15strangers | THE MOCK INQUISITION

[Soon after the final clue is found, there are three more loud, unsettling tonal clangs. Those in the first floor vestibule will hear another, loud creak afterwards, coming from the set of doors.

The set of doors on the left are slowly opening, revealing a long, long corridor, with a very long flight of stairs going upwards just barely visible at the end of it.

The Intercessor's voice booms through the air and shakes the ground, sounding loud and clear no matter where the Titled might be standing at that moment.]

ENTER!

[The voice brooks no argument. As soon as everyone goes through the set of double doors, they close behind them. There is no choice. The Titled must go up the stairs at the end of the hall. They feel like they take forever, but when the stars are finally traversed, there is a single door at the top, already open to them.

Welcome to the Debate Hall, Titled. Its perhaps the best-lit place you've seen, with gas lamps on the wall bright as possible. Its also the emptiest place they've ever seen so far - its massive and yet the Titled and the Intercessor are the only individuals to be seen in the entire area.

So, Titled, don't mind the faint chanting coming from the darkness behind that stage at the other end. There's no real way to hear what's being said, no matter how close you try to get, or if there's even anyone on or behind the stage to make such chanting possible. The only person remotely close to the stage, standing on the stone steps, is the Intercessor. Maybe its in your mind. You've been paranoid the past week, after all.

Maybe this is just all insane to begin with.

So. Take your seats at your stone desks to face one another as you debate. And yes, they are stone. Yes, they have stone chairs with which to sit in. And yes, your Title is on your assigned chair, etched in with chisel and hammer. Every desk also has a copy of the Writs with Orders 7 and 8 circled, and a copy of the autopsy file of the deceased on top of it; that is all the aid you will get from whoever brought you here. The rest, it seems, is up to the Titled, with what they have found.

Once everyone has taken their seats, the strange, ominous chanting stops. Its time. Bound in blood, the death warrant has already been signed. The contract is complete. Its now just a question of finding the guilty party to fulfill the call for justice.

The Inquisition of Kanna Hijiri has begun.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Mikazuki's not the type to participate in these sorts of discussions but if someone just wants to know where some body parts are, then he can do that, sure.]

Oh, I found the legs where the clothing was. [A beat.] Should I have brought them here?

...it could have been helpful, but it also would have probably disgusted most of the people involved out of actually doing anything in this investigation, so good job.

Why would they hide them there?

[Yay, he was praised (?)?? Well anyways. He'll leave the reasoning to you guys, but he can at least talk more about the state of it.]

I don't know, but one looked like it was in a shirt, and one was rolled up with some cloth. [So whoever did it tried... kinda.]

Probably because the kitchen is closed until morning, and there's no access to any real way to dispose of them otherwise. I had to burn the clothing I had that got bloodied when I was fixing up a certain idiot who got himself stabbed.

[ Behemo seems to be grumpy, but probably because he doesn't want to be here. ]

True, though I do have to wonder why dismember her anyway. It may have something to do with the healing factor, especially if she was as dangerous as someone here believed.

[Sakura nods in Santa's vague direction.]

That is, unless I'm misinterpreting your exclamation of, what was it, 'knew this bitch wasn't dead.'"

[ Santa swallows a flurry of swearing that wants to burst its way out of him and thinks quick before he speaks. He's not going to go down for this!]

I was going by her diary! Akane's got it, right? Did you bring it?

[ She's smart enough. She wouldn't fail him. Right? ]

[ Of course she has it. She levels a stare at him like 'what do you take me for' before brandishing it. ]

Do we all have to read this or can someone read the pertinent bits out loud?

[ She's obviously uncomfortable with the idea of everyone reading the poor girl's private thoughts. ]

If you wish for an impartial reader, I may be of assistance.

Then I'm giving you the diary.

Very well.

[The Intercessor comes over to take the diary. As they do, their hand goes into their cloak, bringing out...something small, and steel. They flick it to its full form, to reveal...spectacles.

Fastening them on (even though there's no way to tell if they even have a nose...) they open the book, clear their throat, and proceed to read.]

Thank you, Intercessor.

[Sakura listens intently and frowns. That might just be her face, though.]

So her ability was something retained from home, because she didn't have one granted. I do have to wonder at the talk of a gem, though. She wrote as if it were tied to her restoration... or maybe the only way to kill her. After all, she was so confident because nobody would know about it.

She was trying to save someone.

[...yeah. That's Arianna's takeaway here. For some reason.]

Exempt from the titles and powers, but not from the motive. Hardly a fair deal.

She mentioned transforming as well...

So most of her powers were blocked, including transformation -- considering the term "magical girl," I assume she means it like those television shows, though I suspect that would confuse you even further. Taking the diary as truth, the only thing she could still do here was regenerate. As such, we should keep that in mind and not overcomplicate things.

...wait, hold up.

[Someone explain to the nickel man what anime is, please.

Please.]

Transform into what, exactly?

Presumably, a more powerful form with access to powers you wouldn't see in the everyday human.

(no subject)

daughterofthemark - 2017-04-22 20:55 (UTC) - Expand

crywiththesaints - 2017-04-22 23:09 (UTC) - Expand

mogarisready - 2017-04-22 21:15 (UTC) - Expand

... Most likely. I've heard the term before. That was a pretty long time ago, though!

[ Like hundreds of years ago, man. ]

That wasn't really my genre of choice. She probably could transform. I never noticed the girl, but it's possible she had a knack for magic if she's mentioning that. A pity, really, I would've liked to meet her!

She also wanted to kill us all.

[ Said nonchalantly, with a smile-- ]

I won't deny that. Or that she was--[So full of herself she leaked and caused a toxic ego spill.]--prideful. But, knowing her reasons...

[ ... She'll roll her eyes a bit. ]

Tell me: do we really know her reasons? How much do we actually know about the victim? A snapshot of a diary? We never actually talked to her face to face. We don't know what she was like. For all we know, she could have been a terrible person.

And whomever killed her could have been sparing the rest of us. Still, that does not stop the fact that we have no choice but to find out who did.

She wouldn't have lied in a private diary. If she wrote that she had someone to save, then she did.

[Arianna isn't very good at distrusting people.]

But I suppose it doesn't matter.

Even if that was what she wanted, would you be okay dying for that purpose? So someone else can go home, while you die horribly away from yours?

daughterofthemark - 2017-04-23 01:40 (UTC) - Expand

[ Levia thinks it does really matter, but it's clear to her Arianna is too small-minded to understand the complexities of why. So she'll leave it alone for now. ]

[/low whistle]