Session 50, VP2

The party entered Hammerfest a short while before sunset. Inside, the town's Pokemon Center was packed: a line of trainers wound nearly to the door, all waiting to have their teams healed. A sole elder man was behind the counter. Seeing that he was clearly swamped, our heroes decided to pitch in.

Reinhold & Bronze corralled the people into a more orderly queue, & ensured no one took out their frustrations on the put-upon nurse. Sylvie began to help process any of the injuries that could be solved with herbal remedies, while Lauren helped the nurse figure out the computerized healing machine. A half hour or so later, they had finally cleared out the last of the trainers.

In thanks, the nurse gave the group some candies & desserts. Before retiring for the evening, they asked if he knew anything about the disappearance from a few weeks ago. All he was able to share is that now there was a rumor the Pokemon Center was haunted. People were afraid to work there, so it was currently very understaffed.

At this, the group introduced him to the Blissey trio. The healing Pokemon seemed excited to ply their trade in a place that would appreciate them for it, much to the nurse's delight. He promised to make the group breakfast in the morning, & bid them all a good night.

When dawn broke, the trainers began to ready for the day. To be helpful, Bronze offered to aid the nurse in preparing breakfast- only to be immediately invited by Reinhold to go for a morning jog. The pair of athletes could see that Hammerfest was considerably more crowded then on their previous visit. A large number of people were also performing morning exercises throughout the narrow streets.

Rounding a corner, they bumped into the gladiators from Streamsford, Selby & Randolph. The martial arts tournament the warriors had mentioned before was due to start the next day. They, along with many others from across Vanachrom, had traveled here to take part. Reinhold & Bronze wished them good luck before continuing onward.

Breakfast was ready by the time they returned to the Pokemon Center. Lauren & Sylvie caught them up on what the psychics had learned from the nurse: the tournament was a highly-anticipated annual event. Each year, contestants from Blademill's schools came to face off against those of Hammerfest. Though anyone was allowed to enter, it was typically one of these groups that won.

At this point, they realized that Donner had not joined them from his room as of yet. Lauren nervously knocked before entering his room. Though his belongings were still in place, the soldier did not appear to be present. Remembering the last time the they had run across natives from Blademill, our heroes exchanged a slightly worried look.

One round of psychic "pinging" later showed that he appeared to be over at the tournament fairgrounds. Lauren mentioned that he would need to pay a visit to Skirlic, but wanted to make sure the soldier was alright first.

Though it wasn't anywhere near as populated as Ohmslo, the amount of people gathered at the fairgrounds was still surprising. Two large sections were cordoned off for the representatives from Hammerfest & Blademill, while merchant stalls littered the causeway. Donner's aura radiated from the largest of the Blademill tents.

The group announced themselves outside of the tent's flaps. Clanging footsteps could be heard before their owner opened the entryway. A woman of average height stood before them. She appeared roughly as muscular as Skirlic, though a bit stockier. Silver hair was swept back into a thin ponytail, matching the cool hue of her eyes. Her arms & legs were covered in gleaming armor- though she left her torso & head ungirded.

Behind her, Donner was sitting at a table. He introduced his friends to Ilvri, the Gym Leader of Blademill. She expressed she had heard much about them today. When Bronze joked that she hoped it was "all good things", Ilvri refuted that in a flat voice...before grimacing in what was apparently her attempt at a smile. Our heroes wisely laughed at Ilvri's attempt at humor. With an appreciative nod, she invited them into the tent.

Ilvri leaned back in her chair & rested her greaves on the tabletop. Donner explained that Ilvri had helped him learn to raise Pokemon when he had first received Duna. As one of the only prominent figures in Blademill who worked with the creatures, she had been a great help to him before his exile. When Donner had sensed her in town, he stopped by to catch up with her.

Discussing the tournament, Ilvri said she wouldn't be taking part herself. Years ago, she & Skirlic had been close friends & sparring partners. This all came to an end when Ilvri left a small scar across Skirlic's collarbone. The woman's vanity burnt all bridges between them in an instant. For her part, Ilvri appeared nonchalant about the affair. Still, she mused, it was best she not ever stand across from the other Gym Leader again. Whatever fight ensued was likely to end in one of their deaths...

