T͝HE͘ S̴̸E҉̶̀C͜Ơ̷̢N͏D̡͟ T҉̧R͘I͟A̧͟͠L̢

Heyyyyyyyyy, Strangers! How's Valentine's Day going? Unfortunately we have to start the trial soon if you want to get any dinner dates in before midnight!

I know some of you have a very special day near today, too! So let’s get a move on, shall we? You know the drill! Though you know… since we saw one of those clues, you can bring your pets in today.

[And so it is. Just like last week, the elevator shoots everyone down to the trial room. Lala's podium, now, is Xed out in red. And like last week, five of the podiums' dot matrix name plates suddenly flash with a red border.]

THE BRITTLE	THE CIRCUIT	THE ENEMY	THE NOODLES
				THE UNKNOWN

[And clashing with the borders whether red or not, on each Stranger’s podium is a little piece of candy: A gray heart, printed with a message in nearly black capitals. These candies are similar to the pills in that they taste like nothing at all rather than sand; while a pill is meant to serve as a full meal, one candy is about as filling as a single apple.

The messages are as follows.]

KING: BEST FRIEND	ARTHUR: LOOKING GOOD	OSOMATSU: ONE OF A KIND	ESTELLE: BRIGHT SPARK	MCBURN: NEVER MEANDER	JONATHAN: DOUBLE THE FUN
AMBROSINE: QUEEN OF MY HEART	CALEB: HOT	KARMA: YOU’RE A DOLL	VITA: TRUE BLUE BEAUTY	KURAMA: FOXY	ERIC: SEW NICE

I'd call what you had to look at "inhumane", but Lala Hagoromo wasn't human, was she?

Now, now, Hiyori. I’m not human, either.

Doesn't change how sad it is that she lost her chance to be happy... Oh, why don't you give them a good look at what you have there, Link?

[Link holds up the heart labeled "OUT OF / THIS WORLD". The hosts are visible behind the glass of their sterile observation room this time by the way.]

We made too many because we hoped all of you would finally join in on the fun by today... So, if you retire, culprit, you can eat this one!

[...Well, maybe the evidence will cause the Hosts to eat their words. BOOM. Burn........or...well, it doesn't matter. The clock is ticking.


The trial for the murder of Lala Hagoromo, The Chance, has begun.]

T͝҉̡H͝E̵̢ ͝͝S̶Ę̡͞C͜͡҉OND̵̴ ̢I̶͢N͏V͝E͏̨̛ST͞I͢͞G̴͏A̛̕T͡ÌON͟

[The day has come.

..Valentine's Day, of course! Or should we now call it...ValITine's Day? Well, it doesn't matter. It's a Friday.

Hopefully, the Strangers got through this week without killing. But perhaps it's best to be sufficiently paranoid and check first, hmm?]

T͢͝H̶͝E̵͞ ͜F͞͏IRS̛͜͡T̢͞ ̸͝T̵̶̢R͠IA҉̵͜Ļ̷

[As soon as the investigation has wrapped up, the voices of the Hosts suddenly echo through the City.]

Hi, Strangers! You remember what happens if you don't show up at the trial, right? Maybe we'll have every single one of those things done to you this time!! Don't worry, it's right up the elevator.

You all could have avoided this, you know! But now we have to follow procedure. Only registered residents will be allowed inside - please leave all animal or other companions in a safe location.

[When the Strangers go to the elevator, they are suddenly plunged down once they get in. The doors open, and they are in a massive metal room, where fifteen cold, metal pedestals wait them. Each podium has the individual's name and room number splashed in a dot matrix green on a small monitor on the front, as if they were contestants on a game show. Two of the pedestals-9 and 14-have instead a red X in their computerized name slot, as opposed to a name.

In the corner of the room is a large area cordoned off from the Strangers by what looks like glass upon first look, but is, in fact, a force field. There is little doubt what that area is for, unless one is truly naïve.

Once everyone has finally gotten into place, five of the podiums' dot matrix name plates suddenly flash with a red border.]

THE BAD LUCK	THE BRITTLE	THE EMBARRASSING	THE NAGGING
				THE UNKNOWN

For some of you, this is the first time dealing with a double body discovery announcement... How does it feel? You don't want to... be emotionally numb or anything, do you?

