Jones: Chief, why are we in Maple Heights, is it about the flood? I know the whole area's gone underwater since the earthquake... Heard it's changed the shape of the land quite drastically!
The police department rushes to Maple Heights, the most affluent and elite-inhabited district of Grimsborough, to provide aid in the midst of a recent flood that has left the neighborhood underwater after the earthquake. There, Cathy informs Jones and the player that their old acquaintance Lola Vallez has reported the body of photographer Jordan Coprolite floating in her garden, who died after being hit in the stomach with a baseball bat.
Tropes:
- Accidental Murder: Anuj just wanted to shake up Jordan when he hit him in the stomach with a bat after he caught Jordan putting laxatives in his food, but didn't control the strength of the swing and the blow ended up killing him instead. For this, Judge Powell gives Anuj a somewhat lenient sentence of 8 years.
- Admiring the Abomination:
- Jones can't help but stare in awe at the waterfalls that have flooded Maple Heights when you see them in the West Bridge.
- Despite their creepy appearance and even creepier name, Ray is absolutely ecstatic when you inform him about the Demon Fish resurfacing from Xerda, finding their survival after so many centuries fascinating.
- Agonizing Stomach Wound: Jordan died after taking a violent hit to the stomach with a baseball bat, causing his organs to rupture and killing him in minutes.
- Angry Chef: Anuj Ghosh, the chef of The Elephant in the Room Indian restaurant. Said anger eventually led to him accidentally killing Jordan in a fit of rage after he caught him tampering with his food.Jones: Mr. Ghosh sure has a temper. I'm glad I don't work for a boss like that!
- Awesome by Analysis: Cathy uses the victim's weight, the weather, the time of murder, and the place the body ended up washing up to calculate where he was killed by taking into account the flood waters.
- Batter Up!: The murder weapon is a baseball bat.
- Blaming the Victim: Played for Laughs with Lola, who berates the very dead Jordan for littering her garden.Lola: No idea who he is, <Player's Name>. But I find it very inconsiderate of him to have washed up here!
- The Bus Came Back: Lola Vallez, a recurring character during the Maple Heights arc in Grimsborough, returns here as a suspect.
- Call-Back: Danny Gibbs reappears as a suspect. Louis Leroux, Ray Parker, and Grayson Rosewater also reappear during the Additional Investigation.
- Caught on Tape: During the Additional Investigation, Leroux provides you with an audio tape that, by Cathy and Jasper's analysis, helps you deduce what fell in the forest a year ago wasn't a satellite, but a meteorite, something DreamLife has been trying to hide and use for their own unknown goals.
- Cement Shoes: The killer tied the victim's body to a rock after killing him then threw it in the water, hoping to dispose of it this way. Too bad for them the flood waters were strong enough to wash it up on Lola's house.
- Chekhov's Skill: Jasper's skills as a astrophysicist come in handy this case to help you understand that whatever fell in the forest a year ago isn't a satellite, but a meteorite.
- Chubby Chef: Anuj Ghosh.
- Continuity Nod: West Bridge reappears as a crime scene, now destroyed and split in a half due the earthquake.
- Cooperation Gambit: Grayson offers to give you important information regarding the object that fell in the forest if you provide him with better accommodations in prison. Jones (reluctantly) and the player agree. This, combined with Leroux's tape, is what helps the team realize DreamLife has been hiding a meteorite all this time.
- Destroy the Evidence: Leroux tells you DreamLfe demanded him to give away the footage of their "satellite" falling for supposed security reasons, most likely to hide the fact it was actually a meteorite. Fortunately, he still kept the audio tape of his interview.
- I Didn't Mean to Kill Him: Anuj says this during his arrest and trial, as he only wanted to shake up Jordan by hitting him with the bat, but ended up accidentally killing him instead.
- Distress Call: Danny tells you the victim was prone to doing these towards the earthquake aid team, all of which were fake due to Jordan mostly hallucinating problems thanks to the drugs he often consumed.
