Day 9: Wherein Joat demonstrates the power of rock.
The next morning…
??? Joat! Cherithe!
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And where are your parents?
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How?
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Don’t worry; I doubt he went very far.
???: Oh, I see, I see! That does sound bad! Kekeke!
Oh geez…
How long were you guys watching us?
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You have to get jobs by stealing them, and you saw us as a threat even when we were Normal Rank. Even taking into consideration that a ghost-type has reason to fear a dark-type, I have doubts about your rank.
For that matter, it’s a basic search-and-rescue in a random forest. This is not exactly the most daunting task, especially for, say, someone with a heightened sense of smell.
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Normally I would take this as insulted, but given how Cherithe has been doing on perception so far…
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You state we are not up to the task of doing the deed, then you state it does not matter who does the deed.
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…And then you go on to speak of why it matters who does the deed.
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A few things:
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His parents have no legal obligation to give you a reward. Yes, you could try to force them into it, but they would either report you, or if you try to “silence” them, others may notice their disappearance. The only way to guarantee it is to make an agreement in advance. Preferably in writing, provided Medicham doesn’t eat it.
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For that matter, why the Caterpie’s parents? Why not the Metapod’s parents? I don’t have hard numbers, but I’m pretty sure that, in general, a parent would be willing to pay more for their own child’s return than for their child’s friend’s return.
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Punctuating an agreement with evil laughter is not good for public relations.
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Interest does not work that way.
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Does this Caterpie really seem like the fighting sort?
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I know they are trying to sow discord, but if I were trying to take over the world, I would be more picky about who I put in a position of power within my ranks. I could see them recruiting the Caterpie as a grunt, because an evil empire needs a vast army, but anything beyond that…
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I concur, Caterpie.
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Indeed! But first, some preparations.
They addressed that, and said that would go to your parents.
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I’d bring up child labor laws, but I imagine the default age for the protagonist is about 10 or so, so never mind.
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Don’t worry, Caterpie. We’ll save you from their complete lack of understanding of how agreements work.
Anyway, first some shopping!
Good heavens, I have a lot of rocks!
Sounds like the best place to go play with a friend without any form of parental supervision, to me.
You know it’s sinister because of the… sinister mushrooms, I guess?
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Follow my nose!
Woo! Having a portable way to restore all PP is a helpful thing.
On another note, while I personally have not been too impressed with the soundtrack thus far (it’s not bad, mind, but not great), I must admit that the track that plays here is fairly nice and helps set the tone.
…DANGIT MALCHOIR, THAT’S MY THING!
Still, I must admit, it’s an okay move, so I guess dropping Sand-Attack for it. Basically, it allows the user to nullify enemy evasion boosts and hit Ghost-types with Normal- and Fighting-type moves.
That was over half of his hit points.
Huh. For once, I don’t feel super-fragile.
As the group ventures deeper into the forest, the field of view is lessened. Nice touch.
I may perhaps be regretting my decision to let Malchoir use this move at will. The AI has no concept of when is appropriate for it.
At long last, another variety!
Still not favoring dark, though…
Of course he did.
Woo! I finally have a full moveset!
Also, it’s about time I actually got a dark-type move. This one’s also just plain more powerful than Tackle, though it has a lower PP count to match.
I think this is the first time that’s been relevant.
Sure, why not? Not exactly one of my favorites, but oh well. I shan’t be picky!
Because Ledyba’s white ball things and color scheme kinda remind me of Pulseman. Rather appropriate, given that game, too, was made by Game Freak.
Given his low level and the high risk of losing him if he gets knocked out, best to keep him on the defensive.
Wow, two-hit paralysis combo, on Cherithe and I…
And quite unfortunate, when it triggers on the leader, in a hallway.
It begins.
I feel validated a bit, on the name choice.
You’ll enjoy Malchoir, then.
One Sky Gummi later, because Candy = Brains.
No room, so I may as well eat it.
Well, this could be a bother. But at least the light level is up again, for whatever reason. But now we have the introduction of water.
Sinister water.
Or they could go down quite quickly and easily.
Two things to note with that log. One, Malchoir leveled up because of course he did, and two, it’s quite nice how much more damage I am doing now that I have a better move.
…
Double Team is tempting, but it’s defensive and Cherithe is already tanky enough without it.
Note the floor number. And Metapod is not on this floor, so this means they were playing even deeper in.
Caterpie’s parents are the worst parents ever.
Now would be a good time to run, Scyther.
Ow.
When I first learned of Hoothoot, I was simultaneously pleased there was an owl Pokémon and disappointed that it looks so silly and non-cute to me.
Cherithe seriously ended up way over there.
She also keeps trying to use electric-type moves which do not affect it.
I have no words.
I finally got her to finish the fight by turning off every move she has PP for.
Honestly, it’s so much better if it is not in a hallway. The rest of us can help, in this case.
Good heavens, it’s so loooong…
Oh no, whatever shall I dooo…
I mean, using the normal attack is most of what I’ve been doing, so not much worry here. And plus, I have items to use as well.
Oh. That makes it even less scary.
Paralysis blocks any attacking, but apparently that does not include throwing rocks. Loophole abuse!
I did not really need to do that, but I did it anyway, just to show how little I care about Encore.
They really love to target me, specifically, with that, it seems.
To state it mildly.
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???: Hold it right there!
You got a head start and Gengar is presumably a higher level than us. Why are you not a long way ahead by now?
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You are surprised, Cherithe?
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I was tempted to do a captain obvious joke here, then I remembered that such is actually a legitimate question. Seriously, why us, specifically?
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Well, yes, you did, and I still have yet to discern what made you think it was a good idea to tell us that.
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How do you know?
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Like, seriously, am I missing something? Did these guys read some ancient prophecy where that Caterpie is The One?
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…Does that mean no cake?
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…I’m feeling a bit left out, here.
Though, to be fair, Cherithe is the more talkative one who’s actually, y’know speaking to them. That, and she’s probably the bigger threat.
It makes no sense for that to work, but I do not care.
Behold my biting power and despair!
That said, I should probably take out that Medicham before I or Malchoir receive a super-effective Medicham fighting move to the face.
…That works, too, actually.
I might be a bit more intimidated by that threat if our group had taken a single point of damage during that fight.
???: Um, excuse me…
Metapod just bounced up to us.
My mind is a bit blown, but hey, that makes the premise of this quest make more sense, at least.
It also makes the world a whole lot less sad for Metapod. I mean, keep in mind that, for who-knows-how-long, possibly forever for all anyone knows, nobody can evolve.
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That is a safe guess.
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“Hooray for making my friend worried!”
Also, that has got to be the most bored-looking, or possibly angry-looking, “Yay!” I have ever seen.
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And not Malchoir and Pulse, apparently.
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The sweat drop that came before that indicates nervousness at being unable to fulfill an expectation, even though you made it quite clear in advance that you have no money.
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Why is this a surprise? You knew in advance that we knew in advance that you had no method of payment.
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Wait, if you didn’t think we were that generous, why did you come here?
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Just… Don’t be surprised if it leads to a lot of bruises. Trust me on this one.
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Like put in some window panes?
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…Does this mean we have to get rid of the hay beds?
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I get the feeling the biped among us may be doing most of the work, if it’s a DIY project.
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And so, the two depart.
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I think you’re forgetting all the free stuff we find on the ground. I haven’t run the numbers, but I imagine that probably adds up to more than the rewards themselves, on average.
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For example, that opening a fight by throwing rocks is a highly effective tactic, even against ghosts. Somehow.
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More tiring from the walking than the battle at the end, admittedly.