its head in an attempt to block the rain.

It was limping, from possible internal injuries that couldn't be seen through its scales. Or due to malnourishment if its skinniness was any indication. But the human had already figured that the Charmander was in trouble, as if the younger kid's rapidly moving mouth and pointing finger wasn't enough of a clue.

There had been a car driving by. And because of the heavy rain, it was harder to see through the windshield.

While the human could hear the pelting of the rain and rapid winds, the screeching of the tires of the car was above everything else. The man didn't even hesitate to let go of the kid's hand before he raced towards the Charmander.

It all happened so fast…

One second, the Charmander had stopped to look at the car's headlights, completely frozen with fear.

The next second, the man's arms had reached the Pokémon and scooped it up in a rush of adrenaline.

The final second has reached its mark.

The Charmander had been pushed to the side and a shrill yelp sounded from it. It was enough to label it as a possible female, he couldn't tell with how quickly the scene played out.

And at this point, there was a lot the human still didn't understand.

There was a horn blaring and then a loud thud when the human's body came in contact with the front of the car. While the car had finally managed to stop to a skidding halt, the damage was already done. A crowd was beginning to form as they surrounded the body laying a couple meters away from where he was hit.

The only two people that were the quickest to reach the body was the young child and the driver; an elderly man.

They both had equally fearful expressions on their faces as they rushed through the crowd.

There was crying, blurred screaming, and sirens.

As the memory started to fade to an end, the human saw the Charmander watching from the sidelines before she ran off into an alleyway.

"..." Nothing was said when the final replay played itself out.

The lack of words was unbearable. Something that mildly disturbed Arceus as she listened to the strained cries of the man in front of her. The glowing string disconnected from his forehead and she watched as the man's face fell into his hands, shaking left and right.

"I'm terribly sorry. Truly, I am." Arceus tried before falling silent.

The two had stayed like that for quite some time. The human remained on his knees, bawling his eyes out while Arceus herself could do nothing, but watch.

But she was an extremely patient entity and gave the man enough time to grieve.

When the tears finally ran out, the man's hands dropped to the floor and his head remained low. "So what happens now?" The man's voice was hoarse and scratchy. He didn't know what to think anymore.

His past, however short it may have been, had just been revealed right before his eyes and now he had nothing left. No life to go back to, no family…

He looked utterly shattered before the Goddess Pokémon.

"I haven't brought you here without purpose, human." Arceus declared, finally finding it an appropriate time to continue her explanation. "I have watched you closely in your last moments and took heed of your fearless attempt to save one of my children. Never before have I seen a human willingly trade his life for another. Without the slightest bit of hesitation…"

"I never wanted to trade my life away." The man mumbled, but loud enough for her to hear. "I guess I thought I was fast enough to get her out of the way without getting hit."

"I see." A few more strings appeared before the human and twisted around each other, mimicking a hand as they lifted the man's chin. The man's eyes were bloodshot and void of emotion, but he did not take his eyes away from Arceus'. And said Goddess Pokémon lowered her head even more to reach perfect level with each other. "Nevertheless, as I see it, this was an act performed by one who cherishes other lives before his own. A true kindness that's rare to see."

"What's that supposed to mean?" His tone was flat and cold. "Is that supposed to make me feel better?"

"It means your actions has given you the opportunity at a second chance, human." Arceus declared proudly and the human was sure that if she had a mouth, she'd be smiling.

The words had been registered in his brain, but recent events had caused him to have less of a reaction than Arceus had hoped. While his eyes did perk open more at her declaration, it was only that. A shift in his eyelids. There was no verbal expression of how he felt or change in face. But she did have his attention.

"A second chance? At life?"

"Correct. An offer countless beings would crave for. However you will be the first one to actually be given the choice." As Arceus spoke without missing a beat, she could see a spark of hope igniting within the man's eyes. It was a sign of redemption. "Now I must ask you, human. Will you take this chance?"

The man stared into Arceus' eyes for a brief moment before he straightened himself. "... there has to be more to it than that. What's going to happen if I'm reborn?"

"Sharp. I almost didn't expect you to think of that." Arceus teased, earning a partial smile in return. "And yes, you are correct to assume that there's more than what I've spoken of." He wasn't sure if he should be proud of himself to seeing more than was offered or scared. "While you will be reborn, you will not be reborn as a human being. No, this time you shall live as another being."

"... I'll become a Pokémon?"

"Correct."

"Of course." The human mumbled before he sighed. Arceus blinked in mild surprise at the dejected way he spoke. "I guess it's not so bad. After all, a second chance is better than nothing." With a grunt, the human pushed himself back to his feet and gave Arceus a stronger smile than before. "Alright, I'm all for it." With that, he held out his hand to seal the deal.

"Excellent." Arceus nodded as she stood up at full height as well. "Just a bit of advice. You will become quite… unique once your soul transfers to your new body. You will still retain the ability of human speech as well as mind. However I highly advise you not to recklessly exploit yourself to humans. Not everyone will be as nice as you are. Many will take the chance to enslave you for their own gain."

"I understand. Anything else?" The man wanted to make sure he wasn't missing any vital information. He wasn't going to waste something as great as second life with a stupid mistake. If he was going to live again, he was going to live it to the fullest. A fresh new start.

"Other than please be careful." And with that, light exploded from the Goddess.

The human closed his eyes and awaited his new fate, allowing the light to engulf him.

How was the first chapter guys? Great? Not great? C'mon, give me some feedback! I worked on this for several weeks, making sure I completed a full plotline so I don't have to worry about rescheduling with my other stories!

Also, I'll be doing something new! For whatever review that is a question, I'll post it up in the next chapter and reveal the answer for everyone! Except certain questions though. I'll only do up to 5 reviews a chapter!

Have a great day or night my beautiful readers! :3

PLEASE REVIEW!