[SEASON 2] The Stalkers RPG - Main Action and Team Status [ENDED... FOR NOW]

[Suicune's Fire]

48. Krum the Muk has been murdered by the Stalkers.

Location: Outside the Synth Compressor Station
Cause of Death: Self-mutilation

The firefighter, Krum, who was a Muk, was found as a pile of dismembered, torn, mutilated sludge. What muscle he had was severed in multiple parts, his brain ripped from his head and strewn in parts across the pavement, and his internal organs fanned out across the ground. Beside him was a stained shovel which he had used as a means to mutilate himself. Despite being a being made of slime, he still shared many regular body parts with other Pokémon.

There was little left of his face, which had been ripped apart with the shovel. His body and its subsequent parts spanned several metres, connected by a trail of dark, oozing blood emitting a foul stench. Written in blood was the four words, SHOULD HAVE SAID YES.


Pormalu forced himself to look away as the last of Krum's body was cleaned up, again finding himself in turmoil over a third death in a row. Since the Emissaries had arrived in Silvercoal City, there had been a death each night. Although the body count was only sitting at three, he couldn't imagine what the number would end up being by the time each Stalker was finally discovered and vanquished--if that ever happened. The sight of Krum's body, torn to shreds and spread across a large segment of the footpath outside the compressor station, was enough to make anyone want to vomit, but that wasn't what bothered the Arcanine the most. Krum was Silvercoal City's firefighting captain, so Pormalu interacted with him on a regular basis.

He shook his head, unable to look at his mate as he kept his eyes closed. "We met in our pre-evolved forms... He wanted to prove everyone wrong about Grimer and Muk. They all told him he couldn't do it, and yet...he made captain. And he was damn good at it."

Sequintia was about to say something when a few Pokémon approached from nearby. The flashing lights atop the various police hovervehicles around the crime scene bounced off the approaching figures all adorned in firefighting gear. At the front of the line was Rabukan, who Sequintia was only mildly familiar with. Pormalu instantly approached the firefighters.

"We...heard what happened to Krum and came to pay our respects," the Druddigon murmured, her voice coated in sadness.

"He would have appreciated that," Pormalu answered, keeping his voice low and steady. He was glad that the forensics team had already cleaned up the messy remains of his body so that his brigade did not have to witness him in that state. "It seems...this is another murder committed by the same Stalker who put Uru in hospital," he muttered, biting back tears as his muzzle twitched. "Unfortunately...nobody got to Krum in time."

Rabukan burst into tears, followed by a few other firefighters, as Pormalu silently cursed himself for bringing up the fact that one victim of this Stalker had been discovered before he had the chance to fatally wound himself, but Krum had not been given the same chance...neither had any other Stalker victims to date.

Sequintia approached her mate and drew him aside. "There's another person here... I don't know who it is."

Pormalu looked up, as did Rabukan, who heard Sequintia's words over her crying. All three Pokémon laid their sights on the bulky form of a timid looking Garbodor who stood at the edge of the crime scene. Her face was twisted with utter horror at what she saw, and although there was no body, the remnants of his oozing liquids still remained.

The Druddigon grew suddenly upset and thudded several paces toward the Poison type. "What are you doing here?" she shouted, startling the Garbodor.

Instead of responding, the Pokémon erupted into tears and fled, leaving Pormalu and Sequintia a little puzzled. Upon asking Rabukan who she was, the Pokémon merely stated that she had stopped by the fire station a few times in the past and had asked for Krum, but every time he came out of the department building to greet her, she had panicked and fled. She informed the two police officers that she suspected that the Garbodor, Finichi, was Krum's secret admirer of sorts.

"I shouldn't have yelled at her... I just got annoyed every time she would ask for him and then run off. She doomed herself because...now she'll never talk to him again." The Dragon-type sighed, turning around to speak with her fellow firefighters.

After consulting the other police officers and specialists at the scene, Pormalu and Sequintia concluded that this grizzly scene was best left behind them.


Doom Tracker:
3/40