"Yuck and double yuck!" Jake exclaimed as he saw the dead body. It technically wasn't his first time seeing one, but it was the first time he'd seen one so up close. He didn't give any orders... not at first. He had no idea what the policy was on finding a dead body. Luckily, there were authorities nearby. Jake waved over the lieutenant,
"Uh, I found someone, but they aren't going anywhere fast."

He figured if Seymour had found something, it would be more pressing for the lieutenant to listen to that first.

"Hold up Malley. What was that green thing? Can you give me a better look at it? And Bandy, if anything happens, make sure you get ahold of those three pokeballs." He definitely didn't want to steal an innocent person's pokemon, but it was always good to have three fewer potential foes to have to face off against. Besides, it was looking likely that the pokeballs did belong to a Team Gaia member, so he would probably be doing those pokemon a favor by freeing them from their owner.

"If you find an ID anywhere, hold it up to the camera. Or anything else with writing on it." Even if they didn't have time to read papers right now, it would be good to have a video recording to go back to. At least, he hoped the video feeds were being recorded in some way...

IN THE BADLANDS
You get to look at the dead body from all angles, as your team examine it in curiosity. It's clothes are badly damaged, as well as the exposed dried skin under. Like they had a severe case of road rash. In some places, large straps have dug into the person's limb. But the real damage seems to be on their limbs. Their arms and legs look like they were broken, some on multiple places.

IN THE SWAMP
The lieutenant turns to look at your discoveries, but the two video start shifting rapidly. Bandy manages to grab one of the Pokeballs, but she turns away when a hand falls on the other two. Malley's camera shows the person starts to move, grabbing at the balls on their pack, but the image shakes and turns over, the view filling with bubbles.

AT THE BRIDGE.
The lieutenant steps away from watching the kaiju battle, to focus on your discoveries. "So you both found someone?" He asks, glancing at your screens.

Seymour didn't have time to reply to the lieutenant. His and Jakey's pokemon seemed to be in danger. "Malley, Bandy, get out of there! Run Away! Skipper, try to watergun the door or window down. Distract and extract! Feefee, try to get eyes on the situation. I want to know what is going on. Jett and Marigold, standby, eyes sharp." After seeing Malley's screen fill with bubbles only caused Seymour to become filled with worry. He hated not knowing what was going on. Especially while being so far away.

---

Bandy/Malley are using their Run Away ability, if possible. Seymour is also trying to apply his Rampage ability to Skipper's attack, if possible.

Jake just kinda shrugged at the lieutenant,
"I got a dead body. Wasn't me, but probably someone killed them. Lots of broken bones, must have been one bad gang."

He didn't have any orders for the pokemon. He trusted they wouldn't try to eat the dead body.

"A gang in the middle of nowhere? And if he was attacked, wouldn't they have taken those Pokéballs on it's belt?" The lieutenant points out. "I think you should ask your team to look around, see if you can find more information on their death."

IN THE SWAMP
The stream of water bounces off the window, rattling it but not breaking it. Malley quickly makes it's way up the chimney, soon followed by Bandy.
Feefee makes way close to another window, and stares inside. The human inside is standing up, though with difficulty, leaning heavily on the table next to them. But Feefee's attention is focused on the green form you glimpsed before: a Politoed running across the room to the chimney.

IN THE BADLANDS
So far, your team is mostly focused on the vertical crack the dead body was in, close to the base of one of those big rocky hills that dots the landscape. How do you direct your team to search?
This message was last edited by the GM at 16:45, Fri 14 Apr 2023.

"Bandy, Malley, get out of that chimney, then Pound the Politoed back down if it climbs up too. Then Skipper, hit anything that comes out of the building with a Mud Slap while Bandy and Malley retreat. Feefee, stay Minimized as much as possible and keep the camera feed looking in the window." Hopefully all the pokemon would be able to retreat safely. Then they could keep an eye on the cabin from afar for a bit. He was glad Jett and Marigold were still watching the perimeter so that no new surprises caught them off guard.

Jake groaned. Now he was going to be the police and do an investigation.

"Uh, Ok... Lets see."

He wished Seymour and him had flipped roles. It seemed like Seymour was doing sneaky stuff and Jake was stuck with the brainy stuff.