They look so unhappy, Hiyori. It didn't have to be this way...

Hey, Link. Whose arms do you think they're going to rip off if they vote to convict one of the kiddos left in this game?

They'll probably try for ours, but that won't happen. But probably whoever argues for one of them the hardest...

[At this, the ever-present ticking suddenly grows louder. On one of the walls, a dot matrix clock comes to life, counting down the time everyone has until the Trial has been scheduled to end. You have your evidence-only you know what to do with it.

Well? The clock is ticking.

The trial for the murders of Akira Kurusu, The Nagging, and Kazuaki Nanaki, The Embarrassing, has begun.]

T̷́H̸̀͢E ̵̛F҉ÌRS̷̢̧T̸͜ ͘͜I͠N͞V́E҉S̀͜T͜I͡G̸̶A͏҉T͠I̢̛Ǫ̵N͏͝

[Good morning, Strangers.

How do you all feel today? Sad? Confused? Worried? Well, that's not the Hosts' problem. You guys are the ones being stubborn and obstinate, after all. In any case, it's time for all of you to get up and start moving.

It's Friday. Maybe you'll luck out and everyone's alive. But there's only one way to find out.]

THE THIRD EXECUTION


[The chime goes. The voting ends. The cuffs begin to blink, and soon enough, the picture on the screen is shown.]

[It is done. Charlotte Aulin, The Bright, has been condemned to die.]

E R R O R

[From the Conductor's seat, she turns pale as a sheet.]

No, that-!

[She slumps back into her seat, staring at her phone, silent. Stunned. Angry, certainly, but definitely stunned.

The Smiling Priest walks back over to the podium.]

It appears the Conductor has not explained all of the rules of the Little Courtesy to you. Shall I, Millicent?

[No response.]

A trial with a dead culprit, successfully convicted, automatically voids. No execution of the culprit, of course. No incentive. But. She did not realize the bomb was not connected to the deaths, as you all did. A rare occurrence of of inadvertent tampering, it does not happen very often in these trials.

She realized too late, of course that her uncertainty doomed the proceedings. In this event, the conviction of an innocent person is automatically overturned, and said innocent is given the incentive by means of compensation for their...inconvenience.

[He flashes a smile.]

As I said. The Drowned Man would not allow you to die tonight, my dear.

THE THIRD TRIAL

[The Conductor doesn't meet them when the chime rings. Instead, it is the Smiling Priest.]

Come. Though betrayal waits for no one, she is waiting for you.

[He motions towards the Synod, beckoning all to follow. Soon, everyone passes, almost painfully slowly, through the Seven Stations. They come to the sherd of the Mountain. Beyond that are 15 podiums, illuminated by its light. Around those are pews, with many hooded figures already sitting.

The Conductor is in a chair in front of the step to the well, looking absolutely angry and miserable. She speaks the info into her phone, but she sounds like she is being forced to say it, as opposed to simply going through the same rote routine. She takes deep breaths as the suspect list loads on everyone's cuffs.]

THE BRIGHT	THE WATCHFUL	THE DEIDRE	THE BRITTLE
				THE HALVED

A member of my crew is dead alongside your dead. Justice shall be served. I do hope you are proud of yourself, whoever committed this crime.

[She says nothing else. She looks like she's on tenterhooks. Looks like there's no point in delaying.

The trial for the murders of Konawa Talimo, The Deidre, and Zack Foster, The Watchful, has begun.]

THE SECOND EXECUTION


[As the time nears its end, the audience begins to chant the numbers as the seconds tick by. Their shouting and screaming reaches a fever pitch, until the countdown gets to zero. They cheer wildly as the chime sounds, as if they were watching a soccer game.

Lilac, for her part, simply sighs as a face is flashed onto the big screens and the cuff. On the big screens, the numbers 10-2 also flash on the screen.]

[She waits until everyone has quieted down before she speaks again.]

Everyone, do be quiet. And prepare to the execution. Please put on protective sunglasses, and do not look directly at the light if you do not have any. Of course, if you do, we do not take responsibility for what will happen to you.

[She looks at Zack.]

Now. Unless you can calm down, I shall put your glasses on for you.

