"Um… can I join?"
A pleasant male voice stood out in the quiet plaza.
Iono bared her adorable shark teeth and beamed toward the voice: "Of course~ I never turn down battles…"
Her words cut off. Though she often has to stand on tiptoe to see speakers over a crowd (curse her height), this time was different.
Maybe because she'd been too on-fire earlier and had routed all the trainers gathering badges—
Now no one in the crowd wanted to fight her.
When someone finally volunteered, the relieved onlookers shifted aside, ensuring even Iono could clearly see him.
In the crowd, Lucas in casual clothes waved with a smile.
"Eh?"
The voice had sounded familiar, but seeing him made Iono let out a short, disbelieving squeak.
Why is the Champion here?!
Remembering their power gap, sweat drenched Iono's back.
What, I'm supposed to fight the Champion?
"Um… uh…"
Lucas strode over, smiling in a way that made Iono's small-animal instincts scream danger.
Panicking, she flailed her arms and legs.
Her fans—drawn by her lively style—didn't cut her any slack. They egged her on.
Some even brought up how she'd once promised at Levincia's biggest department store to battle Lucas.
She thought she'd buried that—alas, the internet never forgets.
Drenched in pressure, she could only throw up her hands: "Guh—fine, Iono accepts the challenge."
"But since I'm doing this for you guys~ be sure to subscribe to Iono's Ionobuzz channel!"
Never missing her main job, she pitched hard.
After bantering with the assistant holding the streaming rig, she turned to the patiently waiting Lucas, baring her teeth: "So, what brings the Champion to Levincia to fight me?"
Seeing she finally focused on him, Lucas pointed at the streaming setup and said plainly, "I saw your stream. I was going to look for Kofu or Brassius."
"…Gruh, having a Dragonite lets you do anything, huh?"
She pouted.
Looking at her pitiful face, Lucas chuckled and reminded her, "Just use the same Pokémon you use against your challengers."
His gaze fell to the heart-tailed Pikachu by Iono's feet.
Trained well, but still a bit underpowered.
"You're using a newly caught Pokémon?"
Iono's eyes spun—clearly hatching a scheme.
In her streams she didn't chase wins that hard; reactions and entertainment mattered more.
But still—relative, not absolute!
If the Champion was handing her a chance, how could this cute, clever, soon-to-be-superstar Iono pass it up?
Arranged by an abruptly over-enthusiastic Iono, Lucas took the opposite side of the field.
He glanced around at the crowd and the assistant with the camera and raised a brow.
With no Rotom Phones yet—and even the Rotom Pokédex not invented by Clemont yet—Iono did need an assistant to stream flexibly.
With gentlemanly grace, Lucas sent out little brother Shuckle and introduced, "He's my pick today."
The red shell and cute look drew a buzz from this Paldean-born crowd who'd never seen one.
Disliking human contact except with Lucas, little Shuckle shrank, on the verge of hiding in his shell.
"Shuckle~!"
A cheer came from behind.
Lucas had released big sister Shuckle—her colors opposite her brother's.
Waving her front tendrils, enduring discomfort, big sister Shuckle cheered him on.
Little Shuckle blinked, warmth rising in his heart; remembering Lucas's guidance, he mustered his courage and fought the instinct to hide.
Iono didn't recognize Shuckle, but some viewers from other regions did.
A viewer posted a detailed intro.
Watching chat, Iono exhaled in relief.
Good thing there are always genius viewers—her study-slacker shortcoming wouldn't be exposed.
She skim-distilled it with her genius brain.
Shuckle, the Mold Pokémon. Bug/Rock. Weak to Rock, Water, Steel. Resists Normal and Poison. Amazing defenses, abysmal other stats.
Meaning: Electric types don't hit it super-effectively, and won't be hit super-effectively by it either!
Eyeing the pair—one clearly shiny—Iono grinned: "Champion wants a double battle?"
Lucas shook his head. "Singles. The older Shuckle isn't good at battling."
Iono nodded, recalled Pikachu, and turned to the stream with her signature intro.
"Everyone are you ready?"
"Snaring your gaze with an Electroweb! Who's coming to my show? Iono's here! Ello, 'ello, hola! Ciao and Bonjour!~!"
