trustfell | Take Responsibility.

Take Responsibility.

This investigation seems to have been difficult for many; while your time here hasn't been particularly easy on anyone, it's been eight straight weeks of people dying, of losing those you care about - or at least, losing those you had some sense of solidarity with.

There's only about a quarter of your original number left.

Either way, however, there are some things that remain constant, even if your numbers do not - the corridor down below the dorms, the way the door sounds when it unlatches, the gentle outward swing of the door. The darkened stairwell that it leads to. The courtroom.

The podium circle remains in the center of the room, the spots marked out from the dead having increased in number yet again; Aligula, Hibiki, Sayaka, and Alex all have had their podiums altered, draped in black with greyscale portraits set atop them. They'll be keeping an eye on the proceedings today, for better or for worse.

As always, the thirty-sixth podium remains blank.

Once everyone has found their place in the circle, Jericho can be heard over the public-address system; he doesn't seem to have settled any from the investigation.

"Attentive and Submerged are gone - and trust me, for at least one of them, it's better for everyone that way. Maybe you disagree with that, maybe you don't, I don't really give a fuck - and at least for the guilty party, their deaths might be their ticket out of here. So it's probably better for them, anyway. Either way, I'm pretty sure I don't need to tell you what you're here to do.

Once again and as always, it's the innocent versus the guilty. Whichever side wins is mattering less and less every week, isn't it? Even so, you should still put some effort in, just to satisfy the dead - so you know what, do your best!"

Nine Participants remain. However many leave here at the end of the day is up to you.

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[ Well, that's... probably to be expected, but it's also what breaks Elda out of her reverie. She sort of raises her head for the first time this trial and he looks down the barrel of the crossbow with hard, cat-like eyes.

Would she mind dying? Would Kyrie actually kill her, especially if she was innocent?

But instead, she sort of gestures at Kyrie's podium ]

What's there?

A knife. A kitchen knife. A weapon as lethal as any other.

[So yeah, long and close range. She wouldn't go down easily. Would anyone risk she having something else prepared, too? Since she seems to be so crazy prepared?]

So it's not a drawing after all?

[ She wonders this aloud as she looks down the barrel again, her head tilting, as if this were some information she had to process. It was a wild guess on her part. Ah well. ]

The crossbow's a better weapon. You'd never kill me in melee.

...

[Kyrie's grip on the crossbow tightens. Looks like she's trying to sidestep that topic]

I'd go down fighting no matter what. It's not in my nature to concede defeat, even in a match I'd lose.

Clearly. [ Like right now she's looking down a crossbow and Kyrie's arguing with everyone. Elda can see the stage for what it is. Leave everyone else to logic it out, she's in no mood to do that. She's... she's in no mood to do anything. ]

I don't doubt I'd be injured. With that crossbow, you can probably kill me too. It's too bad you missed the timer.

[Her expression clouds for a moment]

I'd say it's safe to say everyone here missed the timer. Frankly, I was betting on someone committing a murder last night.

So was I. [ Elda looks over at Adelina's flawed argument about what Kyrie will be remembered for down there. Anyone who was in the room when Elda was freaking out might remember her last question to the same girl. ]

We were all too late, or perhaps too complacent. If we can believe Jericho, everyone here has lost everything.

...maybe you're correct. It's possible we all have lost everything. Our worlds being gone would be one thing more to lose.

But, you know...there's a chance to gain again. Even if you lost everything, you can continue living on, and find something new. I may have lost everything, but I'm not going to give up.

And for that, I must get out of here. It's rather obvious, isn't it? This exercise is going to be over, now that there was nothing new to be found anywhere, and I doubt it'll end by letting everyone here leave.

Edited 2017-11-04 20:00 (UTC)

[ As long as you're alive, you can find something new...

For Elda, who has wanted to live forever, that rings true. But for Elda, the Grandmother and Mother who has now lost everything... ]

Don't paraphrase by parroting, Kyrie.

[ Inhale, exhale. ]

The only thing left to all of us now is victory. And I'm afraid right now, you're the last hurtle I'm going to accept before we beat the snot out of Jericho and win this.

Then we're going to have to grit our teeth. I'm your last hurdle...and this trial is my last hurdle.

[And Kyrie lost hers, apparently? Despite that, she still holds the crossbow up, steady and prepared to shoot at any moment to anyone who approaches]

In hindsight I should have taken your offer from Monday, about talking with you. I suppose if there was anyone who could have talked me out of this, it was you.

Edited 2017-11-04 20:07 (UTC)

(no subject)

matchbreaker - 2017-11-04 20:11 (UTC) - Expand

[...yeah, Rin knows we're talking about Kyrie over here, but:]

Elda, what do you mean by that?

Kyrie missed the timer. I had discussed with Adelina the semantics of his wording before now, but... it doesn't matter. Assuming Jericho wasn't bluffing, all of our worlds are lost.

[ She though Rin of all people knew that, based on their hug in the library. ]

...Yes. If it wasn't a lie to get someone to act, then...

[There's not much change in expression from her, but she actually seems relieved.]

If that's all, then it's nothing. Even if it wasn't a bluff [and from the way she talks, it sounds like she's banking on it], he said they were on the brink of cataclysm. Nothing is lost yet. I won't have that.

(no subject)

matchbreaker - 2017-11-04 20:16 (UTC) - Expand

(no subject)

bloodisthicker - 2017-11-04 20:18 (UTC) - Expand

(no subject)

evilfrenzy - 2017-11-04 20:24 (UTC) - Expand

He's full of crap.

[ no one asked for your biased opinion, yuri ]

Then why set the trap in the first place, if you thought someone else would kill someone?

So was the trap a 'just in case', then? If someone hadn't committed the murder you expected to happen, you'd hope someone would've walked into yours.

...If we see you use it on her, we’ll have no choice but to vote for you. Put it down, Kyrie.

You talk as if your votes on me hinges on me not using this crossbow.

[She's well aware a majority here would vote for her, anyway]

[She takes a breath in.]

Maybe so. If that is the case, there is no point in hurting anyone else, is there? You can either end this as someone who made a sacrifice because she thought she was doing what was best for her world, or you can be remembered for this.

Put the crossbow down.

Don't be so naive. I know very well I'll be remembered as the woman who killed Sayaka-chan and Alex-san. Nothing will change that. Everyone, even those who are dead, will associate that with me.

[Which isn't really a pleasant fact, but yeah, that's what happens in times like these]

If that’s what you believe... Then don’t make it worse then it already is. Don’t add to the blood that has been shed.

[She takes a step towards her, but with her hands raised to show she means no harm.]

I think, given the motive, everyone at least understands your intentions. I know that I do.

As you can see, it's not like I'm going to kill all of you. I'm rather sure if I did that, I'd die anyway. That's not going to be an option.

[And as long as she isn't attacked, she's not going to shoot anyone, yeah]

[ ... ]

Still, there's no point in adding to the count - it won't do you any good. All it'd do is give more for Jericho to laugh over like the sick bastard he is.

I guess it depends on how much of a sore loser I am.

[...]

But you're correct. I won't kill you all. [As if to give strength to her remark, she tosses the intact grenade into the pit. A preparation for when it's time for her to go down into the pit?

Despite what she said about not killing them, Kyrie doesn't seem any more worried about what's going on, though]

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