A short while later, the party took their leave with Donner. The soldier seemed buoyed by this re-connection with his homeland, & turned his energies towards bolstering Lauren for his talk with Skirlic. Her gym doors were open & unmanned when they arrived. Only she stood within, battering a punching bag with rapid-fire blows.

Lauren sighed, & made their way towards the Gym Leader. Aware of what it might mean, the Researcher chose not to enter the ring Skirlic was training in, but stood at its edge. The fighter slammed the punching bag with one last jab, then turned to glare into Lauren's eyes. Seconds before the punching bag would swing back & hit her, Skirlic whipped her head around with incredible speed; the punching bag came to a complete stop from the force of her fury.

From across the hall, the others couldn't make out what the pair discussed. After a few minutes, Lauren rejoined them with a frustrated look. Skirlic was clearly still suspicious of the group, Lauren in particular, & had offered a sort of olive branch: if Lauren acted as her squire for the tournament, she would overlook the group's previous "transgressions".

Nonplussed, Lauren had agreed. A squire's duties involved traveling with their "master" as an honor guard, announcing them, carrying their banner, & taking their place in combat if they fell. This last duty in particular was worrisome. The group knew Skirlic was petty, but was she petty enough to deliberately take a loss to see Lauren hurt? Only time would tell.

Lauren's new "job" required specific attire. This could only mean one thing: a shopping montage! The trainers gathered the needed uniform as well as some basic Pokemon supplies. Bronze & Reinhold both became interested in a booth offering various forms of jewelry. The craftsman was hawking his wares with a practiced level of charm.

He introduced himself as Elof when they approached. Reinhold commissioned some specific items from him, while Bronze became entranced by an Ampharosite. She haggled with some of her hand-crafted Pokeballs. Elof was clearly impressed with the quality, but wasn't sure about a 1-to-1 trade being equitable. A bit of back & forth led to the Capture Specialist being invited to discuss a possible business partnership over dinner.

Before the party left the fairgrounds, they could see a small argument taking place by the tournament stage. A couch for the Hammerfest competitors was animatedly complaining about the order of the tournament's match-ups. The Blademill coach across from her stared with disdain at the display, while the tournament's announcer tried to keep the peace between them. It came as no surprise that even the organizers were swept up into the heated rivalry.

In the evening, the group split up. Bronze met with Elof at a relatively fancy restaurant. The merchant had booked a room with a private chef who cooked next to their table. The food was excellent & well-appreciated. After the main course, Elof pulled out some spreadsheets he had put together on a possible business partnership.

The two went over these in a professional back & forth. Refreshingly, as a craftsman himself, Elof was fairly understanding with the time it took to create customer products. A satisfying agreement was reached for both parties, & celebrated with dessert. Having navigated her first business sponsorship successfully, Bronze walked back to the Pokemon Center in high spirits.

Lauren couldn't shake the nervousness from their deal with Skirlic. With the tournament starting the next day, there was little time to prepare. Still, Donner offered to help train the Researcher as best he could in the meantime. Ilvri gladly allowed them to use some of her training space & equipment.

As they trained, the two spoke a bit more of Blademill. Donner clearly trusted & respected Ilvri, though he was not blind to her flaws: she was an incredibly jealous person. Being outshone wrapped her in a chill fury. Despite this, he knew her to uphold her duty over all things, even her personal feelings. If things with Skirlic went poorly, he was sure Ilvri would lend them help. Lauren ardently hoped that would not be necessary.

Sylvie was still worrying about the previous nurse's disappearance. Borrowing Bronze's detective hat, she decked out Inspector Thistle to suss out the mystery. Reinhold gladly accompanied the pair to act as their muscle.

First, Sylvie logged into the Pokemon Center's computers to find a record of employee names. According to the dates, the woman who had gone missing was named "Hilde Reelwooman". Thistle & Sylvie shared an exasperated look as Reinhold shook his head. Clearly, they were dealing with an alias, or the most unfortunately named person they'd ever met.

