SECOND INVESTIGATION

[bathymetric]

Your third Friday in the facility dawns like the last two, where you've historically had a 50-50 shot at not, you know, having someone be murdered somewhere. Needless to say, the atmosphere is probably tense. You've already lost someone, but... is that enough? There's a whole chest of maybe literal pirate gold at stake, here, and for all of you who have derided the motive there's no doubting that money isn't exactly something that nobody out there kills for, right?

The lights of the facility click on to signal the end of nighttime, and one by one you start to wake. Things seem pretty normal as you all leave your rooms, but... didn't you feel this way last week, too?

Comments

[bathymetric]

[ Well, once you get closer it's hard to say that the body is, you know, not just that: a body. There's been a certain level of violence done to it that we'll get into in the investigation, and if this person is somehow alive then they won't be for much longer. But the face is intact, and even if it wasn't... the hair might well be more of a giveaway. Looks like for the second week in a row, Rhea, you've lucked out and found the murder victim!

Piers is dead. ]

[archboxer]

[Sothis, why do you keep doing this to her?]

Oh...

[Time to protect the body again.]

[blackmass]

...hm? Good morning, Rhe-

[oh, WHY,]

[Kirei caught sight of the body and just...sighed.]

[archboxer]

[She turns her head and sighs.

She doesn't say it but she told you, Kirei. She told you.]

[blackmass]

Oh, don't look at me like that, I told you I would be fine and said nothing of anyone else.

[is this the TIME]

[archboxer]

I did not think I said anything.

[She turns back to the body but she feels a little justified. A little. But now isn't the time.]

[bogwife]

[Zerinda comes into the chapel distracted, fussing with the nug in her bag, but she stops short when she looks up and sees Rhea kneeling over what is undoubtedly another body.]

Oh no- is that Piers?

[lovelikeyou]

Oh - oh no, not Piers. He was singing in here only the other day...

[Rose, unsurprisingly, is just about in tears already.]

[bogwife]

Hey, hey. [Zerinda turns away from the body and touches Rose's arm, very gently trying to lead her away.] Come on, Rose, you don't have to be in here for this.

[lovelikeyou]

[It seems a little - well, perhaps a little cowardly, not to stay and help. But what has she ever been except a coward?

Rose allows herself to be led from the room.]

[bogwife]

[Zerinda hooks her arm through Rose's, leading her to the arts and crafts room to have a seat.]

I need to go back and help Ema with- [She chews her lower lip, trying to find the right words.] With Piers. Do you want to look after Princess for a little while? [She tries to smile even if it is shaky and a bit forced.] I promise she's very sweet, only nibbles a little bit.

[lovelikeyou]

.....okay. Of course.

[she has no idea what Princess is but Rose is basically always down with animals anyway.

also just pretend she did this and investigated the bathrooms simultaneously shhhhhh]

[bogwife]

[sshhhh time is an illusion

Zerinda reaches into her shoulder bag and pulls out Princess.] Like I said, she's very sweet and very well-behaved. She just needs a babysitter so she doesn't go wandering off.

[lovelikeyou]

Oh - ! She's so cute!

[well it's more true than when she called the giant leech cute

Rose will reach out to take Princess. Sounds like this is a friend she can easily hold in her massive hands.]

I'll take good care of her.

[bogwife]

Isn't she? [Princess is about the size and weight of a large rabbit and makes a perplexed little squealing noise when Rose takes her but settles down when Zerinda gives her a little kiss between her ears.]

Thank you, Rose, I appreciate it. [She lays her hand on Rose's arm to give her a reassuring little squeeze before sweeping off to poke at a dead body.]

[ladygeryon]

No! [Nira lets out something close to a wail as she rushes closer to the body, bending down next to it.] Piers!

[Aria rushes up next to the body as well, sniffing at it slightly before leaning comfortingly against Nira, while Jewel hangs back in the background.]

[archboxer]

[She closes her eyes.]

I am sorry... he is with the Goddess, now.

[ladygeryon]

...he had his own gods. He'd been thinking about starting to actually pray to them, just...just last night...

[Nira sounds like she's on the verge of breaking down, here. She really doesn't want to get into a theological argument over Piers' corpse, but also she can't just let that pass without comment.]

[archboxer]

I do realize that, Nira.

[But you know. She's the pope. It's kind of a reflex. She can't just... start praying to other gods, you know. She's not going to argue.]

[ladygeryon]

...yeah. [She just looks down at the body again. Swords, she's going to have to explain this to Obstagoon, isn't she?]