Main Action and Team Status Thread [VICTORY!!!]

[Shieldbearer]

Jeff, stop taking all the creepy places. I want some. Has that previous hallucination invoked some sort of morbid wanderlust in you? I mean, if it has, I suppose it'd make us a little more alike...

Anyway, I'll just go talk to 31. Rulend the Rampardos, since almost no one of our group is a rock type. Granted, the steel won't help and there's little guarantee it will earn us anything, but it's better than nothing.

I'd also like to keep an eye on the perimeter around the ritual Jeff will be attempting afterwards, but I'll likely not be able to make it.

[VeloJello]

I'll uh uh *spins wheel* interview 44.Tashy the Furret. For now, though, we seem to be pretty well on-track. If I get the time later today and the Sharine interview has already gone up, I'll see if I can't just edit this to attempt the Sin Purge Ritual. I'll go to the Locked Container at the abandoned house and input the combination 987 that we've found previously.

[Neo Emolga]

I'll use the Victini Mouth, Face and Eyes on the Victini Statue at the Abandoned House.

Creepy Basement Adventurer Extraordinare. That's going on my business card.

Congratulations on your CBAE Certification! Yes, you've EARNED it!


...

You arrive at the Abandoned House and insert the [Victini Statue Mouth], [Victini Statue Eyes], and [Victini Statue Ears] on the statue. The pieces fit in perfectly and you hear a heavy thump as it seems a mechanism has been triggered.

[Victini Statue Mouth], [Victini Statue Eyes], and [Victini Statue Ears] have been removed from the Team Inventory.

The heavy door slowly slides away, making a rough, rock-grinding sound as it does.

You step inside the dimly lit building and it seems whoever has been here is incredibly obsessed with numbers and calculations, writing them all over the walls and floor. It seems overwhelming at first, but when you stop and just try to take it in piece by piece, you start seeing things begin to add up.

This is the work of NTH, and they've been calculating everything that's been going on. The record-keeping of kills based on time, date, and many other circumstances is extreme. You feel as though some dark and infernal power is behind this extreme level of mathematical calculation. While most of it is beyond your understanding, you definitely know whoever is behind this has an alarming skill in instantaneous calculation in a way that only a very powerful computer should be able to do.

At one point of the room, it seems to stop and you can tell something in NTH's myriads of equations hits a dead stop. You recognize it that they had hit a point where it was simply impossible to keep going, and for a minute, you wonder what could have caused this sudden mathematical deadlock, but then you start seeing a different pattern to the numbers, how they've been assigned, and why something suddenly just couldn't be computed in this fashion.

He tried to work the arrival of Emissaries into the calculation, and you imagine that the unique nature of your arrival, based on supernatural circumstances, has simply caused a scenario that cannot be explained by measures, equations, and standard mathematical calculations.

In one corner of the room, you find multiple canisters of oil, gasoline, and an old lighter. It seems as though the Pokémon behind this isn't a fire type, and needs to rely on conventional means to start a fire and perform the cremations.

You find the only piece of furniture in the roof is a worn desk. There seem to be two objects here. You start with the first one located in the center of the desk's surface. It looks like a wing-shaped coin, only in a red, blood-tinted color. You take it with you.

Item: [Bloody Wing Piece] has been added to the Team Inventory.

Then, in the far right side of the desk, there appears to be a heavy, locked container. Unlike some of the other containers you've found, this heavy, steel locker requires some three-digit combination to open.

Locked Container {Heavy Steel Locker, 3 Digit Combination} has been noted in the Team Records.

[Neo Emolga]

Interviewing number 53, Sharine the Floatzel!

Interview Rapport: POSITIVE
+1 Shared Pokémon Evolution Stage

You find Sharine the Floatzel at Ryne's farm, and you can see from her nature that she seems to be a witty, playful Pokémon even though she's an adult. It's easy to see why Ryne and Sharine are a great couple. She still carries a childlike innocence even though she's an adult now.

You approach Sharine and she seems very welcoming. You introduce yourself to her.

"Hi there, Laura!" Sharine winks at you. "How goes things?"

You talk to her about your efforts to try and put an end to the Stalkers, as well as complete Adis's work. She nods, but still keeps her optimistic smile.

"We worked pretty closely with Adis, but he still had his secrets," Sharine tells you. "It's not that he didn't trust his old friends, but these Stalkers... they made it hard to trust anyone. Right now, they're living with us, talking with us, and acting like the rest of us, but they're not the same inside. Something horrible is consuming them from the inside, but we just don't know the full nature of this... evil thing that's possessing them. Adis tried to lead the project to stop them without Pokémon accusing and acting out against each other left and right. But, until he had everything together, he couldn't leave things to chance. He's gone now, and it's hard to determine where we should go from here."

