Fifth Trial

[bathymetric]

[ There's a long while of examination before the Mayor speaks up. There's plenty of evidence to pick up yet again this week, after all. ]

Annnd that's going to do it. Wrap it up and head to the bathyspheres, kids, you've got some business to attend to.

[ The bathyspheres take you all down, down, into the now-familiar dome below the city. The similarly familiar red glow persists until the lights properly turn on - the projection of Fontaine's silhouette is gone, of course, replaced by that same flickering "please stand by" message. But your mayor's voice is still the one that speaks over the increasingly empty circle of podiums. ]

If you somehow need a reminder of why you're here, three of you are dead. Get away with it, killer or killers, and the execution room gets to really work overtime today. But I guess if you wanna live, you should find who murdered three people. Could be important for you guys.

[ Welcome to your fifth trial. ]

Comments

[allatonce]

... You twist your ankle or something, Thomathan? [She frowns.] Also your shoes are, like, too clean.

[Speaking of: are the soles as clean as the rest of them? Like, oh.... maybe he cleaned them recently?]

[asymptotes]

Hm? No, nothing like that.

[ He shrugs. ]

I keep them clean. Have an image to maintain.

[ It does seem like he cleaned them recently! But if he did, it was the whole shoes. ]

[honeyedtea]

Did you happen to kick one of your toy dolls a bit too hard while you were playing at karate, then?

[asymptotes]

Now, now. Didn't anyone teach you to respect your elders, Mielle? I could speak the same of your career as an assassin.

[honeyedtea]

Khh–!

[ She grits her teeth so hard you can almost hear them grinding together. ]

Don't– don't try and change the subject! You're injured, aren't you?!

[asymptotes]

Yes, you're right...

[ His smile turns... cruel. ]

Injured that you'd suspect dear old Tommy Oliver of doing something like this.

[sastruga]

You're doing an awful lot of dancing around the subject for someone with an injury.

[asymptotes]

[ A little bit of that cruelty leaves when Mafuyu speaks up. ]

...Come on up and check, if you're so convinced.

[sastruga]

...

[You know what, maybe she WILL. And in fact she is gonna come over.]

Can you tell me what happened?

[asymptotes]

[ He doesn't make any move to threaten her, but he also doesn't make a move to aid in the check. ]

I don't think the burden of proof is on me.

[sastruga]

It would make it go easier.

[But she will go ahead and check what's up here, since she came over. Is it his ankle or...?]

[asymptotes]

Hm. Maybe.

[ His ankle is fine - it seems like there might be something in his shoe? ]

[sastruga]

...Could you remove your shoe?

...Please.

[She's even being polite for you, Drakkon.]

[asymptotes]

[ He sighs, and does so.

Turns it over.

A small aquarium substrate pebble drops out. ]

[allatonce]

....... Did you seriously just keep that in there to remind you of your sins or something? Dude.

[honeyedtea]

[ Mielle scoffs. ]

Oh, please. I'd mastered that sort of butter-wouldn't-melt look by the time I was seven. I expected a bit better of you, Mister Oliver.

[asymptotes]

Then I suppose we're both disappointed in each other, Miss Roscent.

[inaclearing]

Aren't we a little bit past that?

[You sang him a SONG about BEING A SUPERVILLAIN]

Was this all just...more of the same?

[asymptotes]

You know what they say about old habits, Brett.

[allatonce]

He is and his shoes are recently cleaned. Like the whole shoe, including the sole.

[visiblepattern]

Because Misfire's blood would likely be incredibly obvious otherwise, I assume. Seeing as it was everywhere...

[allatonce]

Probably. It is pretty fucking distinctive.

[specialyellthing]

Hey.

Only I’m allowed to talk to her like that.

[asymptotes]

Oh, shut up. I earned the right to talk to her however I want when she fucking poisoned me.

[specialyellthing]

She’s a kid. She was scared. You’re fine.

Lay off, and don’t tell me what to do.