THE SECOND TRIAL

[Soon after the finals clues are found, there is a beep on everyone's watch. Then, the Conductor's voice echoes through the jail once more.]

Attention. All passengers of the Eventide, please come to the building in the courtyard. If you are not a passenger, you must have a ticket to enter.

[A ticket? Oh boy. And everyone's suspicions are confirmed when they come to the courtyard and find people-many of them who had been fleeing the prison that very morning-queuing in line to enter the building. Not the Strangers-they are immediately escorted in.

They find themselves in a courtroom, with them sitting at podiums in the center. Above them in the ceiling is a retractable dome; all around on the walls are large screens, so people can watch the proceedings no matter their location. People are filing in, even as a recorded voice drones that the jail isn't responsible for lives lost during the trial-or the sentencing.

Hm.

Lilac is in the judge's seat, the pangolin in her hands. Nearby, the captured animals-sans the rabbit, for some reason, and the sheep-are inside another pen that has been set up. The force field seems to have been quickly erected. After announcing the court proceedings and registering her right to magistrate, as she did the previous week, she clears her throat.]

THE WATCHFUL	THE CAVIAN	THE BRITTLE	THE FORLORN
				THE ENGINEER

You all know what you must do. You have your evidence, and you must decided who is responsible. Remember-every vote counts. And...just pretend you're alone again, if it helps, I suppose.

[There's not much else to do. There is the option to ask for the concessions they are selling to everyone, though its mostly water and popcorn. Otherwise, you are once again on a time limit. This time, the audience is watching. Their eyes stare hungrily at every action.

The trial for the murder of Atsushi Nakajima, the Rushlight, has begun..]

THE FIRST TRIAL

[The hour is up.

A bell chimes.

Soon enough, the Conductor collects everyone.]

Right, come now. You don't want the rats come and drag you in.

[And indeed, if any of them do try to resist, the rats will swarm them and drag them down to the locked gate.

Soon, the Conductor is standing where the lock is, hands on her hips. Soon enough the Empress' Shadow, the Other Victoria, the daughter of Her Thrice-Renewed Majesty, hobbles in, still dressed in her black, using a cane, her head held high as she stared at the Conductor. If the Strigoi do indeed remember her, perhaps they have informed her of what is happening. The two stare at one another, silent, for a moment.

Then, with a sigh, the Conductor begins to recite words that she has clearly said dozens of times.]

Private citizen. In the name of the Empire and your eternal Empre-

[Beep. The Dowager's thumb is immediately on the fingerprint scanner, and there is a click before the chains dissipate, as if by magic. Then, the fingerprint scanner-a familiar, of all things, of a Strigoi-then hops over to the Dowager, squeaking over to the Outer Terrace. Then, the Dowager herself turned and began to walk off, though not without giving a small, sympathetic nod to the Strangers as she leaves.]

...oh. Well then. Thank you, your Majesty.

[Clearing her throat, the Conductor throws open the gates. It's a small English garden in twilight, with a fountain and bushes and a few animal-like familiars here and there. There is a small station which to make tea and crackers with accompanying crockery near the house, though there are no servants manning it.

In the center of the garden is fifteen podiums-something McBurn would recognize almost immediately-in a very large, wide circle, and a larger, sixteenth chair which the Conductor sits in,. Each podium has a pair of sunglasses chained to them; there's no way to unchain them.

Above them is darkness. On the side of the house facing them, a window curtain is slightly open; the Empress' Shadow is the only other live witness to this aside from the crew.

The conductor presses a button on the chair, and everyone's cuff beeps. There is a clock again, along with a list.]

THE ROSE	THE FORLORN	THE GOLEM	THE DISCORD
				THE HALVED

[She then presses a second button, which seems to do nothing. She then speaks laconically, if not bored.]

This is the trial of Weftlander Proto Man, alias Blues, alias "The Alphabet" . We are in week 2 of our journey; our current stop is Victoria's Chasm. The suspects are as recorded in Little Courtesy Registration No. 36244-H. This is Conductor Lilac recording; I am empowered by the edict of Her Thrice-Renewed Majesty to magister the following proceedings.

[Then, much more lively (if not a little sarcastic).]