"Fetcher, get a bird's eye view. Look for any uh, human-y stuff. Glumpy, you are nice and small, can you investigate in the crack?  Growler and Locke, try to keep everything nice and bright. Uh, the rest of you just get close to the body so I can get a better view of it."

IN THE SWAMP
Skipper starts firing off Mud Slaps toward the shack's door, even though the door is closed. Bandy and Malley manage to get out of the chimney, and stand ready to hit anything coming out. But all that comes out are more bubbles, that the infiltrators pops as best as they can.
Feefee keeps watching the window, showing you that after chasing Bandy and Malley, the Politoed moved back to the human. You can see she's a woman, looking pretty old. In fact, just staying upright seems to be a challenge, even as she watches the door. She has a pokeball in her hand, but isn't calling out the pokemon yet.

IN THE BADLANDS
Looking closely at the body, you think he's a man, but it's so damaged it's hard to tell. Without the body in the way and enough light, you see more of the brown stains you noticed outside. Blood, you now realize.
For his part, Fetcher does notice something interesting. On the side of the stone hill is a rope, tied to a series of metal hooks, except for a small dangling section at the top. Looking at it closely, the end seems damaged. Not a clean cut, but something between frayed and torn apart.

Seymour was surprised by how old the woman was. Was she a founding member of Team Gaia or something? "Do you recognize this lady?" he asked the lieutenant.

Regardless of the answer, Seymour felt it was now time to switch from actively searching for clues to passively watching for new information. He issued new orders to the pokemon under his command. "Skipper, keep blasting that mud, but on the windows. Block their view on your side of the building. Bandy, use the distraction to retreat to the trees with that pokeball you snatched earlier and get hidden. Malley, if can stay safe, keep hidden up on the roof. Try to get to a good spot to see and hear things if anyone comes outside. Feefee keep peeking in the other window, but try hard not to be seen. Skipper, when they are all in place, clear the window with a water gun and hide in the murky water. Marigold and Jett, are the outskirts still clear? No new surprises coming in or out of the area?"

Was the guy... climbing rocks?  Why would he do that? Maybe there was something on top?  Maybe it was a dramatic chase and his quarry cut the rope. Maybe it WAS a gang-related death.
"Fetcher, get a view of the top of the hill. Look for any signs of other people there... or maybe any pokemon dwellers. Maybe the criminal was a pokemon!"

Of course, there was the possibility that the man was simply climbing rocks for fun and had accidentally fallen to his death, but that was not as fun of a story, so Jake preferred not to believe that unless the evidence became overwhelming.

He still had one piece of evidence pointing to foul play:
The body had been in a crevasse... which was suspiciously convenient hiding place for a body. It was unlikely that the man would have fallen from the cliff and just so happen to land in the crack. It could be a particularly morbid pokemon was using the body for decoration if it made its home in the crack.
"Locke and glumpy, see if there is anything else interesting in the crack."


He also considered releasing the pokemon in the pokeballs for his own pokemon to interrogate... but they might have gone crazy being stuck in a pokeball for so long. Is that something that could happen? All this uncertainty was really bothering Jake!

The lieutenant looks at Seymour's screens. "Wait... is that Joan? I think it is... We picked her up for interrogation about Team Gaia a month back, but she didn't know anything useful." He frowns. "She doesn't look good. Like she's ill..."

IN THE SWAMP
Skipper lathers the windows with thrown mud. Not enough to block the view too much, but the view was already limited, so Bandy has no trouble escaping out of sight. Malley stays on the roof, moving about to look over each side in turn.
While that happens, Marigold jumps in the air, giving you a slightly dizzying view of the trees. Jett pokes his camera out of the water, showing you that the area is still clear.
Once Bandy is hidden, Skipper clears the window, before hiding. Through Feefee's view, you see Joan leans against the wall trying to catch a glimpse outside, but she doesn't seem to spot your team.

IN THE BADLANDS
With a better look into the vertical crevasse is pretty much like a funnel, the sides squeezing so close, a person couldn't have gotten in there on his own. Even if the victim had survived going in, he couldn't have gotten out.
Fetcher flies higher, getting a better look at the plateau. You can make out a metal hook still in the rock, higher then the place the rope was hanging. And a bit higher you see a small cave... moments before a dark purple shape rushes out and strikes your Farfetch'd. The camera spins for a few moments, before the image stabilizes, showing a Gliscor turning around, preparing for another attack.

