FIRST TRIAL

[whimsicalism]

FIRST TRIAL

THE CONTAINMENT CENTER

After all the evidence is collected, the students themselves are as well. The Little Brother units gather them up in orderly fashion, encouraging the line to proceed two-by-two up the hallway beyond the music room and into the newly opened area. When grouped up together, the class just barely fits into the glass-paneled section of the decontamination chamber. It's hard not to wonder if the entire student body was never meant to make it this far in the first place. A short burst of pressurized air later and the panels lift - and, for the first time, the door to the containment facility opens before you. Behind it, an elevator beckons the class in. A Little Brother unit reaches inside, pushes a button, and the lift's real, see-through door closes before the lift begins to lower.

As the elevator descends, the car passes floor after floor of cellblocks. Start florescent lighting casts stark highlights onto each of them, and in those closest to the elevator car, shape after shape is visible. A wolf the size of an elephant with blood-tinged saliva dripping from it's massive fangs. A clown holding 20 multicolored balloons in one hand, a popped and shredded 21st hanging from the other out to you with a gap-toothed grin. A pit of writhing snakes with no beginning and no end. The feeling is comparable to the hungry, lingering gaze from outside the academy's fence. Looking out at the many cells, it's as if there's no barrier between them and the assembled students at all.

The car's moving too fast to see all of them clearly, but careful attention reveals one final detail: Some of them are completely empty. The other noticeable thing is the noise. Snarls, roars, sly chuckles, hissing, and even someone humming a haunting lullaby... they all mix together into a cacophony as you near the final destination.

When the elevator comes to a complete stop, the group is let out into a black-floored room illuminated by the same stark florescent lighting. Luckily, as soon as you go through the doorway the noise suddenly stops. The steep walls extend some two or three stories above without interruption, throwing stern, exaggerating angles reminiscent of brutalism. 21 stone podiums stand in a densely illuminated circle in the center of the room. Each one bears a name of one of the students in the class.

The Prefect is already waiting for everyone, sitting at a long desk backed by a projector screen bearing the same ram insignia from the post-spelling bee dance. Her hands are folded in front of her, and she barely moves.

"Looks like somebody attempted the alternative capstone. A week ago, I never would have believed it... but I know better now. Those who fall behind... just weaken the herd.

Luz, The Owlette, is dead. What a stupid title... I really hated it." The Prefect's expression staggers for a moment, then settles again. "Her murderer's still here, and the only way to prove that you deserve another chance in this school is to find them. Get the exam started."

There's a flicker on the screen behind her as the Principal speaks. "You heard Miss Kiryuu. We're beginning the exam, don't just stand around staring at each other!"

Investigation | Podium Layout | Locations | IC Profiles | IC Rules | Evidence | NPC Questions

OOC NOTES

While played out OOCly on Saturdays, trials ICLY take place the afternoon after investigations are concluded. This means that characters will have only a brief period of rest to gather their thoughts before being brought down. While the podium layout graphic shows room numbers, the real stone does bear characters' names.

The victim's body will not be available for reexamination during the trial but other pieces of evidence small enough to carry/move with you can be brought down into the trial. If you need mod input or NPC input in the middle of a thread please put 'MODS' in the header so we can see. Trials play out until the killer is caught or until around 8pm Eastern, at which point we'll try to wrap up. Good luck!

Comments

[canismajorcontrolfreak]

[...oh my dog-]]]

I got second place in the last smelling competition in Camden.

I definitely can.

[If only he thought of this sooner...]

[cellpreservation]

It's worth a try, anyway.

SMELL CHECK

[canismajorcontrolfreak]

You're absolutely correct.

[Throat clearing to get everyone's attention.]

Alright everyone, we're gonna do a smell check! If everyone could get in a horizontal line that would be very helpful, but I can work with the circle formation as it is.

[Regardless, Dylan will be going through everyone present, getting a good sniff of everyone. No exceptions.]

