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]

[She takes off her pants and there's nothing visible, scratch-wise.

But, Brett? How closely are you looking?]

[inaclearing]

[OH COME THE FUCK ON R

Given Forrest's excellent track record on these things, plus the somewhat concerning nihilism chat we're having? He's actually gonna look pretty closely.]

[allatonce]

[Do you remember the scratches on her arms? They're clearly not all the same, now that you're actually looking at them.]

[inaclearing]

...may I?

[He holds out a hand as if to take her arm for closer inspection. Although he's inspecting from here also so like okay what've we got]

[allatonce]

[She holds out her arm wordlessly. It's easy to have missed, Brett, don't beat yourself up. But the actual cat scratches? Mostly on her forearm, meaning the ones higher up on her arm which are slightly larger probably didn't come from Rain, now did they?]

[inaclearing]

[oh hon you know he's gonna beat himself up

Later, though. For now, he just looks at her.]

Joy...

1/2

[allatonce]

Brett.

[She smiles, and this close? This close it's easy to tell her smiles never quite reach her eyes.]

2/2

[everythingeverywhere]

First of all: it's Jobu, actually. Second of all, you guys will really believe anything if someone says it with enough conviction, huh?

[inaclearing]

[ha ha what the fuck does this MEAN

Anyway, while this is all very frightening to me, Brett doesn't move away from her or anything sensible like that. His face just sort of crumbles.]

...yeah. Yeah, I guess so.

[everythingeverywhere]

It's okay, buddy. [She pats him on the shoulder, a little condescending. Has she always sounded like that?] Get your emotions out.