"Everyone stand by," he said to the pokemon. "Right now, we wait and watch. Let's see what their next move is. Try to stay out of sight as much as possible." There didn't seem to be a whole lot else they could do that would be useful other than observe. Would this Joan person make any calls for reinforcement? Go back to sleep? Go search for her missing pokeball that probably contained one of her pokemon?

Or would Seymour have to try and get a medical team sent to her location? He couldn't help but feel a little sorry for an ill old lady out in the wilderness with only her pokemon. Even if she was a member of Team Gaia.

"Aha, I bet that is the criminal!" Jake exclaimed as the camera went spinning, "Show him who rules the skies fetcher! Use Aerial Ace!"

As for the rest of the team... Jake wasn't sure if there was anything more to be done on the ground, so he called on them to prepare,
"Alright, wait till fetcher descends a bit, then blast the glisgor with all you've got!"

Catching Seymour's worried look, the lieutenant says "I'll send a team to apprehand her, including a medic. But... the way she looks... you may have to send your team to help her. Unfortunately, her Politoed will probably try to protect her."

IN THE SWAMP
As you watch, the woman struggles with her remaining pokeballs, before stumbling toward her pack, and falling to the floor. You can tell she's still moving, but she looks really weak. Her Politoed shakes her, looking worried.

IN THE BADLANDS
Fletcher gives a quack of approval, but before he can line up an attack, the Gliscor shows it's own acrobatic abilities, clipping Fletcher's wings and sending your bird down into a tailspin. Even as his screen turns into a dizzying twister, you see from the cameras of the rest of your team that the bat follows Fletcher on his way down, apparently ready to launch another attack.

"Hmm." Seymour needed to take a few moments to decide how to proceed. He intended to help the old woman if he could, but he needed to do so safely. It wasn't long before he formulated a plan that he hoped would work.

"Jett, I need you to get that pokeball from Bandy. Bring it to the front door as a peace offering. Let them know we do not intend harm. Malley, climb down from the roof and be Jett too. Join him as a fellow Nommlin and the two of you can knock on the door. Be each other's backup. Everyone else, hold positions and await further instruction."

Jake had to focus on his battle now. He felt split though. He heard a bit of Seymour's situation to think there might be something amiss. Though protecting his pokemon came first,
"Alright, Volley #1 lets go!
"Fairy, use string shot to slow it down!
"Growler, use roar to make it hesitate!
"Glumpy, use stun spore to paralyze it!
"Locke, use powder snow to knock it out!
"Glade, use worry seed... or something!"

He ordered his commands to try to maximize the chance of them all landing. He had considered having Growler use ember, but he didn't want it to cancel out powder snow. He also considered ordering fairy to attack, but he viewed limiting the mobility of the angry bat to be a slightly higher priority.

As for Fetcher, he was not sure if giving it an order to use a move was for the best. It seemed like it would have a handful just staying aloft,
"Fetcher, hang in there! Do what you can!"

IN THE SWAMP
Malley and Jett knock at the door, the Pokéball on the ground. After a short time, the Politoed throws the door open, rushing out aggressively. He doesn't seem to notice the ball, instead charging at your two companions, forcing them to back up to avoid getting hit.

IN THE BADLANDS
The barrage of attack pummels the Gliscor, stopping it's attack on Fletcher. The only move that missed was Locke's snow, the target being forced back before it got in range. The Gliscor screeches as it turns back, but you see Fetcher is still falling, apparently unable to slow down his descent.

"Jett, Malley, both of you Hold Hands. Help each other avoid attacks, but don't fight back. Lure the Politoad away from the front door if it continues to insist on being aggressive. Even get into the water if you can." He didn't want the enemy pokemon to hurt his team, but it definitely wouldn't trust them if they fought back. "Bandy, if the fight continues, try to sneak back inside again. We need someone inside to help assist the poor lady."

---

Jett and Malley are using Hold Hand on eachother, helping eachother to focus on dodging. Bandy will use Infiltrator to sneak back inside if the Politoad continues to be a nuisance.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:14, Thu 11 May 2023.

There really wasn't anything Jake could think of doing to rescue Fetcher from its perilous descent. And he couldn't really pursue the glisgor without a flying pokemon.
"Locke, keep blasting at the bat to keep it away. Glade and growler, try to find a way to cushion the fall.
"Fetcher, stop falling and start flying.
"Fairy, can you PLEASE evolve into something that can fly so you can rescue Fetcher?"