- The Dreaded: Ray explains the Xerdan people were deeply afraid of the Demon Fish, to the point they condemned bodies of water where the fish were seen swimming around. As for why this fear persisted, the reason still remains unknown.
- Drugs Are Bad: Jordan was a druggie whose addiction often landed him in trouble, the most clear example is him and his wife getting blacklisted from every adoption agency in the country after he received the adoption agent drugged out of his mind.
- Early-Bird Cameo: Gabriel is seen speaking with his girlfriend on the phone long before she's properly introduced in Case 47.
- Eating Contest: Anuj is introduced as a suspect when you find out Jordan had won a curry eating contest in his restaurant.
- Faux Horrific: Jones has this opinion on the mysterious fish that have appeared on the flood waters, finding strange that people are afraid of a fish even if its appearance is quite freaky.
- Fiendish Fish: The Demon Fish are kinda freaky in appearance, although Martine claims the male individuals have low testosterone levels and so will only attack if provoked. Still doesn't explain why the Xerdan people considered them The Dreaded, though...
- Foreshadowing: The fact that the Xerdan people nicknamed the seemingly harmless fish Demon Fish and considered them The Dreaded should be your first clue that they're far more dangerous than they show, as the females have an extremely poisonous bite.
- Friendship Moment: Deconstructed. Jordan and Nathaniel were apparently very good friends... which Nathaniel often demonstrated by giving him free drugs that severely affected his life.
- Genre Savvy: When you inform Chief Parker that the mysterious fish invading Maple Heights are an ancient Xerdan species, she says that, basing herself on her favorite thrillers, the return of a species always means chaos for the people involved.
- Hazardous Water: As if a flood wasn't bad enough, the waters of Maple Heights now also contain an ancient fish species called the Demon Fish, whose danger levels apparently shouldn't be underestimated if the testimony of the Xerdan people is to be trusted.
- Jerkass: The victim was a drug addict who refused to change for his wife and eventually got them blacklisted from every adoption agency in the world, made fake Distress Calls to Danny due to said addiction, altered Lola's pictures (which she paid for) to make her look like a lizard, and added laxatives into Anuj's food to slander him to other customers.Jones: Well, <Player's Name>, it seems literally the only person mourning our victim's passing is his drug dealer! Says a lot about a person.
- I Just Want to Have Friends: When you arrest Nathaniel for dealing drugs, he tells you the only reason he does it is to get friends, as they like when he gives them free merchandise.
- Lethal Eatery: Jordan accused Anuj's restaurant of being this, comparing his food to laxatives. Later you learn Jordan actually tried to add laxatives to Anuj's food so he could slander him, which got him killed by the chef.
- Living Relic: The Demon Fish were already known by the Xerdan people before they disappeared in the 3rd century, and the fish managed to survive the civilization's disappearance in an underground cistern until the earthquake brought them back to the surface.
- Lizard Folk: Lola hired Jordan for a photoshoot for her new album, but he altered the pictured to make her look like a lizard woman and claimed she looked better that way, much to her disdain.
- Malicious Slander: Jordan added laxatives to Anuj's food to slander him to his clients for unknown reasons. When Anuj caught him in the act, he killed Jordan in an act of rage.
- Mix-and-Match Critters: The Demon Fish could be best described as piranhas with angler fish antennae.
- More Teeth than the Osmond Family: The Demon Fish
◊. - Mosquito Miscreants: One of the killer's traits is that they have mosquito bites, which seem to have become common due to the flood waters increasing their population.
- Names to Run Away from Really Fast: The Demon Fish.
- Natural Disaster Cascade: The earthquake that struck Grimsborough a few weeks ago really has done a number on the city, as not only the Financial and Historical districts are wrecked and have literal rivers of lava flowing through them, but Maple Heights is now underwater too.Danny: Our rescue and relief team has had no rest! After flowing lava, we have to deal with flowing water! It's exhausting!
- Nemesis as Customer: Jordan eventually became this for Anuj, to the point he attempted to sabotage his food to slander his business to other customers.
