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POSTED ON Mar 8, 2019 19:12:35 GMT

Thomas knew this moment was coming. One of the Council, specifically Fernando, had requested a meeting with him. No doubt it was over the mission to rescue the Commissioner. More specifically, it was the media circus going on around the deaths of the two Rocket Grunts that got captured on video. The Agent was going to have to take responsibility for what went wrong, given that it was his subordinate that killed the Rockets. But what really raised an eyebrow was the fact that the Fire Spin managed to kill not only them, but the Rocket Admin. Given that the flaming vortex was meant to trap victims, and not burn them to ashes, he had to wonder just what was the deal with Agent Saber's Chandelure.

But in any case, the deaths of the Rockets not only presented an issue with the League's image, but ultimately deprived them of potentially valuable intelligence. The Rocket Admin, in particular, would've made an excellent live capture. But then, had they captured him alive, they'd have to contend with him either attempting suicide, or a plant killing them in some sort of "accident." But what was explicitly clear from the situation was the fact that the whole thing was a trap. Not only were they ready for their breach, but the explosives rigged around the place were clearly meant to not only take out the Commissioner, but the rescue team as well.

Thomas would sit at the designated location, garbed in his usual formal attire. Even if it was a meeting involving drinks, he was taking this very seriously. The trainer didn't place an order until the Councilman would arrive, out of courtesy for the man. Thomas figured that Fernando was pissed about what went down, so he wasn't going to rub salt into the wound so carelessly.

tags: FERNANDO SILPH
notes: Thomas is early, and in a dapper suit.

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silph

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POSTED ON Mar 10, 2019 0:37:42 GMT

the whole sauvetage mission was a big headache. he had the foresight to see it coming but that doesn't relieve the trouble that comes along with it. while the mission was an overall success, the aftermath of the way it was conducted is starting to apply a pressure that the league is pressed to address.

fernando enters with a matching formal uniform. slacks, a button-up shirt, and a blazer fits an ensemble fitting for a league official. spotting thomas isn't hard, having met him once before, and fernando pulls up in a stool next to him. he sits beside him wordlessly, waiting until he's fixed in his seat before scowling at the interpol agent.

"mister benoit."

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POSTED ON Mar 10, 2019 0:50:22 GMT

Thomas would hear footsteps coming towards him. The Interpol Agent would turn to face the man who was coming towards him, a familiar face indeed. Though he remembered their last encounter, which ended on a favorable note, none of that would matter. The blue-haired man didn't utter a single word until he got situated in his stool, the scowl only confirming what Thomas knew was coming.

"Councilman Silph.", the Agent would greet Fernando. The Kalosian's expression was a somber one. The Bartender would leave the area, closing off the bar, and ducking into the backroom, given the two men the privacy to talk. "Where did you want me to start?", the trainer would ask the politician.

tags: FERNANDO SILPH
notes: Here we go...

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silph

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POSTED ON Mar 12, 2019 5:12:56 GMT

the bartender leaves and it grants them a privacy that's unneeded. however, fernando does not belittle the gesture and appreciates it by granting thomas the entirely of his attention. "start where you see fit, mister benoit." he has an inkling of what's to be said but makes no motion to interfere. his investigation so far has been far from fruitful but hopefully that changes. thomas is an interpol agent and the front runner for the whole scandal, second only to @natsu.

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POSTED ON Mar 12, 2019 6:07:35 GMT

"May as well address the Donphan in the room. The two men that my subordinate, Agent Saber, killed, had come at us, both in a heavily drunken state, each of them bringing along three Pokemon. The two men had a Sandlash, an Arbok, a Scizor, a Mightyena, a Gardevoir, and a Hydreigon between the two of them. As you are well aware, we got into a skirmish with them. As they were reaching for radios in order to call in for backup, Stormy's Skarmory attacked with Steel Wing, with the intent of merely knocking the radios out of their hands. Instead, the Skarmory ended up cutting off the hands of one of the two. Agent Saber's Chandelure had roasted the two with a Fire Spin, with the intent to trap them.", he'd explain to Fernando calmly.

"Considering the fact that they were loitering in the vicinity of a high value prisoner's location, with cameras recording what goes on, I think it's safe to say they were Rockets. There's no way that the occupying forces would just let drunks loiter around such an area so carelessly, if they weren't Rockets to begin with. They did charge us on sight, with all six of their Pokemon drawn, clearly ready to attack. Even if one could chalk it up to them being drunk, they seemed far more aggressive than scared, if they were even afraid of us in the first place. And of course, the two were reaching for radios, obviously ready to call in reinforcements once the situation went south for them.", Thomas would point out.

"On a very specific note, that Hydreigon they brought with them must've been juiced up on some sort of drug, or I'm losing my mind. That thing ate an Aura Sphere from a Clawitzer, took a point-blank Moonblast from an Alolan Ninetales, and was subjected to a Gallade's Close Combat without going down, then proceeding to steamroll the Clawitzer with a single Dragon Rush, though an Aurora Veil at that."

tags: FERNANDO SILPH
notes: Here we go.

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silph

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POSTED ON Mar 12, 2019 7:21:39 GMT

fernando's reviewed the case notes. he knows what happened, at least on league record. the footage, damning as it is, is obviously painted with a slanted narrative that's obvious to anyone capable of more the one-dimensional thinking. still, to hear in details the specifics of the operation grant him a moment to relish in gratification. from the ashes arises a new opportunity—a chance to grasp even more power.

fernando raises an eyebrow at the comment about the hydreigon but lets it slide. "you sound defensive, mister benoit. tell me, what is your take on the situation?"