"This challenger is—Paldea's rising star who even shot down a flying Wattrel—the Champion Lucas!"
"Battle—start~!"
On the assistant-referee's signal, Iono sent out her pick.
"Rule the field with lightning speed and Thunderbolt—Raichu~!"
With a flash, an energetic Raichu with dark orange fur, yellow pouches, and a lightning-tail hit the field.
Pikachu's next evolution—the orange chubby rodent, Raichu!
Even in bright daylight, Raichu glowed like a living bulb, electricity haloing its body.
"Rai-chu~!"
Its bat-like ears twitched—high spirits.
"Shuckle~!"
Little Shuckle stared back, refusing to flinch.
"Say hello with Thunderbolt~!"
Raichu lifted its lightning-rod tail, golden current flaring!
KRAK-BOOM!
Though the sky was clear, a deep thunderclap seemed to sound.
Snakes of wild current whipped in from all sides!
Sensitive to loud sound, Shuckle reflexively used Protect he'd learned from Lucas.
With a hum, a green barrier flared, covering him 360 degrees.
The full-force Thunderbolt slammed into Protect.
Screeching arcs clawed at the barrier, earsplitting, chewing at it.
Sparks scarred the arena floor.
Spectators squinted away from the glare.
When they looked again, Shuckle stood unharmed after taking a full Thunderbolt from a fully charged Raichu.
They didn't know same-level absolute wall—just that Shuckle tanked it. Cheers erupted.
Seeing this, Lucas smiled wider, eyes on the alert little Shuckle.
If not for the setting, he'd have asked—
How's that feel, not bad right?
"Shuckle…"
Realizing the cheers were for him, Shuckle froze, a strange feeling budding inside.
Before he could place it, Raichu pressed on.
"Quick Attack!"
Raichu blurred into a white streak, afterimages trailing, darting in to slam!
This time, Shuckle didn't panic. He peeked at Lucas, awaiting orders.
Lucas's mouth quirked. "Power Split."
"What's that?"
Study-slacker Iono blinked, lost.
She missed Raichu's one chance to use speed to avoid it.
Shuckle's red shell glowed faintly; a translucent band of light linked him to the onrushing Raichu.
A mysterious energy flowed along it toward Shuckle.
In an instant, Shuckle felt power flood his body.
Raichu, meanwhile, felt drained—its slam turned feeble.
Thud!
Raichu smacked Shuckle's sturdy shell and clutched its head in pain.
Equal and opposite force, after all.
Especially when you hit a naturally rock-hard shell backed by Sturdy.
"Rai-chu…!"
Raichu curled up, head throbbing, a bump threatening to balloon.
"What the—!"
Iono's face stiffened. Her eyes darted to chat.
The same viewer explain again:
Power Split, Psychic status move. Averages the user's and target's Attack and Special Attack and gives both the average.
Shuckle's offenses are abysmal.
Which means Raichu's power got shaved, Shuckle's got boosted.
"So cheesy…"
Because Shuckle's offenses are so low, what should be two-way averaging becomes a one-sided nerf to Raichu and a free buff to Shuckle, with basically no downside.
Iono shot Lucas a betrayed look, as if seeing him anew.
Unfazed, Lucas smiled slightly. "Toxic."
Shuckle spat a dense purple venom that splashed onto Raichu's head.
The venom sank right into the growing bump. Raichu let out a pained shriek.
A dark purple sheen spread over its face—badly poisoned!
Pain often turns to anger.
"Rai-chu!"
Adrenaline surged; Raichu's tiny fists sparked and punched at Shuckle!
Thunder Punch!
Even in anger, it aimed for Shuckle's soft body, not the shell.
A correct choice.
Shuckle's mobility is poor—no dodging a speedster like Raichu. He had to tank it.
"Substitute!"
As Raichu's fist closed in, Lucas's next command landed.
With momentum shifting their way, Shuckle responded eagerly.
He felt HP slip away, and a colorless energy peeled off, forming a same-sized, all-green Substitute.
Substitute is great in games but trickier in reality.
It emanates a faint taunting target compulsion, but trained Pokémon can suppress it and strike the real body.
That didn't include this enraged Raichu.