She sifts through one of the pouches on a small brown carrying bag she carries, and takes out a silver candle. She then hands it to you.

Item: [Silver Candle] has been added to the Team Inventory.

"Adis wanted me to hold onto this, but right now, you're the best shot we have at figuring this ritual out," Sharine explains. "I've thought about trying to do it myself, but several Pokémon have tried and they died before they could. I'm hoping you're able to figure out something that maybe they just didn't have the chance to figure out yet."

"All the best, Laura," Sharine tells you with an optimistic smile. "I'm sure there's something special about you that will make all the difference."

[The Nonexistent Tazz]

Alright, with everything settled and all the ritual components in our possession, I head towards the Serenity Town Church, Lock the door as an extra precaution, and Attempt the Ritual.

Let's go through the steps in order.

1: I draw the Sin Purge Circle on the altar.
2: I place the six Ivory Bowls on the star points on the Circle.
3: I place the Stalker Samples into each of the bowls.
4: I pour one cup of holy water into each of the bowls.
5: I place the six silver Candles into each of the bowls.
6: I light the candles with the Ceremonial Lighter.
7: I read the Divine Judgement Statement.

"I stand before the Beacon of the Judgement, a holy fire upon each of the silver markers, standing lit in a pure basin of clean purity, with the essence of the wicked below to stand judgement for their crimes. Holy Cleansing Fire! Purge the Wickedness from our world! Seek out the unholy traitors whose essences lie before us and render the punishment they are due. So be it."

I'm going to be more than a little peeved if this does nothing.

[Neo Emolga]

I'll search (33) Drem Residence (Abandoned).

You stand before the Drem Residence, which looks like it has been abandoned in this vacant area of town. Like several of the other buildings in this area, it seems as though things have become cold, still, and quiet here as well. You're not sure who Drem was and why they left what seems like decades ago, but you imagine they were probably a large-sized Pokémon given the bulky construction of the building.

The wood is rotting, the stone walls have become cracked and are weathering down, and most of the paint and fixtures are broken. The roof of the building also has many holes and the broken tiles have become scattered all over the place.

The creaky front door opens with no problem at all, and inside, the house is a dusty, chalky mess with debris all over the floor, holes in the walls, and splinters of wood everywhere. It seems like there's still furniture here, but as you expected, they've fallen into disrepair. You're convinced the effort that would be needed to renovate this house would be monumental and it would be better to just tear it down and start over.

Upstairs, the rooms are filthy and dusty and you can see exactly where you stepped before with your footprints leaving tracks in the dust. Because of this, it seems like you're the only one that has been in this house for a long time. When you search the main level, you see the kitchen has fallen apart, tiles are all over the place in pieces, and most of the metal fixtures and kitchen utensils have rusted over completely.

You search the outside perimeter, but it doesn't seem like anything was left here either. The grass and shrubs have grown wildly over all these years and it doesn't seem like anyone is going to take care of the mess for a while now...

[Neo Emolga]

I'll search #34 Sammi's Cafe (Abandoned)

You come to Sammi's Cafe at the abandoned southeast outskirts of town. You're not sure who Sammi was, but it seems like they tried to make a quiet little restaurant away from all the hustle and bustle going on in the center of town and create a place that got a better view of nature instead.

The wooden and metal sign for Sammi's Cafe is cracked in half and you can just barely make out the letters. It also used to be painted green and white, but most of that has come off also. It also seems like there used to be a stone pathway leading from the road to the restaurant's front door, but it has become overgrown with weeds while the stones have been slowly crumbling apart over the years.

The cafe itself is small and very much like a diner for Pokémon. There used to be large windows here, likely to take in the view, but they've been heavily boarded up. Meanwhile, the wood has been cracking and the metal supports have been rusting for a while now.

You come to the front door, and you find it seems to be locked, but the original lock of the door was ripped out and replaced with something else somewhat recently, which seems suspicious. However, considering how infrequently this abandoned cafe is visited these days, you're not surprised barely anyone has noticed it.

You take a closer look at the lock, and you see two empty flower-shaped sockets by the door handle. There seems to be an inscription here, also:

"For life is like a fleeting flower, beginning with the white of life and ending with the black of death."

Locked Door: {Sammi's Cafe Locked Front Door, White Flower Slot, Black Flower Slot} has been noted in the Team Records.

You decide to search the exterior of the building, but you don't find any back door or alternative entrance. It also seems like nothing was buried here recently, though some of the disturbances in the ground seem to imply there were other Pokémon long after the building had been boarded up and abandoned.

[Neo Emolga]

I'd like to search (37a) Renner Farm (Abandoned): Dead Cabbage Field.

