Game 79A: Trial 1 - Detective Pokémon!

[Ktoasty]

Takuya speaks up for a moment. "Mm, looks like we have a pretty solid grasp of the night besides a few accounts, and we're making progress in solving this mystery too. Those other alibis will still help, but for now, I'll tell about what I learned when investigating Racheal's body.

At first glance, I could see that her body was a brutal condition. It was sitting next to a stump, upright from rigor mortis. Her head was severed and missing from the scene. It looked like the neck was crushed off at the point of decapitation, broken into fragments. The cut wasn't very clean either, and there was a ton of blood loss. Bits of flesh were missing from the arms and legs from tiny bite marks too.

Then I started to shine as I checked the body in more detail. It ended up distracting the others investigating with me. Sorry about that, Hokoto. Anyway, I found out her map was missing when I patted down the body. On top of that, the clothes had grass stains on the back of the pants and shirt, indicating the body was dragged. The teeth marks were clearly from a Pokemon, one I knew was seen with the victim before, so it was probably from her Umbreon. I also couldn't sense poison in the body.

Upon further investigation, it looked like the neck was broken before decapitating her head in order be able to cut through. The neck thing was more recent than the bite marks. Also, the bite marks were deep, with the intent to injure.

That's the extent of my investigations. If anything, it's proof that decapitation was not the cause of death, but something that occurred after."

[Kuroneko]

"During the investigation, I followed a blood trail to the field. It seems that a few others had followed the trail as well, so I could not pick out any particular set of prints that might have been the culprit's. The night also brought Pokemon, so they covered any tracks that the culprit's Pokemon might have left. However, this begs the question of why the others haven't mentioned the head at the field at all.

The blood trail was thickest near the head, so it is likely the start of the trail. The head was wrapped in a tarp from town, although I cannot remember where exactly. The tarp was large enough to hold a body. There was a note with 'Team Phantom' on the back of a map. The neck had been crushed and has jagged cuts where it had been chopped. The bones of the neck had been fragmented as mentioned above. Her eyes were white as a ghost and tongue discolored. It was not a poison I could identify, so it had not come from Pokemon. It may not have been poison at all."

[Kiyo]

I have some info about the knife. Upon further investigation, it looked quite old, but well reserved. It most likely came from the hut.

[deltastorm]

Jan 25, 2018 20:38:47 GMT -6 Kuroneko said:

"As a matter of fact, the vials may have something to do with the murder. Rachel's tongue was discolored, unnaturally pale and cold. Sadly, I was unable to identify the cause of the discoloration."

*Morgiana goes to Bianca Willow, Minako Koyama, Hokoto Ito, and Shirokuma Rebanam with a pen and notepad*

"I would like you to record your testimonies in writing."

(Wat.)

[Ktoasty]

Takuya thinks things over. "Based on the information, I agree with Morgiana that the decapitation took place in the Field. The grass stains on the body show it was dragged to the stump, and the trail of blood from the head matches with the massive blood loss that I noted. If that's the case, then Racheal's last moments were spent in the Field since she was seen at the Abandoned Hut alive during Action 5, and the killer moved her body afterward.

There are a couple of other things we can conclude about where the killer went from the investigations so far. The killer needed to get a knife from the Abandoned Hut to cut her neck. They also needed to go someplace in particular for a tarp in the Town.

One mystery to solve is why Racheal's Umbreon attacked her. It bit deep chunks from her arms and legs with the intent to harm her. They were trusting partners, so I can only imagine that an outside interference was the cause, or she ordered it herself. It may have been her killer's doing, so that's why I brought this up.

Another mystery is Racheal's map. It must have been important if it was the only item missing from her person, and especially now that Morgiana's told us about the note on the back of it. Team Phantom sounds similar to Team Despair, but this team seems to have a more personal connection to her. Racheal's main types are Dark and Ghost so she may have formed this team with another Dark or Ghost type user during the night. There are 3 other users of this type who haven't given their alibis yet, but Hokoto also seems likely to have been involved in this. He claims to have been alone with Racheal for their first 2 actions, and with her for 3/6 overall. The reason the map was left behind at the Field is something we should find out as well.

The last thing I can think of that needs solving, besides how she died, is the depiction of her face that Morgiana told us. This may be involved in the cause of death too, but I'm not really sure how to go about something like that.

Let's solve this together guys. If you can think of any solutions, or have some questions of your own, speak up because this is a group effort!"

[SmolOverlord]

(( Kuroneko - in reference to needing testimonies))

Minako gives Morigana a level glare.

"...I'm afraid you'll have to be more specific."

She pushes up her glasses and cautiously scratches behind her espeons ear as she explains her confusion.

"Are you suspecting us...? If so explain why, you'll have to tie in both the lab and how any of us were able to get to the victim, or if you're looking at it from another aspect and all our testimony(s) are important to finding the culprit then explain that rather then vaguely stating things."

She looked down for a moment and fishes through her journal, giving a gentle sigh and tilting her head, looking uncomfortable at having spoken so much. She manages to mumble out the last bit.

"...That's how this works."

[Squidzz]

Kanaji speaks up

"...I have a theory about the murder weapon.



Takuya said firstly

"Her head was severed and missing from the scene. It looked like the neck was crushed off at the point of decapitation, broken into fragments." and that "The cut wasn't very clean either"



Then Morgiana supported this by saying

"The neck had been crushed and has jagged cuts where it had been chopped."

Anyone who knows what a bear trap looks like must know how they work, it would have created the jagged cuts, and the sheer force of the metal would have been enough to break her neck, if the breaking occurred before the full decapitation then she was likely removed from the trap and later decapitated, or the killer later exerted more force onto the trap, possibly by stepping on the teeth of the contraption, to finish the job, perhaps taking the time to deal with her Umbreon while she lay unable to escape the deadly maw of the trap.



