[Observing Paradox species: Flutter Mane]
[Logging feeding behavior…]
[Dex completion: 13%…]
Jason scrunched his body down, mimicking an ordinary rock about thirty centimeters tall with a bluish mossy texture, and sat quietly in the shadow beneath a huge boulder.
His gaze locked onto the creature ten meters away that was eating.
Flutter Mane—the ancient form of Misdreavus.
"Chii!"
The feeding Flutter Mane suddenly froze and snapped its head up.
On its disproportionately large head, two crimson eyes swept the empty surroundings.
Its gaze passed over the rock wall, the glowing crystals—and the stone Jason was imitating.
Flutter Mane's eyes lingered on Jason's position for a full three seconds.
"Chii?"
It let out a second, puzzled cry.
That feeling of being watched vanished, as if it had never been there.
It tilted its head; the arm-like appendages beside its eyes swayed with the motion, stirring a faint breeze.
I could've sworn someone was watching me eat!
Its scarlet eyes flickered, but it still couldn't pinpoint the source of that prying sensation.
The deathly quiet around it killed its appetite.
With an irritable flick of the two hand-like growths by its eyes, its whole body rose and drifted upward, slipping soundlessly into the depths of the cave.
Silence returned.
After a moment, once he was sure the danger had completely moved off—
A soft white light rippled over the surface of the small stone under the boulder.
It became a pale-purple Pokémon.
Ditto.
"Whew—close one. I was almost spotted."
Jason let out a long breath, scanned the area, and only when he was sure no other Pokémon were around did he begin to ooze his body into motion.
Back on Earth he'd been a corporate drone. He finally scored a date with a Gardevoir cosplayer, and before anything could even get started, he transmigrated into the Pokémon world.
Right into Area Zero of the Paldea Region, no less.
And the kicker? Jason had become a Pokémon himself.
Yep—Ditto.
At first he was pretty happy about it, because Ditto has a god-tier move: Transform.
You can become whatever Pokémon you face—even a legendary.
But when Jason, all excited, found an Iron Treads to copy, he realized—
He'd crossed into this Ditto's body without inheriting its memories.
Which meant he couldn't use Transform at all.
Good thing he'd hidden in time, or he would've been flattened into paste by that Iron Treads.
A Ditto can't do anything except Transform, and Jason couldn't even Transform. Panic set in immediately.
He even suspected he might never make it out of Area Zero.
With so many Paradox Pokémon around, he'd probably die here.
People say the Pokémon world is a utopia—no matter how close to death you are, someone will patch you up.
But there's no pretty Nurse Joy or Pokémon Center down in Area Zero.
"Thank god I've got a cheat."
Once Jason oozed into a spot he considered safe and hidden, he relaxed, slumping into a puddle of goo on the ground.
With a thought, an information panel popped up before his eyes.
Name: Jason
Species: Ditto
Ability: Limber
Type: Normal
Base Stats:
HP: 48
Attack: 48
Defense: 48
Sp. Atk: 48
Sp. Def: 48
Speed: 48
Held Item: None
Transformable Dex: 0
As one of the lowest-base-stat Pokémon—and without Transform—this was basically a doomed start.
Luckily, Jason had a cheat: the [Ditto-to-God] system.
He didn't have Transform after crossing over, but this cheat gave him an even stronger transformation ability.
A normal Ditto can only copy what's right in front of it.
His cheat lets him shapeshift anytime, anywhere—bigger, smaller, even into inanimate objects—with no restrictions. The catch is he has to meditate: the longer he meditates, the more convincing the inanimate disguise.
If he wants to become another Pokémon, though, he first has to collect that Pokémon's entry in his personal Transform Dex; once complete, he can turn into it.
To collect entries, he has to observe that Pokémon and gradually complete the data.
Like just now—watching Flutter Mane had brought the entry to 13%.
Once it hits 100%, he'll have the Flutter Mane entry and be able to transform into one.
The problem is, the stronger the Pokémon, the slower the progress.
And he has to avoid being discovered while observing.
He'd been watching Flutter Mane for nearly a month and had barely scraped together 13%. The grind was painfully slow.
Who knew how many years it would take to finish an entry.
Area Zero was simply too dangerous for Jason as he was now.
He'd tried to leave, but after days of dragging his puddly body along at a crawl, he gave up.
There was just no way out.
If he couldn't transform into something strong, he'd probably end up living out his life—and dying—down here.
No wonder Ditto's base stats are so low. Without Transform, it's basically useless.
That's why Jason had picked the powerful Flutter Mane as his first target entry.
Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned.
A month wasted, and the Flutter Mane entry still wasn't complete.
He'd even nearly been caught several times—close calls with death.
BOOM!
A thunderous blast ripped through Area Zero.
"Crap! Don't tell me those Iron Treads are about to start their parade again!"
Jason's body liquefied on the spot. He slid into the wedge between two crystal clusters, molding himself perfectly to the corner.
He knew that sound, and he knew what came next.
The ground began to shake violently.
In the distance, dust plumes rose on the horizon.
A herd of massive, spherical metal bodies was barreling this way.
Iron Treads—the roaming natural disasters of Area Zero.
They ignored terrain, crushed everything in their path, and thundered forward with unstoppable momentum.
A runaway train roared past Jason.
The closest one passed within half a meter.
He could clearly see the fresh gouges on its metal shell from recent impacts, and the single red, glowing eye at its center.
The rolling hub kicked up a gale, flinging sand and crystal shards that lashed his body.
The tremors peaked, threatening to shake him apart.
Jason didn't move, becoming one with the corner.
At length, the quakes ebbed.
The rumble faded, finally vanishing into the depths of Area Zero.
Jason slowly eased out of the corner and resumed his original form.
He stared after the retreating Iron Treads; the ground behind them was carved with broad, ragged tracks.
His body still trembled slightly—aftershocks of a narrow escape.
"As a Ditto, I'm still way too weak."
"No—I've gotta get out of Area Zero. It's getting more dangerous by the day."
"Looks like it's time to activate Plan B!"