You arrive before the dead and vacant cabbage field for the Renner Farm.

From a first glance, it definitely seems like there hasn't been a living cabbage here for quite a few years. Most of the area has been overtaken by dead weeds and you imagine in a year or two, it might be impossible to tell this was actually a crop field in the first place.

As you check up and down the rows, you can see that the plowed crop lines have almost completely faded. The ground also doesn't seem like it's been well-taken care of, which leads you to believe it would take quite a lot of work to get this field back up and going again, if it was even worth it.

You check the remainder of the field, but nothing seems to stick out as suspicious. It definitely doesn't seem like anyone tried to hide anything here.

[Neo Emolga]

Lita pockets the key and goes to search 32. Voren's farm--maybe one of the other farms has evidence?

You arrive at Voren the Marowak's farm. The property still seems to be in good condition, but it seems to reflect Voren's strict and stern personality. There is almost no decor at all and it seems like Voren keeps things strictly functional and nothing more. The grounds seem well-maintained, but they seem empty and devoid of any color.

You search the inside of the house and things seem very plain. The interior seems to be in good condition, but you can't find any pictures, art, or decor at all. A lot of the furniture seems very plain and without character while the carpets are solid colors and seem a little boring to you.

Upstairs, you find Voren seems to like reading, but there isn't a trace of fiction anywhere. Every book is strictly for instructions or for working on skills, most of them hardware, home improvement, or renovation-related projects.

From the square discolorations on the walls, you can see that there used to be something hung on the walls, but they've all been taken down and now there is simply nothing at all. You also don't find anything like knick-knacks or decorations around. Many shelves are empty and barren, although circles of dust seem to indicate some kind of ornamental objects used to be on display here. You have the feeling that the death of Voren's family is what caused him to stash everything that used to give the house life and color away and out of mind. It makes it clear he is still painfully grieving over his losses...

You search the exterior of the house, and as you check around the back, you see something half-buried in the ground. It catches your eyes instantly due to the fact that given the nature of Voren's decor-stripped house, this doesn't belong at all and it definitely seems like the kind of thing Voren probably would have put away. You take a closer look and it seems to be a gray stone flower. You take it out of the ground and look to see there is an inscription on the back.

"...And the years pass on..."

You take the gray flower stone with you.

Item: [Gray Flower Stone] has been added to the Team Inventory.

You make one last check around the house, but nothing seems to stand out. It seems you've found all there really is to see here...

[Neo Emolga]

Jeff, stop taking all the creepy places. I want some. Has that previous hallucination invoked some sort of morbid wanderlust in you? I mean, if it has, I suppose it'd make us a little more alike...

Anyway, I'll just go talk to 31. Rulend the Rampardos, since almost no one of our group is a rock type. Granted, the steel won't help and there's little guarantee it will earn us anything, but it's better than nothing.

I'd also like to keep an eye on the perimeter around the ritual Jeff will be attempting afterwards, but I'll likely not be able to make it.

Interview Rapport: POSITIVE
+1 Shared Pokémon Type (Rock)
-1 Super Effective Against (Steel to Rock)
+1 Shared Pokémon Evolution Stage

You find Doctor Rulend the Rampardos at the hospital, currently working on medical records. He seems like the very analytical and by-the-book type that probably doesn't like the arts too much and would rather stick with what's professional and formal. He looks up at you when you introduce yourself.

"Come on, Aurimas," Rulend tells you. "What did you need from me?"

You explain the situation regarding your investigations into the Stalkers. Rulend nods, looking like he's had to deal with quite a lot of it already.

"I was able to recently confirm that the victims discovered to be from what Officer Zick called 'NTH' are done by a kind of arsonist," Rulend explains. "Now, unlike fire types that can create their own fires, this Pokémon incinerates their victims as a means to conceal the evidence. And it's been quite effective. Some of their victims were unrecognizable and as Zick and I had discovered, they were likely not from town and thus, no one knows who are what they were prior to being incinerated. So we don't have a clear picture on all of NTH's victims, but we do know that he can't target fire types."

"NTH douses their victims with oil before lighting them on fire," Rulend tells you. "I was able to pull that fact out of one of the more recent unidentified corpses that I believe was a Mr Mime judging from the skeletal remains. I have reason to believe that due to the nature of these kills, whoever NTH is has to be small and fast. It's the only way they could have performed murders like these, especially against larger Pokémon. They let the fire do most the work, incinerating just about everything about the victim, and chances are good it was to also frame fire types and sway suspicion from them."

"I'm still in the process of working on it, but we're slowly making headway." Doctor Rulend tells you. "If you find anything else about NTH, let me know. I might be able to use that information to complete the profile of the killer."