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

[Neo Emolga]

(Jackpot.)

Interview number 4, Zick the Jolteon!

Hi there, Zick! Me and some other Pokemon were looking into the Stalkers, and we found these two notes! One's a sudoku puzzle I solved, and it looks like it might have NTH's handwriting, and the other is a ripped-up poem we pieced together that we think me have been written by Koax? Do you think it's possible we can match up the handwriting on the two notes with the handwriting of someone in the town to find some of the stalkers, maybe?

Interview Rapport: POSITIVE
(+1 Shared Pokémon evolution stage)

You introduce yourself to Zick, and he seems a bit surprised about what you found, but nonetheless, quite happy about it.

"There were some rumors going around that some newcomers were looking into these Stalkers," Zick tells you with a reassuring smile. "Wow, glad the rumor's true! Trust me, the police force of Serenity Town is understaffed and I'd hate to say it, but Adom and I are the only ones left. So it's nice to see someone's willing to help!"

He looks over the sudoku puzzle first, and smiles and nods that it's been solved.

"This definitely has to be NTH's," Zick reaffirms. "Whoever it is, they're obsessed with numbers and I'm not surprised to see they did something like this again. I'm just not sure why NTH cremates their victims and if that has anything to do with numbers. Maybe there's a connection, maybe there's not."

"987," Zick reads the numbers to the solution. "Sounds like the combination to a lock or something. Let's keep a lookout for anything that looks like a combination lock or something like that. That might be where NTH is trying to hide something freaky."

"It also seems to link with something else I found," Zick tells you. "NTH has an affinity for Xs. At first, I didn't know why, but I'm thinking in algebraic terms and numbers, that usually means a variable, some unknown number, or something like that. I've spent hours trying to work it out and what unknown number it might be referring to, but then I got to thinking... what if it's not something with an unknown number? What if it's an unknown place? I've gone through the public records, and there's one place that stands out. No one knows the name of it."

He points to a personal map he owns, and places his paw on (36) Vacant House.

"This place," Zick explains. "I checked it out and there's no name in the town records. Meanwhile, there's this really weird statue of a Victini in the front, but it's missing pieces. I tried to bust through the door, but it's sealed shut and I don't even think the brawniest of Pokémon could bust through it. Maybe you could find something that I haven't. I'd say it's worth a check!"

You then show Zick the ripped-up poem, and he's happy to see it. In fact, he excitedly copies the poem and makes note of it.

"Now this is definitely Koax's work," Zick explains. "NTH's a numbers freak while Koax has something with poetry all over the place. And hearts. Lots of hearts, both the literal and figurative. As for the handwriting, I'm not sure. I don't know who could ever have freaky handwriting like that, but it's definitely not normal."

"Here's something I just don't get," Zick tells you. "I don't know why Koax rips up their own poems. And it's not just ripping up. I've found cases where they've written some creepy poem, but also crossed it out, smudged it over, or basically tried to destroy what they wrote. Now, I've seen plenty of weird cases in my time as an investigator, but my best guess is that it almost seems like they're trying to fight themselves in some kind of cycle of create, destroy, create, and destroy again. Creepy, isn't it?"

"One last thing," Zick tells you. "There's something I've been noticing a lot of when it comes to the Stalkers. I keep seeing the word 'SUNKEN' appear. Check out your puzzle, it's on there too! I wasn't sure what it meant and it kept me up at night a few times. And then, when I was playing around with the letters, I made the connection."

"S for Shadefetch. U for Undone. N for NTH. K for Koax. E for Epitaph. And N for Non," Zick tells you slowly. "S-U-N-K-E-N.That word refers to the Stalkers and it reinforces the fact there's got to be six of them. And what's also weird is how they like to keep burying everything. As in like sunken in the ground or something like that. I dunno, maybe the burying thing is just a hunch, but it's weird. It gets me wondering if they just have an affinity for doing stuff underground. Maybe literally or figuratively? As in underground secret places or just doing things without anyone's knowledge? Heck, I'd bank on both if you'd ask me!"

"Anyway, hopefully that helps," Zick tells you with a smile. "I'm still working at this, but let me know if you come across anything else. Man, you don't know how happy I am to know Adom and I are not in this alone. I owe you and your friends a favor, Laura!"

