SIXTH TRIAL

[bathymetric]

[ It's the same as the other weeks. Two bodies, some time to look, and then Davy Jones comes around to take those of you who are left into the theatre and into the elevator. His expression is dark, difficult to read.

The trip down feels slower than ever. The elevator has gotten so empty, don't you think?

As it reaches its usual destination, the crew of the Dutchman is performing once again. The clouds above have started to darken the once clear tropical waters.

The podiums await you. ]

At yer places! Find who is responsible for all of this!

[ Your numbers can't support many more weeks of this, can they?

Welcome to your sixth trial. ]

Comments

[scouserer]

[Christ. Every week, it becomes more and more apparently just how thin their numbers are growing. He grips the podium, staring blankly forward.]

Someone went and took a toolbox and a tarp from the workshop. I figure, since the rollercoaster seemed to the means of...murder, someone must've tampered with the cars.

[ahelpingpaw]

So, uh...I didn't really take a look because it looked too grisly for me to even want to approach, but what exactly happened? Was he ran over and the coaster ended on top of him, or did it...fall from above or...what happened?

[scythegun]

[He really is completely surrounded by death now, huh... Bad and naughty arms dealers get sent to peppermint jail.]

I examined the roller coaster itself while Data was handling Risotto's body. The safety wheels had mostly been removed with only a couple left on. Someone would have had to manually remove them. Given that I found this further back on the track lying on a tarp, that seems to be what happened.

[No cursed swords today, but Yeager does have a toolbox! Feel free to come take it off his hands and look through it, he has no interest in holding onto this.]

Most of these have been greased, but from what I could tell it seems like only a screwdriver and a couple of wrenches were used. The tarp also had the missing safety wheels, all accounted for.

There were also bloody handprints on the undercarriage of the roller coaster that were Risotto's, given the size and shape. I found a set of handprints on the front of the carriage as well. They were smaller than Risotto's, and smaller than my own. It looks like they were applied to the front of the carriage with force.

Not far away there were bloody footprints; like the hand prints, they seemed to be smaller than mine. The prints led towards the loop, where someone climbed up top and seemingly sat there. There was no indication of where they went after this, or what they were doing up there.

[scythegun]

I can account for both of those. You'd be right that someone tampered with the cars as well. It seems someone really thought this through...

[scouserer]

A gristly way to go out, to say the least.

[Constantine grimaces.]

So, signs point to this being intentional, huh?

[ahelpingpaw]

So we're looking for someone who knows enough about mechanical stuff? I know handling tools doesn't mean you're good at that, but if they knew they had to take off those wheels...I dunno, maybe it's a hint about a general knowledge of this kinda thing.

[Nothing on the profiles seem to hint about a mechanical inclination from anyone, hm]

[scythegun]

Ja, it must have been. There isn't a way to accidentally remove the wheels, and starting the roller coaster is manual as well, I believe? So someone went out of their way to make sure this would work.

[scythegun]

With enough time and study, I do think most people could learn how the roller coaster works and what would be required to turn it into a weapon. With that said, I thought most of us were ignoring it entirely...

[Because. You know. Obvious death trap.]

[sivard]

[Empyreans, he can't keep doing this.]

I, uh, took a look at Scott's... remains. He wasn't lying about turning into coins. There was a cut on the back of his shirt, with a little blood on it, but nothing else wound-wise from what I can tell. There was some kind of grease on them, and his pockets had been turned inside out. It looked like everything in them had been discarded in a pile nearby.

[But wait, there's more!]

Somebody who's familiar with the machines would have to explain what the hell it means, but one of them had an image on it that said "game over" with a picture of Scott on it.

[leaveittomother]

Anyone can handle tools if they have enough time but you're right. It does seem to lean that way.

[silentscout]

Anybody here should be able to figure out how to turn a screwdriver to remove something, right? If it was fixing something then you might have a point, but just taking something off is easy.

[cethflayn]

[...Oh, fun, Flayn's surrounded by empty and decrepit podiums.

She holds a tie dye shirt greasy with motor oil in a pair of industrial kitchen tongs, and pops it on her own podium.]

I found what was left of Scott in the arcade. He mentioned it once, and I had told him it was not normal, but...his body had indeed turned into coins.

[It makes no sense, but Flayn says it with all seriousness, because it is still a murder.]

He was playing a dancing game I think, and there was blood splatter on one of the front corners of the game machine. It was rather small, like...something hit it, and blood came out to leave its mark behind. I also found this shirt nearby. As you can see, it is covered in some kind of malicious, black and oily substance. [She doesn't know what motor oil is.] That is...that is all I found.

[scythegun]

He really did turn into coins?

[what the hell is (was??) scott pilgrim.........]

Zaveid, could you compare the grease on the clothes you found to the one on the tools in this toolbox? It's possible they're the same, which could help us piece together what happened.

[magycks]

And his gun was under the tracks. Can't forget that!

[ She's just choosing to glom on to this detailed explanation of the rollercoaster situation! And also... to put Risotto's gun on top of her podium. ]

Everyone settle down, it's not loaded. Anymore.

mods!

[sivard]

[Lets take a look at the tools.

Does the grease match up?]

[scouserer]

....What?

[HE THOUGHT SCOTT WAS JOKING ABOUT HIS WORLD BEING WEIRD]

[magycks]

[ OH, FLAYN... ]

... You know what, someone else say it, I can't disabuse her of the notion.

[scouserer]

Risotto's a hitman, though--I don't think he'd fall for such a trap like this. Unless he was lured there?

[scythegun]

Thank you, Magica. All of the bullets were accounted for as well. It looks like it wasn't fired.

[Just so we don't get too distracted by the gun!!]

[sivard]

I can confirm, I saw it too.

[leaveittomother]

[Reika pulls out a Canadian coin and lays it on her podium.]

That's right, I... didn't know what I was thinking but I took one of the coins. I don't know if it'll help.

[ahelpingpaw]

Scott too...ah. [Just like with Sara, he was a little busy freaking out a little about the state of a gory corpse to pay much attention to Jack's announcement] So...the coins part was true...wow.

[All Filbo can do for a moment is look bewildered]

Could Scott...you know, bleed? Or was that turning into change too?

[In other words: is the blood splatter Scott's? For all Filbo knows maybe when Scott bleeds Canadian cents fall from the wound, hah]

[scouserer]

[Constantine squints at the coin.]

Well, that's definitely Canadian currency. The man said he was from Ontario, right?

[scythegun]

That's what I don't understand. He could be killed by a trap like this, ja, but he's not the sort you can trick so easily. I have no idea why he'd even be up there in the first place. I think it's likely that someone lured him in, but... Well, I have a hard time figuring out how all of this could have happened.

[If it turned to a fight at any point then Risotto would have won?? He had a gun and also look at him. That man could kill any of us.]

[scouserer]

You think he might've brandished it and dropped it once he got hit?