At the foot of Glaseado Mountain in Paldea.
Bright sun, cloudless sky.
Golden light spilled across the snowfields, flashing back in blinding gleams. The air was crisp and clean—one deep breath felt like it swept every bit of stale air from your lungs.
In this pure white world, a vividly colored figure stood out at once.
"Ha—llo—Ciao~! Who's in the Iono Zone? It's me, Iono! How are my Iono-zoners doing?!"
The girl beamed a high-energy smile at the Rotom Drone hovering beside her. She wore an oversized yellow jacket over a black turtleneck that made her pale skin look even more porcelain. Long hair of pink and aqua was tied into her signature uneven twin tails with two Magnemite-shaped clips that bobbed as she moved.
It was Iono—the top influencer of Paldea and Gym Leader of Levincia. Right now she was hosting a wildly anticipated outdoor stream.
"The weather is amazing today! So yours truly, Iono-sama, decided to take you all out to beautiful Glaseado Mountain and introduce trainers from other regions to some Paldean Pokémon that are both cute and strong!"
Her voice was theatrically lively and infectious; chat lit up instantly.
[Whoa! Outdoor Stream! (╥﹏╥;)—I need to visit Paldea and run into the streamer!]
[Today's Iono is so cute—I'm dead!!]
[Glaseado!! Careful out there—don't freeze yourself for content!]
[Small-minded take—important question: how many layers under that jacket?]
[??? bro you're not okay!]
Iono winked at the scrolling barrage and flashed a victory sign at the lens.
"Hmph! I'm an Electric-type specialist—if I get cold, I'll have my Pokémon zap me warm. Zero fear, okay?" She twirled in place to show her not-so-bulky outfit. "All right, less chit-chat! Let's find today's first guest Pokémon!"
She guided the Rotom Drone forward, the camera following her steps and streaming Glaseado's grand snowscape to tens of thousands.
Before long she stopped, pressed a finger to her lips with a shushing gesture, lowered her voice, and whispered, half-mysterious, half-thrilled:
"Family, look over there! Guest No. 1 has appeared!"
The camera slowly panned. Not far away, a rotund white Pokémon shaped like a land-dwelling whale plodded along on four stout little legs, plap-plap-plap in the snow—adorable.
A Cetoddle.
[Ahhh it's Cetoddle! So cute!]
[Lmao the way it walks—like it's going to trip any second.]
[Streamer, intro please! I'm from Unova—first time seeing this mon.]
Pleased by chat's reaction, Iono nodded, cleared her throat, and switched to a nature-documentary narrator:
"Cetoddle, an Ice-type known as the Terra Whale Pokémon. They're wrapped in thick fat, so the cold doesn't bother them at all. Don't let the cuteness fool you—their strength is no joke!"
Then she plucked a Poké Ball from her belt, expression flipping back from "narrator" to "battle streamer."
"So now, allow your host to demonstrate the coolest way to catch a strong Cetoddle!"
[Here we go! My favorite part—battles!]
[She's sending one out?! Show us!!]
[Calling it—she'll use Bellibolt!]
With a stylish toss, Iono sent out her partner. "Go! My bestie—Bellibolt!"
The green frog with the two "eye-like" electric organs on its belly plopped onto the snow. The wild Cetoddle froze, then rumbled a wary growl.
"Watch closely!" Iono's smile turned confident. "Against powerful but slow Pokémon, the best approach is control!"
"Bellibolt, Thunder Wave!"
The "eyes" on Bellibolt's belly flashed; a ripple of golden electricity rolled out and struck before Cetoddle could react. Its body jolted and crackled—paralyzed.
"Now!" Iono snatched an empty Poké Ball from her bag and threw with textbook form. A perfect arc—bonk on the forehead—red light—and Cetoddle vanished into the ball.
The ball rocked on the snow.
Once, twice, three times…
Ping.
Capture complete.
The whole sequence flowed like water—under ten seconds.
[Wow! Iono-sama never misses—so smooth!!]
[Learned something: if you can't win, paralyze 'em. Filthy—beautifully filthy!]
[Streamer is OP!]