Bureaucracy. Isn't it grand?

Now. Let's begin, shall we? You have the information, and you have your suspects. You have a time limit to which you must adhere to, and you must vote before that time ends. You may ask me questions if you wish, but-don't ask me to tell you who did it. Or anything else ridiculous. Do make your questions pertinent to what is happening, please.

[With that, she stands and strolls over to the station to make herself tea. Looks like there's no other choice aside from having tea and crackers; the clock is ticking.


The trial for the murder of Proto Man, the Alphabet, has begun.]

THE FIRST INVESTIGATION

[Friday morning dawns. It's a surprisingly brisk day; the winds are cold outside, and the sky is dark with its lack of sky. Well, a normal sky that one would be used to, at least.

The rats can be heard scurrying to and forth, in the walls. All seems to be as normal as it can be, this morning.]

THE THIRD TRIAL

[After the finale clues are found, the ticking which we totally didn't forget to add to the investigation post in everyone's head stops, and the Elder Steward's voice echoes through the webs.]

Excellent. Now, please, proceed to the ossuary! Do not tarry.

[Just like before, the Ossuary rumbles upwards to accept the remaining Strangers, with bats hassling those who take too long. Just like before, chains drag everyone to their respective coffins, and in the center are souls for sustenance. You might expect the only true difference to be that piles of skulls now replace the coffins where Zelda, Bangladesh, and Jun might have otherwise stood when they were alive. However, one more change has been made - Eric's coffin is now quite a bit fancier and even a little less coffin-looking. For example, it has a nice chair! Apparently there's some favoritism afoot.

Once everyone is in place, the Elder Steward strolls forward to the edge of the circle, hands crossed beneath his robes. The scrolls glow to reveal the evidence and the suspect list as this happens.]

THE OVERBOARD	THE CIRCUIT	THE RUBBER	THE NEON
				THE ENEMY

Now. Let us get started, shall we?

[And with that, the ticking begins anew. Someone killed. It's time to decide who's responsible.

The trial for the murder of Jun Ushiro, The Launcher, has begun.]

THE SECOND PROSCRIPTION
(CW: Coffins, claustrophobia in general, skeleton bones)

Most interesting.

[Suddenly, a bright light from above lights up, same as last week, from the bone chandelier. Once more, the light only seems to shine on one individual, as the Elder Steward appears, looking pleased as punch.]


Excellent, excellent. You have condemned The Noodles to die by quite the majority, so certain you were of her guilt!

[There is a long, long pause. Finally, though, the Elder Steward does something unexpected. First, he throws his hood off to reveal--huh. A rather young-looking and handsome figure. Odd.]

But...

[A slow, fanged smile appears on his face, before he turns to Eric, raising a toast with a glass of something that might be red wine-or something else.]

You were wrong. Congratulations, Fast. You have exceeded my and Our Lady's expectations. You have damned an innocent woman to the cruel death you deserve for your crime, and your fellow shall be forced to watch. For this you shall be rewarded protection for that special person, as promised.

Now.

How does it feel to know what you've done, hm?

THE SECOND TRIAL

[After the final clue is found, the ticking sound in everyone's head abruptly stops.]

Well done, well done. Now, I believe you know where to go from here!

[There is the tell-tale rumble once more, and once more, if the Strangers don't go to the garden, there are dozens of bats more than happy to drag them there.

Despite the very dim light of the candles and the tray of "food" in the center of the Ossuary, it becomes clear- once everyone's been chained up and dragged to their designated place-that there are less coffins present than there were last week. Where Eddie, Akko, and Felicity's graves had been, there are nothing but a carefully balanced pile of skulls in their place. It's...best not to speculate whether any of those skulls happen to belong to the dead of your group.

Once everyone is forcibly settled, the scrolls that everyone possesses light up. Five faces appear alongside the evidence.]

THE FAST	THE ENEMY	THE CIRCUIT	THE APPROACH
				THE NOODLES

Now that we are all settled, I suggest you get to it. You do not have forever.

[As the Elder Steward finishes, the clock is ticking again. It's time to decide who is responsible for this horrible crime.


The trial for the murder of Franciscus Erkens, the Scorching, has begun.]