The computer was also able to show the last actions Hilde had taken on it. She had extensively researched types of poison that could be used medically. Security footage of their last night stay here showed that she Hilde appeared to wait until the party had gone asleep before entering the medical supply room. Carrying a small bundle, she discarded her nurse's outfit onto the floor, disappearing out into the night. Reinhold noticed that over the course of all the footage, Hilde carried herself very tensely- almost as if she expected an attack.

Noting down the other recent employee names, the trio set out to pay some a visit. They decided to start with the woman who had worked the shifts right before Hilde disappeared. They found her small house close to the shopping district of town. A small garden made Sylvie feel an immediate kinship with the older woman who answered their knocks.

She invited them in to talk over tea & sliced fruits. From what she could recall, Hilde had appeared...poorly trained at best. Hilde had been churlish & slow on the uptake. Perhaps she had been trained in a small-town Pokemon Center, & was simply unfamiliar with the more advanced models. Though she wasn't able to provide too much more info, the woman was able to give the detectives addresses for the local hotels.

Speaking with the desk clerks allowed the investigators to find the hotel Hilde had stayed at. Reinhold managed to convince the clerk to let them examine both the records & her old room by offering up a "tip for great service". The logs confirmed she had stayed here under the name "Hilde Imreel", & checked out the morning of the day she disappeared.

Hilde had left some of her clothes behind, which had been put into the hotel's Lost & Found. Thistle's keen sense of smell was able to glean a faint trail once they returned outside. He kept his snoot to the ground as he led his sidekicks along. The smell took them to the tournament fairgrounds. Here, it became impossible to follow any further given the amount of people. With the moon high by this time, the mystery gang decided to recoup at the Pokemon Center.

Before sleeping, our heroes shared what each had learned. Lauren turned in early as they needed to "rise before the sun" as Skirlic's squire. Sure enough, the Gym Leader was already waiting by her dojo. When the tournament finally began, Lauren was made to march before Skirlic carrying her flag. They then had to stand sentinel next to her as she sat upon a throne really big chair.

All of the competitors were introduced to the crowd. Most were from Hammerfest & Blademill, but there were a few outliers. The group's friends from Streamsford, a giant from the North named Snjor, A strange hatted man named Stikill Stikill (Who seemed to speak only his name.), a tough woman in a leather jacket named Ms. Fjalarr, & a fighter clad in a costume-quality karate gi, named Shibusa Wa.

Some betting occurred on the matches of the first day. In the afternoon, Skirlic performed an exhibition match against several fighters. Each fell without being able to land a single blow upon her. During the short break afterwards, the other trainers visited the market once more. Sylvie bought Lauren a "heated canine" as Bronze noticed that Elof's stall was temporarily closed.

Four fights later, the next day's matches had been decided. Of particular note was one pending match: Hemming, the favorite from the Hammerfest team, would be facing off against a Blademill competitor named Gudar. Even in his first match, Gudar had appeared nervous & under qualified. Odds were stacked high against him for the morrow.

When Lauren was released from Skirlic for the day, our heroes found their way to a busy restaurant for dinner. Members of both the audience & fighters were present. Hemming, deep in his cups, was loudly boasting about how he was going to crush Gudar. Bronze voiced her desire to bet against his victory. Leaving the restaurant, Shibusa Wa shouldered past Lauren in a purposeful manner. Too full of food to think of reprisal, the group returned to the Pokemon Center for rest.

In the still of the dying night, Lauren began to wake for the second day of their punishment. They had barely finished rubbing the sleep from their eyes when an alarm bell began rining out from somewhere in the town. Our heroes rose in their pajamas, stumbling their way into the Pokemon Center's lobby. The old nurse stood in the doorway, speaking with a frantic townsfolk. As the man ran off to continue spreading the news, the nurse turned to them with a pale face.

Seeing he was quite shaken, the trainers helped him sit on one of the benches to collect himself. It took a few moments for him to come down from the panic of the harried awakening. Almost as if they could sense what his words would be before he spoke, our heroes collectively felt a chill run down their spines.

"It's...at the fairgrounds. There's been a..." he stutters out before swallowing. "One of the competitors...has been murdered."