[Neo Emolga]

I'd like to be wrong about the Dragonite, but better safe than sorry. Search (11) Daz's Greenhouse.

You check around Daz's Greenhouse, first starting with the exterior. From what you can tell, Daz slightly maintains the grounds, but the greenhouse has seen quite a bit of age over the years and is probably due for a makeover and renovation.

As you come around the perimeter, you instantly spot something that immediately seems out of place. A key is placed against the side of the greenhouse, but it doesn't seem like anyone bothered to try and hide or conceal it. You almost wonder how no one has noticed it yet, but you decide to take it.

Item: [Ω Omega Key] has been added to the Team Inventory.

You then make your way into the interior of the greenhouse. The area where Daz lives doesn't seem to have anything suspicious about it, but you can tell Daz doesn't have many visitors at all. He also seems to collect a lot of history books, books about the outdoors, and several historical items from back in the day.

In a small, quiet and almost empty room between the actual greenhouse area and the living area, you find a steel lockbox. There seems to be a α Alpha emblem by the keyhole.

Container: {Lockbox, α Alpha emblem} has been noted in the Team Reports.

You finish your investigation of the greenhouse area. It seems Daz grows a lot of varying berries, fruits and vegetables here, but nothing seems too out of the ordinary in this area.

[Pokemon Trainer Sarah]

Interviewing 40. Gillan the Snivy!


Hi! Nice to see a fellow grass-type around!
I'm Sarah, and I'm helping to investigate the bad stuff that's been going on around here lately.



I'm hoping we'll be able to figure it out soon, so your town can go back to normal.
It seems like it was a nice place, before all this... Do you happen to know anything that might help?

[Shieldbearer]

WXib097.png Mighty difficult to use anything with this new body, without any opposable thumbs... But I think I got it, sorta. Just gotta keep balance...
Anyway, I'll borrow our XX-key and investigate the Vacant House (36). If that key doesn't work, I'll... Consider any less fragile keys with my allies, I guess.

[Shruikan]

Hmm, while I catch up on the info we've already gathered, I guess I'll have a look around the park for a while. [search #51 Greenstone Park]

[VeloJello]

I'll keep moving down the list. Search (11a) Daz's Greenhouse: Silo #1.

[Suicune's Fire]

(Editing my post if I'm able, Neo. If that's not allowed, then in my original post I was searching #44 Serenity Town Bank!)




Searching #49 Rolodon Apartments. Let's see if we can find anything incriminating or suspicious here...

[Neo Emolga]

Well my interview didn't go to well. I think I'll stick more to searching for now by searching #9 the Willow Tree Cafe.

When you arrive at the Willow Tree Cafe, you can tell this used to be a calm, comfortable restaurant not too far away from the center of town, only to now be vacant, dark, and lonely. Almost all of the furniture is intact and you can see the cafe had a very cozy, rustic feeling before Bensy and Takir were murdered.

You search the perimeter first, making your way around the cafe that seems to be in good condition despite the fact both of the cafe's owners are now dead. However, when you reach the leftmost side of the cafe's rear, you find what looks like a knife. You pull it out and realize it's a very similar copy of the key dagger that was found before.

Item: [Sacrificial Dagger Key] has been added to the Team Inventory.

You then decide to search the interior of the cafe, and find that while the front and main dining area of the cafe seems to have nothing peculiar about it, the upstairs apartment area where Bensy and Takir is a very different story. Most of the crime scene was cleaned up with exception to the wall and furniture damage that was likely the result of attack. While most of the crime scene was cleaned, it definitely looks like there was a very vicious struggle here.

You do some more investigation and you come across a large pair of blood-stained gardening sheers that fell into a small crack between the wall and the staircase, where it seems like whoever had used them in the murder couldn't get them out to retrieve the murder weapon. It seems whoever came across the crime scene the first time never found these sheers...

[Bulbasaur]

I looked at the list of Pokemon in the town. One named that stood out to me was Samari the Breloom. It seems logical to interview a villager that is the same type as me. Also, Brelooms seem like the resourceful type.

Interview #19 Samari the Breloom.

[LKWayvern]

That was really interesting~ I'm going to try and fit the Gold Heart Piece and the Silver Heart Piece in the Missing Heart Left Half and Missing Heart Right Half on the Buried Lockbox I found at Cyancreek Lake, and see if that does anything!