( TRIAL - WEEK 5 )

[abhoth]

At exactly 11:30 am, all residents who are still asleep will be jolted awake by a sharp, burning pain that spreads across their whole body. A simple look will reveal no visible injuries, oddly enough, and the pain will fade away as soon as they're properly awake. Those early birds who are already up and about will feel nothing — except maybe a strange, mysterious sense of relief as they go on about their business. Lucky them. Moments later, an announcement will come through the static-filled PA system: "This is Craftly speaking. My apologies for the rude awakening, children. As the Dining Hall is still under reparations — today's trial will take place by the pool. Please do try to be there before noon. My staff members have simply too many duties to tend to, to be escorting each and every one of you out of your quarters. Good day." And true to his words, anyone who doesn't make their way to the Outdoor Dining Area before noon will be dragged kicking and screaming regardless of where they've sequestered themselves. Sucks to be you, huh? Upon arriving there, however, residents will be given the menu, one copy of the rulebook, one pencil, one notepad, and a cheque folder. Due the Kitchen and Dining Hall getting wrecked, lunch and dinner will mostly consist of grilled and barbecued menu items. Hamburgers, hotdogs, salads, and items that require little preparation — all the residents have to do is ask in order to receive. Similarly, all beverages will be retrieved from a hundred quart cooler that has been placed by the side of the pool. Not as fancy as usual, but at least the pool is clean now. Some inflatable pool toys lazily swim in the water, along with pool noodles. A single towel that still has sludge on it floats among the accessories in the pool. Looks like no one bothered to really clean it up from Friday. Every now and then, the waters will vibrate to the sound of buzz saws and assorted power tools. Looks like the Disposal Room, Dining Hall and Kitchen are under reparations still. A tent has been placed over the area to shield the residents from the sun, and to make up from the lack of transparencies everyone will receive a small booklet containing each resident's profile. They look a little bit like shitty PowerPoint presentation handouts, but maybe it's part of the charm. The profiles of the deceased are included, as always. A second tent has been set up in the parking lot, complete with an air conditioning on the inside. Its use will become rapidly apparent once the victims corpses have been wheeled in. Anyone who wishes to step into this area will be asked to wash their hands, and will be given a pair of latex-free gloves and a hairnet by a staff members who is stationed nearby. Residents are required to dispose of both items before returning to their table; a trash bin is available outside of the tent for this purpose. Evidence found during the investigation, on the other hand, will be displayed in a table by the pool shed. Any items found by the residents on Friday will be displayed here for further examination. Finally — one of the grandfather clocks has been kidnapped from its respective floor to show the current hour. Please do remember you have until 9:00 PM to figure out whodunit and cast your vote. And if anyone tries to leave the area before the trial is over? They'll discover an invisible wall blocking their path. ( victims ) Characters will be given nine (9) hours to discuss everything related to the investigation to hopefully solve the mystery behind this week's murder. No one will be allowed to leave the Pool/Outdoor Dining Area (the pool shed will also be locked), and all characters must cast their vote before 9PM EST. You may do so on this week's voting page. If you have any questions or doubts, shoot us a PM or a PP over at yuggoth. ( quick navigation ) voting | profiles | menu | locations | ic rulebook

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BODIES

[abhoth]

[As the trial officially begins at 12:00 PM, the motel staff will wheel in all five corpses on separate gurneys — or, in a Nagasone's case, a wheelbarrow with the pieces of his corpse lumped together in one big pile. Craftly, wearing a Kiss the Cook apron while standing near the grill, cleans his throat and solemnly utters:]

A moment of silence, children.

[And then he begins to play the fucking kazoo.

This horrible musical experience will last as long as it takes for the staff members to wheel the corpses to the air conditioned tent. Once that's done, however, Craftly will retreat to his own table and residents will be free to inspect the bodies as much as they want.

Please use this toplevel for reexamining the bodies.]

EVIDENCE

[abhoth]

[As with all weeks, all physical evidence found during the investigation will be displayed in today's trial. Residents are encouraged to examine evidence or combine it in any way they wish. For today's trial, the evidence table contains the following items:

ROOM 102: Bloodied scalpel, Tsurugi's knife
SECOND FLOOR OUTDOOR HALLWAY: Vomit covered scalpel, two strands of dark hair, safety knives, request card
LOBBY: First Aid Kit, bandaged knife
LOUNGE: Cup, note
STORAGE ROOM: Strand of hair, bloodied knife
GAME ROOM: Strand of hair
LAUNDRY ROOM: Domino mask
PARKING LOT: Chainsaw
BOTANICAL GARDENS: Meat cleaver
LIBRARY: Broken glass, x2 shot glasses

Please use this top level for reexamining evidence.]

CRAFTLY

[abhoth]

[Before the trial properly begins, Craftly has a small announcement to make.]