Glumpy was left out of the orders.

IN THE SWAMP
Jett and Malley do a good job luring the Politoed away, keeping it's attention every time it turns back toward the cabin. That gives enough of an opening for Bandy to slip in, and take a closer look at the fallen, drooling woman.
The lieutenant steps closer, looking into the camera. "Try pulling her eyelid open a bit... gently... now bring your head as close to her chest as you can..." He literally places his ear on the computer's speaker for a moment. As he leans back, he looks worried. "Dilated pupils, rapid pulse and breathing, small tremors... I think that's hemlock poisoning... I don't think she'll last long enough for our team to reach her..."

IN THE BADLANDS
It seems Fetcher can't hear you, as he keeps falling. Glade and Growler get ready to jump to catch him, while Fairy looks at you for a moment... before firing string between the two quadrupeds. The two look confuse, but still jump to catch Fetcher, who gets grabbed by the web Fairy built.
Although the attacker looks back for a moment, the sight of Locke's snow convinces it to return to it's nest.

Seymour stroked his chin, deep in thought. "Keep dodging and distracting," he said to Jett and Malley while he contemplated what to do next. Moving the woman didn't seem like a viable option. And how do people treat hemlock poisoning anyway? All he knew about it was that hemlock was a poisonous plant. He had no clue how to treat it, or how to make an antidote for it.

OH! That was it!

"Bandy, I need you to start rummaging through all her stuff. Especially her pokemon gear. Look for an Antidote or other healing items! We need to apply it to her." He knew that such items were meant to be used on pokemon to treat pokemon-created poisons, but maybe they would be able to stave off the hemlock poison long enough for professionals to arrive. "Feefee, Skipper, I think you two will need to go in and help search too. Marigold, help distract that Politoad with your splash attacks. If the Politoad tries to interfere with the search inside, I am afraid we may have to knock it out."

Jake breathed a sigh of relief when fairy had its moment of genius and saved the plummeting bird.
"Woah, that was clever. You don't need to evolve for a few more days now, but now I expect even more from you!"

It was meant as a joke, hopefully his pokemon didn't take it the wrong way. He went quiet for a moment, then turned to the lieutenant... saw he was talking with Seymour and shrugged. He then addressed his pokemon,
"Well, is Fetcher OK to get back on its own, or do we need to carry him back?  Might as well mark where the body is and start back to me."

He was not sure how his pokemon were going to mark the spot. He thought of how growler might do it, but was interested in how his pokemon react with the less-than-clear order.

IN THE SWAMP

Bandy rummages through the woman's bag, finding a few healing items. Recognizing the bottle of Antidote, you tell her how to use it... only to realize it's empty.
Searching a bit more, Bandy drops a small book that opens as it lands. You tell Bandy to look at it more closely after glancing at a drawing of a plant. Although you don't recognize them at a glance, you're able to make out some of the text, and see it's talking about poisonous plants. It looks like Joan realized what was happening to her, and was looking for a local plant to treat her problem.


IN THE BADLAND

Fetcher is down for the count, he used the last of his endurance to try and land, with little success.
At your request to mark the area, they rely on their instinctive behavior. Marking the place with scents and some spores. Glade tries to make scratches, but they're not exactly visible from a distance.
"It's alright." The lieutenant leans closer to you and taps a few buttons, causing a string of numbers to appear on each screens. "That will tell us where to find the body. We'll send a team there once we've dealt with this situation."

It was clear to Seymour now what had to be done. He just wasn't sure if they would be able to pull it off. It would require a lot of luck. Which meant they really needed as much help as they could get.

"Jett, Malley, Marigold, and Skipper. We really need to convince that Politoad we need a temporary truce. I am counting on the four of you to convince it. By force, if necessary, but don't let it faint if you can help it. We'll need all the help we can get."

"Bandy, I need you to help me find the plant in the book that we'll need for healing this lady. Once we have that information, we'll need to show the picture everyone and scour the swamp for it. Which leads me to Feefee. Feefee, I need you to release the rest of this woman's pokemon. We need to convince them to help us search. The more eyes we have looking, the better the odds are that we will find what we need. Everyone be careful, but hurry. Our time is running out."