"No—Raichu!"
Seeing the Substitute, Raichu ignored Iono's cry and slugged it!
A flash, the Substitute burst into smoke. Too late, Raichu realized the trap.
"Sticky Web."
Lucas's devilish voice followed.
White, gluey silk sprayed through the smoke, matting Raichu's fur, hampering its movements.
A few hits later, Raichu finally cooled down.
Its face matched Iono's—like a five-year-old potato head forced to eat peppers: bitter.
Where did Lucas and Shuckle pull these bizarre moves from?!
This was suffocating. Weren't battles supposed to bring smiles?
"Grrr—to push me this far… as expected of the Champion?"
Iono ground her shark-teeth lightly and pulled a round crystal from her oversized fit.
"At this point, I can't lose miserably!"
That round crystal was a Tera Orb. It had existed for a while, but was rare and expensive.
Until those two professors entered the area they dubbed Area Zero.
Now Iono's Tera Orb was League-issued gear for Paldea gym leaders!
Holding the glittering orb, Iono winked at the camera; even her mismatched Magnemite hair clips turned serious.
"Come on, my lightbulb of inspiration! Time to show Iono's potential!!"
"Raichu, Terastallize!"
She tossed the orb; Tera light rained down, transforming Raichu.
A golden crystalline sheen plated its body; a giant glowing bulb crowned its head.
As Levincia's Electric specialist, Raichu's Tera type was Electric!
With Terastal power, Raichu clawed back some lost strength, glaring at Shuckle—ready for revenge.
Iono's plan too: break the shell before Toxic drains it!
"Thunderbolt!"
KRAK-BOOM!
Raichu roared—thunder drowned it out. Electricity surged from its pouches, a dragon of lightning tearing toward Shuckle!
Empowered, this Thunderbolt was nearing Thunder's might.
Lucas didn't get cocky. "Protect!"
The green barrier rose again—but this time it barely held.
In the storm of volts, Protect rocked like a skiff in a gale, on the verge of shattering.
Still, it endured.
Before Shuckle could breathe, Raichu cloaked itself in wild gold lightning and slammed in!
Thump!
Wild Charge launched Shuckle into the air!
Blackened scuffs marred the shell; through the pain, a fire for victory lit in Shuckle's heart.
"Shuckle~!"
He opened his mouth; emerald Bug energy formed sharp fangs—he chomped downward at Raichu with the falling momentum!
"Rai-chu!"
Fighting the poison's sapping, Raichu clenched a fist—an electrified uppercut met Bug Bite head-on.
Shuckle was swatted away; in raw power, Raichu had regained the edge.
But Raichu suffered too; eyeing the bite wound, under Iono's command, its tail gleamed metallic.
"Iron Tail!"
Knowing Steel hits super-effective, and that Sub/Toxic only help when power is even or lower, Lucas calmly answered, "Stone Edge!"
Clang as Shuckle landed; having shrugged off most damage via shell with only mild shock, he thrust out tendrils, calling Rock energy from below—jagged pillars surged at Raichu.
With his Attack free-lifted by Power Split, Stone Edge had bite, forcing Raichu to whip its tail to shatter the spires.
"Earth Power," Lucas narrowed his eyes.
Sandy energy rippled along the ground; fissures spidered outward—then a geyser of Ground energy erupted under Raichu!
Boom!
Bathe in a super-effective Earth Power, Raichu's scant HP flickered like a dying candle.
Even so, it gritted through, dashing across shattered rocks in a flash to Shuckle!
Hope lit Iono's face—maybe a win against the Champion! She cried, "Thunder!"
Electricity flooded Raichu's pouches; it locked on at point-blank to decide it in one blow.
Knowing Substitute wouldn't fool a focused Raichu, Shuckle readied Protect to weather it.
But then Lucas said, "Time's about up."
"Eh?"
Iono blinked.
The next second—
A crystalline shatter rang out. The thunderous aura wrapped Raichu faltered; the arcing light collapsed into motes.
Even the falling Tera sparkles couldn't hide the heavy, bubbling purple aura on Raichu.
It swayed twice, then crumpled in front of Shuckle.
Badly poisoned, its last strength and will were gone.
Which meant—Shuckle had won.