3-Chip Trader Machine

Hooray, a decent chip! Zeo found himself no longer fearing for his life. He gleaned from the chip's name that it was a mine with a hefty damage rating. Clearly that was enough to satisfy Sabrina. Well, I hope it is... he thought quickly. He had stepped aside as she'd returned, and proceeded to congratulate her. "Hey, looks like you beat it this time," Zeo said, laughing. He didn't bother to mention how glad he was that the trader hadn't sent back something terrible.

The thought that had occurred to Zeo earlier popped up again. "So, do you... come here often?" he asked carefully, afraid Sabrina may not have had the best track record with the trader.
Mine2. That...counted as a victory in her book. "Told ya I'd get something good! Her woman's intuition would sleep well tonight after all..."I dunno about a lot, but if I get a lot of chips I don't like that I can't trade away, I always come here and take a chance! Sure, more often than not I just get something really bad, but it'll cough up something good every now and then, too!"

"Yeah...I don't really get why she loves it, myself...but as long as there's a chance she can get something really awesome, I'm not stopping her!" The short hologram appeared atop Sabrina's shoulder, this time sitting down. "I just wish we'd get something nice and watery for once..."

"Maybe one day, SplashMan. Maybe one day." Hmm...what to do now. "So, anyone have any ideas on what to do? I've got a little time to burn until I have to get back to Yoka, but I dunno what I want to do..."

"Don't look at me...I guess we could do a little ACDC busting if you want."

"I guess that's one option...any ideas, Zeo? You probably know this area better than we do..."
"A place in ACDC to go busting?" Zeo practically repeated. "I guess there's tons." He thought about it for a minute. "If you want somewhere specific, you could always head to the park squirrel. It's almost an iconic symbol of the place and it has ports for jacking in." Zeo wondered why Sabrina would choose to bust in ACDC, as he was fairly sure the place was well known for having barely any viruses.

Hearing their discussion, ViralMan spoke up. "You aren't likely to find much in the way of rewards in plain old ACDC Net. But then again, there is that Rogue Net. Probably what you had in mind, right?" After a suitable pause for Sabrina and SplashMan to reply, Zeo looked outside the store to the nearby ACDC Park. "Yeah, it's probably the quickest and most direct way into ACDC Net. Wanna head there?" He made a half turn toward the door in preparation to leave, wherever they were going.
The park squirrel...eh, busting was as good an idea as any, really. "Well, I guess that'll work. C'mon, I'll show you what a Rogue Net's like!" Grabbing Zeo by the arm, Sabrina flew outside the shop, ready to show him what he was up against later on. Whether he liked it or not. Though, really...who wouldn't want a risk-free sneak peek at a higher level Net?

(TO ACDC PROPER, WOO)
[+2 FXP to Zeo/Sabrina]
Rachel walked purposefully up to the trader machine with a handful of BattleChips she had already chosen for this purpose, things that her aunt and uncle had bought for a purpose still unknown to her. At any rate, it was her chip folder now, and whatever good these filler chips once did, they were lost on her. Guy, too, she supposed: She mentallly resolved to teach him to operate their Navi pair effectively in her place.

As if practicing out of jealousy towards Suitachi, Rachel snapped the three chips into the chip-trader as quickly and accurately as she could.

[Energybomb, Energybomb, Vulcan1]
The chip trader's internal evil at work, it swallowed the offering whole. It seemed quite pleased with the combination, for the chip it belched out was anything but the usual crap it threw up.

Rachel LOSE: EnergyBomb, EnergyBomb, Vulcan1
Rachel GET: Gaia1
Rachel furrowed her brow at the chip that the trader spat out. She didn't recognize it whatsoever, which meant that it was either something very rare, or something with very niche appeal that most people didn't like to use. Either way, she knew that it was a stroke of luck.

She didn't want to push it, but then-- she -had- brought enough chips for a second shot at it.

[Minibomb, Minibomb, Cannon]
The chip trader roared to life again, sputtering mechanically as it went. Accepting another sacrifice for the day, it suddenly went quiet for a bit before disposing of its blessing. As the chip rolled out, the trader sputtered again for a bit. If one had to guess, the chip trader was chuckling or something.

Rachel LOSE: Minibomb, Minibomb, Cannon
Rachel GET: Guard1
Rachel clicked her tongue. She hadn't lost anything she would miss, but then again, she already had *two* Guard chips. Was a Thunder, or a Firehit, or something a *little* not-totally-boring too much to ask for?

This was how people ended up with gambling addictions, Rachel reflected, as she rustled through the small pouch on her belt for what she would feed the trader next. Duplicate chips. Things she wouldn't miss...

[AquaNeedle1, Guard1, Guard1]
THREE CHIPS
ONE GIRL
ONE TRADER
FINAL DESTINATION

Rachel LOSE: AquaNeedle1, Guard1, Guard1
Rachel GET: GlassSeed
After being dropped off, Sabrina entered the chip shop, preparing to engage her mortal enemy. She only had enough ammo and time for a single round; after this, she'd have to head over to the park no matter what the results were. With three flicks of the wrist, she placed a trio of chips useless to her inside the machine, and pulled the lever. A single chip dropped, which she picked up to examine. The question was, who had won...?

[Order of Insertion:
1-MiniBomb, Thunder1, ZapRing1]
*KA-THUNK*

Sabrina LOSE: MiniBomb, Thunder1, ZapRing1
Sabrina GET: Vulcan
"AUGH!!!"

If they listened carefully, Rose and Zeo probably could've heard the Netopian girl's reaction to her receiving the incredibly rare and valuable...Vulcan1 chip. But, there was nothing she could do. She didn't have any other real junk chips, and she didn't have time to scrounge around for more. With a disappointed sigh, Sabrina left the shop as swiftly as she entered it...
Walking into the shop like the last few times, Jack pulled out three chips before swiftly placing them in the machine and pulling the leaver...he readied the F-bomb in his head...

LOSING: Minibomb, Ringlog1, Recover30
*KA-KA-THUNK*

Sabrina LOSE: MiniBomb, Ringlog1, Recover30
Sabrina GET: MiniBomb
Jack, not wanting to be defeated by the damn machine, plopped three more chips into the machine.

Losing: Minibomb, Thunder1, Guard1
*KA-KA-KA-THUNK*

Sabrina LOSE: Minibomb, Thunder1, Guard1
Sabrina GET: Powershot
Plucking the chip from the holder, Jack proceeded to the front counter.
Arriving back from his upgrade shopping in SciLab, Marius breeze on over to the chip shop as he casually threw three chips up and down from his palm. His eyes was focused on the blue chip trader and cautiously approached the dastard machine. "Time to see if Lady Luck is on my side..." He kneeled down and began to load the three chips, soon placing his sweaty hands on the dial and cranked it to the side.

Insert: Satellite, MagBomb, WideShot