- Noodle Incident: When Cathy examines the victim's soaked phone, she says it reminds her of the time Sammy dropped her phone in the toilet.
- Not So Extinct: The Demon Fish were believed to have gone extinct along with the Xerdan civilization, but lo and behold, they're back on the flood waters of Maple Heights.
- Nutritional Nightmare: What Rupert thinks of Amir's food during one of their analyses.Amir: Rupert, I still say you should try my maple cinnamon peanut butter banana toast!
Rupert: Do you hear yourself? Does that really sound good to you?!
Jones: Actually, Amir... Could I try it? - Persona Non Grata: Aubrey Coprolite, the victim's wife, explains they had been trying to adopt for years before they were given a chance, but Jordan completely blew it when, during the home inspection, he got so drugged he actually thought they were going to adopt the adoption agent. This led to their family getting blacklisted from every adoption agency in the country, which didn't sit well with Aubrey at all.
- Post-Stress Overeating: Lola seems to be prone to this.Lola: <Player's Name>, you're back! I would offer you a cinnamon roll, but I'm afraid I ate them all! The flood and the murder have led me to stress eat!
- Prehistoric Monster: The Demon Fish have been around since at least the 3rd century, and they're quite monstrous-looking too, although apparently harmless. Key word in apparently.
- The Reveal: What fell in the forest a year ago wasn't one of DreamLife's satellites, but a meteorite they've been studying in private and preventing anyone from learning about it.
- Shout-Out:
- In the Statues scene, there is artwork of a mermaid resembling Ariel.
- In the Indian Restaurant scene, there is a picture of Mahatma Gandhi.
- In the Restaurant Tables scene, there is a smaller picture of Gandhi on a postcard.
- Skewed Priorities: Lola has this to say regarding the body floating in her garden and the overall state of Maple Heights.Lola: It's bad enough that everything is a mess because of this disgusting flood! My once beautiful, gorgeous garden is now RUINED! My clothes have to be PRACTICAL instead of fashionable...
And now a BODY? How am I supposed to deal with all these horrors? - Sunken City: Due to Grimsborough being built above a series of underground caves, the earthquake has sunk Maple Heights below water level and thus flooded almost the entire district in knee-deep water.
- Take It to the Bridge: When Anuj caught Jordan adding laxatives to his food, he chased Jordan down to the West Bridge and killed him with the bat.
- Take That!: In response to the flood, Rupert says that if he wanted dampness and mold, he would've stayed in England.
- Tampering with Food and Drink: As part of his Malicious Slander, Jordan added laxatives to Anuj's food to ruin his restaurant's reputation, which ultimately backfired when Anuj murdered him in a fit of rage.
- Toxic Friend Influence: It's made clear that Jordan's friendship with Nathaniel wasn't a healthy one, as he only seemed to be friends with Nathaniel due to the free drugs he provided (which were wrecking his life).
- Urban Ruins: Much like the Financial Center, Maple Heights has been severely affected by the earthquake too, with the difference being that most of the district is underwater instead of having its buildings wrecked.
- Verbal Tic: Nathaniel says "man" a lot.Nathaniel: Oh man, it's the cops! Why are you here? I was about to go meet my buddy, man! Why are you here?
Jones: Your buddy Jordan Coprolite? We've got some bad news, he's been murdered!
Nathaniel: What?! Oh man, oh man, but I just saw him yesterday!
Oh man, this news is tying my stomach in, like, a constrictor knot, man. - Water Is Dry: Hilariously Averted with Jones, who falls on the water of Lola's garden mid-investigation and comes out absolutely soaked, covered in garbage, and with a frog kissing his head. He has to change clothes while you go investigate another crime scene.
- You Wouldn't Like Me When I'm Angry!: Implied by Chief Parker when Jones says he wouldn't like to have a boss as angry as Anuj.Chief Parker:' Now, Jones, I wouldn't speak too soon. You haven't seen ME angry yet!
Jones: And, uh, I hope I never do, Chief!
