Chapter 2
Surprise Visit/ Special Event
Known movesets (Bear in mind that these are moves that everyone in the group knows that the player in question has, and not their entire moveset):
Aron (Shane):
Endeavor-Normal; Metal Claw-Steel; - ; -
Joltik (Annie):
Thief-Dark; Bug Bite-Bug; - ; -
Shedinja (Jason):
Shadow Sneak-Ghost; - ; - ; -
Geodude (James):
Smack Down-Rock; Earthquake-Ground; - ; -
Klink (Winifred):
Shift Gear-Steel; Gear Grind-Steel; - ; -
"You know, we probably wasted that Sitrus," Jason realized after everyone logged in.
"And why's that?" James inquired, skeptical about the idea that his snap judgement could have been a waste.
"We could easily have used an Oran berry to heal just as much, if not more. And Orans aren't rare."
"Well, it already happened. And we can't change the past, now can we?" James was slightly irritated, but he had grown used to Jason's over-analysis in the two weeks that they had known each other.
"I'm just saying-" Jason began.
"And HE'S just not caring," Winifred interrupted, hoping to end the potential argument.
Jason and James glared at each other (or did the best one can with rigid, empty eye sockets), but dropped the subject. They knew further arguing was pointless.
"Hey, guys, I think we should get moving," Shane suggested. "You know how looters are around potential jackpots."
Everyone immediately picked up their paces. Angry/scared looters were a truly terrifying force to be reckoned with. No one wants to be on the hostile end of a group of looters. They were, however, decent business partners at the very minimum. That is, if one can get around how they obtained the majority of their items.
Shane, as usual, scouted ahead, poking his head out of a bush. So far, the coast was clear. He decided to take the chance and run ahead, toward the next nearest area that provided relative safety for all five of them. As he did so, he saw the telltale sign of someone teleporting in front of him, into the tall grass. He dove into the grass, then called the others to him. If anything, they could at least provide backup.
As everyone jumped into the grass, the teleportation beacon collapsed in on itself, taking the form of two Pokémon: Cresselia and Darkrai. The party of five leaped back in astonishment, but that didn't stop Winifred and James from taking the front to tank. Even if this was an exceptionally rare occurrence, they would still have to be on their guard. After a second, Shane joined them.
The Legendary Pokémon and the Mythical Pokémon of the Lunar Duo opened their eyes and looked at the five tiny Pokémon in front of them. And smiled.
"Well well, it seems SOMEONE is a bit on edge. Isn't that right?" Cresselia inquired to its counterpart.
"That seems to be the case. And, really, you can't blame them. I mean, they just fought off a Pseudo-Legendary, and two ACTUAL Legendaries just teleported in front of them. I would say that this justifies a fair amount of stress." Darkrai calmly answered. "Fear not, however. We mean you no harm. That is, unless you consider applause harmful." This last statement calmed the three damage-soakers down somewhat, but they stayed put, regardless. Darkrai put its arms behind its back.
"We have come to congratulate you," Cresselia added. "I admit, when we saw what was happening, we put up a wager…"
"And you betted against us," Jason bluntly stated. It seemed that he was once again in his generally moody disposition.
"That is… true. And, as you have proven with your presence, we have lost the wager, though I have to admit that betting on such an event wasn't the best idea we've ever had. So, considering we have lost, that makes you the winners. Darkrai, you do the honors."
"Gladly." Darkrai put its hands in front of itself again. "*Ahem*… 'Congratulations! You have won a wager against two players of considerable wealth and/or power. As we have not specified what we have placed as our end of the bet, you have the honor and responsibility of selecting your prize. The prize in question may be any number of any one item type contained inside this game, within parameters set by the administrators and general rules, or you may ask for a limited service from the players who owe you this prize. Now, without further ado, please select the payment of your choosing.'"
Shane checked his mental records of these two players. They periodically changed their usernames, so most just referred to them as their species' names. They were among the players with the longest game time on the server, and even had access to limited variants of admin powers. And they tended to pass their time by betting on various events, be it tournaments, random battles, or just the likelihood of random in-game events (like Legendary encounters) taking place at specific locations or to specific players. Shane also knew that they could generate items on command, but under the condition than those items be given to others. As such, they did this somewhat rarely. He thought about what his team would need most, both now and in the future. Looking at everyone else in his party, he made up his mind.
"We would like Lucky Eggs, one for each of us. That makes five in total." He looked back at the rest of his party, looking for confirmation. They all nodded their approval. Lucky Eggs were a decently rare item, and one would have to go out of their way to find them. Shane and his party did not have the time, nor the resources to do that. At least, not in the areas where Lucky Eggs could be found.
Darkrai and Cresselia looked at each other. Then, Cresselia made a strange statement: "Only five? Lucky Eggs are rather valuable, and there are more uses than just EXP boosting with them." It looked at them in a… specific way. As if to suggest something. Barring, of course, the "as if."
Shane took the hint. "…make that eight Lucky Eggs." Silently, he thanked the two players in front of him. He didn't know WHAT to do with the extra three Eggs, but they would figure out something.
That is, if they weren't stolen first. If anyone knew they had those Lucky Eggs, which would inevitably happen, bandits, muggers, and who knows who else would hound them halfway across the island for their cargo. Which was stupid, considering that those kinds of players had relatively easy access to those kinds of items if they just put some extra effort into leaving everyone else alone, but it was the principle of the matter: they would always, and only take items from others. And that Sturdy trick would only work so many times.
He stepped back and watched the two demigod-like players do their work. Darkrai held his arms out in front of him and looked to the sky, while Cresselia levitated off the ground and focused on a spot directly in front of her. As they put in the Console Command, particles of light began appearing and coalescing around the point where Cresselia was staring at and between Darkrai's hands. The little sparkles began swirling around eight specific points, then abruptly converged on those points. Just as quickly as they met, they dissipated, and as they did so, they began disappearing, a few at a time. At the places where they grouped where Lucky Eggs, one in each meeting point. The Eggs slowly floated down to the ground in front of the party of five.
Cresselia opened her eyes, and Darkrai's hands fell to his sides. "Your prize," they enunciated in sync.
"We gladly, and humbly, accept your payment," Annie responded with respect. She nudged one of the Eggs, and it disappeared in a flash, registering itself as her Held Item. The four others followed suit. The party placed the remaining three in their makeshift attempt at mobile storage (within Jason's shell), and thanked the DemiAdmins.
The Lunar Duo smiled and reciprocated with "You are very welcome."
Both groups said their goodbyes, and they went on their separate ways: Shane's friends headed over to the thrown-together trade center, and the Lunar Duo teleported back to who-knows-where. As the two teams parted, they began reworking their own plans.
"Where shall we go after our trade session?" Winifred asked, gears clicking with anticipation.
"How about the Desert? We haven't been anywhere except the field." James' suggestion made sense to most party members. Strangely enough, three of them would have an advantage there.
"You DO remember I only have one hit point, right?" Jason interrupted, very much aware that he would instantly be destroyed if he even moved one inch into the sandstorm-ridden wasteland.
"Then we'll get you some Safety Goggles. Don't worry about it!" Annie butted in, completely supportive of the idea of going into the Desert even though she herself wasn't sand-immune.
"It's settled then. To the Desert!" Shane concluded. "…AFTER, of course, we do some trading!" He edited, noticing Jason's harsh gaze.
And with that, they marched over to the trade center, loot in tow, excited for the day ahead. The world was full of surprises, and they would conquer them all.