For this reason i suggest the knife outside the hut was a red herring, or at the very least it didn't originate from the hut, if it did, it would have been taken during action one because i did not come across a rusty knife during my actions 2 and 3 spent investigating inside the hut, and i believe it would be in the killer's best interests to conceal the real murder weapon, and leaving another weapon to mislead everyone in plain sight.



That also is what i suspect the method of killing was, and after the sixth hour, the killer removed the trap from the scene, placed it in the pile of dozens of traps Yume found during investigation, possibly with the guise of the Umbreon to conceal it, and then placed the tarp over the head.



This means the killer must have visited the hut, either specifying it in alibi, being seen in someone else's, or have lied about not going there."

[Kuroneko]

"Very well, I suppose some reasoning is expected. The ones with a solid alibi are Takuya Miyazawa, Mindy Dragonsteel, Daku Kakuto, Michi Suzuki, Akumu Tsukiakari , Bianca Willow "Binca," and Kanaji Haro. Everyone else had been alone during the sixth hour of the evening. For one to try and attempt a murder during the last hour before curfew, they would have to either rely on dumb luck or stalk their chosen prey. We can all agree which is the more logical choice, so the four in the hut with Rachel are the most likely suspects. Three of you have unconfirmed alibis, and are thus the primary suspects of this case."

*Morgiana holds out the notepad*

"So will you write your testimony? You could simply write what you had already told us and be done with it."

[SmolOverlord]

Minako nods gently, and writes her testimony.

"However, I did gather information that couldn't be made up that I found during my sixth action... if that accounts for anything.... I see where you are coming from. However with the three you have somehow you'll have to narrow it down, I don't believe this was a hit and run situation, especially if the body was dragged like some are saying."

[Kuroneko]

"Thank you. Having information that you wouldn't be able to get otherwise does strengthen your alibi, but sadly it does not remove the possibility of you being the culprit."

*Morgiana flips to another page to see if the other two would do the same*

"There are some drag marks near where the head had been, but they do not appear along the trail. I believe that the culprit or their Pokemon had picked up and carried the body until they reached the hut. The grass, wild Pokemon, and others who had passed ruined my attempts at tracking individual sets of footprints or looking for any unique points to them. It is probably not worth the effort to think about because some Pokemon can fly or hover and thus negate the necessity for a ground trail altogether."

[deltastorm]

Jan 26, 2018 2:37:37 GMT -6 Ktoasty said:

Takuya thinks things over. "Based on the information, I agree with Morgiana that the decapitation took place in the Field. The grass stains on the body show it was dragged to the stump, and the trail of blood from the head matches with the massive blood loss that I noted. If that's the case, then Racheal's last moments were spent in the Field since she was seen at the Abandoned Hut alive during Action 5, and the killer moved her body afterward.

There are a couple of other things we can conclude about where the killer went from the investigations so far. The killer needed to get a knife from the Abandoned Hut to cut her neck. They also needed to go someplace in particular for a tarp in the Town.

One mystery to solve is why Racheal's Umbreon attacked her. It bit deep chunks from her arms and legs with the intent to harm her. They were trusting partners, so I can only imagine that an outside interference was the cause, or she ordered it herself. It may have been her killer's doing, so that's why I brought this up.

Another mystery is Racheal's map. It must have been important if it was the only item missing from her person, and especially now that Morgiana's told us about the note on the back of it. Team Phantom sounds similar to Team Despair, but this team seems to have a more personal connection to her. Racheal's main types are Dark and Ghost so she may have formed this team with another Dark or Ghost type user during the night. There are 3 other users of this type who haven't given their alibis yet, but Hokoto also seems likely to have been involved in this. He claims to have been alone with Racheal for their first 2 actions, and with her for 3/6 overall. The reason the map was left behind at the Field is something we should find out as well.

The last thing I can think of that needs solving, besides how she died, is the depiction of her face that Morgiana told us. This may be involved in the cause of death too, but I'm not really sure how to go about something like that.

Let's solve this together guys. If you can think of any solutions, or have some questions of your own, speak up because this is a group effort!"

That's wrong. I was not involved in any 'team phantom' at all! I also have an Alibi for the 6th action, which was backed up by an investigation on the bridge, showing I had been there at Action 6, as my Munchlax fell into the water and had to climb out. He would have left footprints in the river bank due to his wet feet, which he did, and was found during the investigation. Therefore, I am innocent, and I have nothing to do with team Phantom.

[Squidzz]

Jan 26, 2018 3:17:23 GMT -6 Kuroneko said:

Three of you have unconfirmed alibis, and are thus the primary suspects of this case."

"Keep in mind, as of now, those who have not stated an alibi at all, or those who have alibis that cannot be confirmed (like being in a chest all night >->) are equally as suspicious, and could be considered primary suspects just as well... I don't believe it would be that hard to get around unseen with the right technique and alibis can very easily be faked."

[Kuroneko]

"Very well then, I wanted to start by eliminating a smaller group, but I suppose I could just ask every suspect to write their testimony. So would the Storyteller, Inari Satomaki, Aragi Shouyo, Veigar Navi, Isabelle Shuga, Yume Hoshimi, and Peko Pekoyama also write their testimony?"

[Ktoasty]

Takuya sighs. "I'm not saying this Team Phantom note is definitely from a work with the killer. Don't stress, Hokoto. Like I said, we're putting our minds together to solve this mystery."

[Nerdy Barista]

Binca sighs and speaks

"I was skeptical to say but. Snowberry may or may not of... Took a vial"

She looks away
."I will return it, in fact professor can you grab it for me? "

"Upon closer examination if it, it's the explosive one... I say we dispose of them all... Immediantly"