Somewhere, an energetic girl watching the stream copied Iono's throw with a Poké Ball, muttering, "That talking Ditto—I'm going to find you again!"
…
Iono scooped up the ball, waggling it at the camera with a dazzling grin. "Well? How was Iono-sama's technique?"
She wasn't done. From her bag she produced a crystal-clear, ice-blue stone radiating chill.
"Of course, Cetoddle's base stats aren't high—kinda mid—but its evolution is serious," she teased. "Now it's time to witness a miracle!"
She touched the Ice Stone to the ball. A blinding white light burst from the seams—Cetoddle began to evolve.
Its body swelled, bigger by the second. The once-round cutie grew imposing and powerful; four huge ice-spike tusks thrust from its jaws.
When the light faded, a hulking mountain of a Pokémon wreathed in numbing cold filled the frame.
Cetitan.
[H O L Y—!!!]
[It evolved! That's gorgeous—the presence!]
[Streamer spoiling us—live evolution for content—(╥﹏╥;)!!]
[Or hear me out… sponsored Ice Stone?]
[Shut up I already ordered one—drop the link!]
Iono admired her majestic new Cetitan, nodded, then struck her signature pose. "Okay! That's our Paldean icefield boss, Cetitan! Next up, let's find our next adorable guest—Nymble!"
…
After hyping chat a bit more, Iono left Glaseado with her Rotom Drone and headed to a gentler rocky area.
"Family, Nymble is super shy. They're tiny, and their camouflage blends with rock, so finding one takes a little patience—and luck."
She explained to camera while searching the rock piles like a detective.
Chat dove into a live "find-the-Nymble" game:
[I see it! On the rock behind and left of the streamer!]
[Nope, that's a shadow—right side! Under the grass!]
[You're all blind—it's on her head!]
[???]
While the chat bickered, Iono's eyes suddenly lit up. "Found one!"
She tiptoed and pointed the lens at a nearby rock. On top, a palm-sized, pitch-black, cricket-like Pokémon was hopping and clicking tak-tak-tak.
But just as Iono moved in to give the Nymble a close-up, she froze.
Because across from the Nymble stood a purple, gooey, harmless-looking Ditto.
"Huh? What's a Ditto doing here?"
Iono blinked. The Ditto stood silently opposite the Nymble, the space between them charged and still.
Every inch of the scene screamed "battle about to begin."
The Gym Leader whose content brain never sleeps lit up. She pulled the Rotom Drone back for the perfect spectator angle, leaned into frame, and announced to chat:
"Family! FAMILY!"
"We just stumbled onto a wild Pokémon showdown! Tell me this isn't ten thousand times better than me catching one?!"
"No more words—your host is going full live commentator! And I'll introduce Nymble's moves while we're at it."
If it were anything else versus Nymble, she might have passed—but Ditto vs. Nymble? You know that's going to be tight. Perfect for commentary, and she was also curious: what was a Ditto doing out here picking a fight with Nymble instead of hiding in a cave?
[No way—wild fight?!]
[Fake set piece! Those are actors!]
[Blasphemy! Iono-sama never fakes it!]
[Let's gooo—the Iono Commentary Cup begins now!]
Grinning wider at the exploding chat, Iono locked the camera on the little "arena" and, in a hushed, fired-up tone, began:
"All right, folks! On the purple side—a Ditto that looks cute and harmless!"
"And on the black side—we have Paldea's famous 'Jump King', Nymble! Don't let the size fool you—this little one jumps high!"
"So who's your pick? Place your bets!"
Chat flooded with predictions for both. As the debate raged, Iono giggled.
"If I had to bet, I'd say Nymble wins." She paused, then pointed at the Ditto. "Because Ditto will transform into Nymble to fight—so in the end, Nymble has to win!"
[Streamer you're savage—and I love it!]
[Streamer, if Ditto transformed into you and fought you, who wins?]
[So if I catch a Ditto and make it look like Iono, I can take 'Iono' home for cuddles?!]
[Brb catching a Ditto.]
The chat derailed gloriously.
Unaware he was being streamed, Jason sized up the Nymble—ready to beat it and add it to his Dex.