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POSTED ON Mar 13, 2019 3:38:52 GMT

"Did that come off as defensive? In all honesty, I'm having a hard time believing just what I saw back there.", Thomas would elaborate. "And if you ask me, the whole thing was a trap. I think it's safe to say we all suspected it was a trap. And from what they had set up, and how it ended, it looked like they intended to take out the Commissioner, as well as the rescue team in the explosion that occurred.", Thomas would begin.

"The warehouse where the Commissioner was being held housed an ambush. I tried to have my Galvantula, rigged with a camera of its own, scout out the warehouse from the shadows. It managed to get an image of the Commissioner, as well as one figure, before an Electric Terrain disrupted the feed. When we breached, a Luxray greeted us with a Discharge, which injured Kyle's leg in the process. Despite our efforts to bring down the beast, it managed to escape the Warehouse by smashing through the wall with a Wild Charge.", Thomas would begin.

"The Commissioner herself was tied to a chair and gagged, guarded by a Rocket armed with a pistol. While Lao's Gallade managed to teleport over and Protect her before Teleporting to safety, Agent Saber's Chandelure killed the Rocket with a Fire Spin, depriving us of a live capture that could've given us valuable intel.", Thomas reported to the Councilman, looking down. "After this, the explosives rigged through the warehouse detonated, and while Stormy, Laurence, and Kyle were able to get protection from the explosion, and myself and Agent Saber were Teleported to safety, Agent Barricade was killed in the explosion, alongside my Galvantula, Agent Saber's Magneton, Stormy's Torkoal, and Laurence's Swampert.", he'd inform the Commissioner.

"Given the fact that the route was rigged with cameras, a Luxray and an armed Rocket were waiting on the inside, the warehouse being rigged with explosives, and the Commissioner being gagged, I adamantly believe it's safe to say that the intent of this was to kill the Commissioner, as well as wipe out the rescue party.", he'd state.

tags: FERNANDO SILPH
notes: tl;dr

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POSTED ON Mar 16, 2019 3:08:05 GMT

dahlia goode likes this

fernando sits there patiently, eating up the story with a dying fascination that stems from a testimony that only reinforces what he already knows. the fact that the rescue team can devise that the whole operation reeks of a trap raises a more critical question.

"why not kill dahlia goode from the start?"

he eyes thomas with an eyebrow raised.

"strategically speaking, there's too many risks in leaving the commissioner alive just to bait out a few league members. on the off chance that everything were to fail, evident by the operation being an overall success, the weight of returning the commissioner is too steep."

he pauses.

"unfortunately most of the league as well as the general public will not have a chance to hear your testimony. even then, most won't believe you due to the dubious nature of the whole operation. your thoughts on that?"

Thomas Benoit

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POSTED ON Mar 16, 2019 3:37:49 GMT

dahlia goode likes this

As Fernando mentioned how it'd be more practical to have Dahlia killed, as opposed to using her as bait for a trap, Thomas listened to him intently. While it is true that just outright killing her would've been the far more pragmatic approach, he figures they would've pulled a stunt like this as a means of crushing their morale. But then, it got the Interpol Agent thinking, that if they really wanted her dead, they'd have either sent more Rockets after them in the aftermath of the explosion, or put in more countermeasures to prevent them from Teleporting the Commissioner to safety.

"You raise an excellent point, Councilman. On one hand, if they did intend for her to die with this stunt, it would've been a means to crush morale. On the other hand, the feeling that they accounted for this scenario ebbs away at me. In the time that she was their prisoner, she displayed no signs of physical torture that I'm aware of. Perhaps I'm reaching far with this suggestion, but what if in the time she was their prisoner, they utilized Hypnosis-capable Pokemon in an effort to program her to some end? Hypothetically, she doesn't show immediate signs of brainwashing, but a trigger could reduce her to Rocket's puppet, once they see fit to trigger her programming.", Thomas would suggest to the Councilman.

Thomas frowned as he mentioned the fact that most of the League, and the public at large would probably never hear what he had to say, and even if they did, they probably wouldn't believe him. "That is unfortunate, but seeing as the the one who caused the deaths of the three Rockets in this case, Agent Saber, was my direct subordinate, accountability falls squarely on my shoulders. Perhaps I should've done more to convince my employer that Agent Saber was unfit for field work, but at the end of the day, I failed as her commanding officer to reign her in."

Thomas would then slide a dossier over to Fernando. "The contents of this dossier detail Agent Saber's history with the International Police. I've placed a marker to the relevant documentation, but if you see fit to go through the rest, then nothing's stopping you, Councilman.", Thomas would tell Fernando.

If Fernando were to look into the dossier, he would find information on Natsumi's activities in the Kanto Region a year prior. Of note was her encounter with the Mad Dog of Rocket, Dorian Westcliff. The encounter ended with the deaths of her Scizor, Tangrowth, and Mawile, saw her captured alive by the Mad Dog, and physically tortured, before making a bloody escape from her prison. Though the psychological evaluation cleared her for duty, a page with notes on the initial meeting between Thomas and Natsumi would show that Thomas had doubts about her fitness for duty, concerns that were unfortunately brushed aside by the upper echelons Thomas dealt with at the time.

"In any case, I take full responsibility for the trouble this operation has caused the League. I will put in my resignation to the International Police.", he would tell the Councilman solemnly.

tags: FERNANDO SILPH
notes: tl;dr

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