For today's trial, my employers have granted me permission to disclose the number of killers from the onset. [A beat, as he deadeyes at the horizon and takes a shot of something decidedly alcoholic.] ... Not that it matters at this stage, seeing as how their identities have spread like wildfire, but I am still bound by my duties as Innkeeper. There are five murderers. Two of them are among the deceased. Three are not.

That is all.

[And there he goes to his own table, where he'll be overseeing the "trial."]

PAY ATTENTION TO KAITO

[nowyouseeit]

OI, EVERYONE! PAY ATTENTION TO ME AGAIN!

[that is followed by the loud rapping of, uh. . . Kaito banging Akira's skeleton arm against the edge of a chair? Kaito please]

[once that's done, though, he pulls a folded note out of his pocket and slides it across the table. anyone can read it!]

I'm fairly certain everyone here knows this truth by now. Most of you probably only learned of it this week. There are a few of us who have known for a little bit longer than that, dating all the way back to the Wednesday of our fourth week here.

[his gaze flickers to Yukina and Jay, then back to the crowd]

Yukina, Jay 'n I are the Hunters who left those notes on the bulletin board. We also know who the final Facilitators-- Prophets-- are. And for those of you who heard that we agreed to work with the Facilitators to ensure this ritual only had three survivors so we could revive the dead. . . [he closes his eyes and nods] That's correct, too.

[when he opens them again, he tilts his chin up, that same determination people have observed in trial thus far evident on his features]

Using that information, I'm sure everyone thinks that all of us are guilty this week and plan on casting your votes for at least one of us. That's fine. Our determination to see our plan through in order to save every last soul in this place runs deep. You can hate us if you want, or be angry at us-- that's fine. S'not like we didn't expect that, when we decided to walk the path we're walking now. Those of you who have gotten angry at us for taking away your choices. . . you're not wrong. You have every right to be mad.

But--

[his mouth curves into a tired smile]

Even if all of you are against us, even if you would rather abandon those who had died in order to avoid seeing those you care about harmed even temporarily, even if your values are different than ours. . . we aren't going to give up. We know what the heck we're fighting for now. And even if every last one of us wishes the means were different, we still refuse to back down. That's what it means to have conviction, right?

Everyone here is fighting for something. Some of those goals are at odds with each other. That's the nature of life, isn't it? That's the nature of being alive. That's what the Hunters are trying to preserve right here, right now: everyone's right to be alive, to hate and be hated, to be angry and spiteful and bitter and upset. Because no matter how shitty those emotions might be, the fact that we feel them is what proves to us that we're living.

Those of you who agree with our desired end, who also want to rescue the dead and leave this place with a 100% survival rate. . . remember that the Hunters don't have to be the last three left standing. As long as there's at least one person out of the three who is willing to take that deal, to bring back everyone who has been lost, then the best ending to this ritual can be achieved.

All of that said. . .

[tilts his head to the side to gesture to where the dead bodies are kept]

If you really think the Hunters and the Prophets are so guilty this week, then I'll throw down, right here and now: prove it to us.

Find the truth behind everything. Every victim, every murder. Leave no stone overturned, no piece of evidence untouched. Unravel the mysteries before you; don't base your conclusions just on what you heard through the grapevine.

And if, by the end of trial, you're not satisfied with the truths you've found. . . then spare Yukina, Jay, the final Prophet. Execute me.

Hold me responsible for the actions of my allies. I'll gladly bear that weight for them.

[nowyouseeit]

[THROWS A BALLED UP NAPKIN AT HIM]

[disinterested]

[Girge, who is so done with everything and has retreated to his safe (albeit unhealthy) mindset, has just this to say:]

Actually, we started collaborating last week. Get your facts right.

[ninjay]

Last Friday after in the investigation, if you want to be exact.

[ you're going to make people think he was involved with blowing up the kitchen. shut up. ]

[disinterested]

Also, whoever takes the deal doesn't take Craftly's place. That's another matter entirely.

[if you're going to make a dramatic speech, Andersen, stop getting things wrong??]

[nowyouseeit]

Stop stealing my thunder, you asshole.

[another napkin]

[thawedheart]

...although, to be fair... this was the first week we took any sort of collaborative action.

Last week you acted without us knowing what you were doing.

[thawedheart]

Wh-

[Execute me. Well, Yukina can't deny that she'd rather see Kaito dead than see him take the deal, but...]

Kaito-san...!

[nowyouseeit]

[jerks a thumb at Yukina and Jay]

What they said. Last week's murders weren't us.

[disinterested]

[Nope, someone else will have to do that.]

Oh, and the Prophets made far less use of the mirrors and free weaponry than you think. Another negative ten points from your speech.

[ninjay]

[ yeah, he doesn't have a question this time but he does have to say something to him. ]

Sorry.

[g101]

Sit down and eat your mashed potatoes, Splashy. I'm not voting for you.

[nowyouseeit]

[waves a hand at her as he hops off the table]

S'fine, s'fine! I've got it.

[nowyouseeit]

I'd hope not. I'd hate for the people here to make assumptions based on what someone who likes to gossip told them.

[pointed look]