[keyringwitness]

[Yasu does not have any unusually clean smell and doesn't smell like blood or dirt.]

[canismajorcontrolfreak]

Clear.

[Not that he expected anything from the nine-year-old.]

[shinedsobright]

[As said before, he smells like the lab!]

[canismajorcontrolfreak]

Clear.

[Maybe weird but not too concerning.]

Re: SMELL CHECK

[lets_dewey_it]

_{[Well, his hands smell less like dirt and more like the plant pots themselves from handling them during investigation. Otherwise, no dirt, blood, or soap.]}

[canismajorcontrolfreak]

Clear.

[Also never suspected the duck, so no surprises so far.]

[violence_ensues]

[Smells like Adorabat took a shower, but without soap, this morning. She is also free of the stench of blood. Hope you don't sneeze, there's the tiniest whiff of cat there, too.]

[canismajorcontrolfreak]

Cl-ah CHOO!

[why]

Sorry, clear.

[Moving on before he can suffer more.]

[spychic]

[Anya smells like peanuts, faintly, but mostly just like normal.]

[canismajorcontrolfreak]

Clear.

[He'll be real, if the six year old did the first murder, there would be a trial one riot, and we all know it.]

Re: SMELL CHECK

[cellpreservation]

[He doesn't smell dirty but whoops, secret's out, it doesn't smell like this boy's used soap or anything of the sort all morning.]

[temmapathy]

[Emma smells faintly like soap.]

I didn't hear the announcement this morning, so I took some time to shower before leaving my room...

[copycut]

[ Kuro bathes in the evening rather than the morning, so she smells... probably mostly like linen at this point. Either way, she doesn't smell strongly of blood or dirt, or even like she would have taken a shower in between the time of Luz's death and this trial. ]

[britbrat]

[ Valmont smells like a kid who's a little more fastidious about hygiene than most. Normal smell, basically. ]

Don't sniff me again, mongrel.

[panglici]

[Carrie just smells like a 12-year-old who had a stressful morning involving running from place to place and then stepping in blood... and showered before bed last night. Nothing out of the ordinary under the circumstances.]

[canreallymove]

[Sonic does smell a tiny bit like dirt with his gloves on, but not enough to warrant any red flags for the obvious reasons. Aka he was the one who dug out the evidence in the kitchen, brought the pot, etc.

He otherwise smells like someone who takes normal not-the-murderer showers. In other words, he passes the smell test.]

[curdle]

[ Thomasin smells like someone who washes her hands and face regularly but thinks that bathing leaves you open to harmful miasma! So, not great. Since she's in the school uniform, her dress's baked-in scent isn't as much of a factor, but it still clings to her a bit: mostly it's the smell of wood smoke. ]

[holyironmade]

[Jeanne has voluminous hair with an aura of white roses. Deep within her hair, there is a third of a scent of blood. Dylan, being intimately familiar with modern household cleaning products unlike Carrie, will have a frame of reference to explain this effect: It is as if it was done with an odor eliminator. Yet there are clearly no chemicals within the past day. That applies to any other artificial products as well. It would seem to comply with the assumption that Jeanne got out of bed without taking any kind of shower.]

[noblesnow]

[Reika offers him her hand to sniff, like he's an unfamiliar dog she's meeting. It smells freshly washed, which is normal for her.]

[normalnotroyal]

[Rosalinda, much like Valmont, smells very "I am meticulous about my personal hygiene" clean. She showers at night, though, so it's not freshly clean. No blood or dirt, though!]

NOW IN THE RIGHT PLACE

[romancing]

[ I mean, she's holding a turtle and there's a bird on her shoulder. She smells like...animals... ]

Hey, do you like being scratched behind the ear? Or would you think that's rude, 'cause you can talk to us like a person?

[ is he or is he not susceptible to ear scritches, very important question from the animal lady ]

[bellabellabella]

[Well Edward isn't.... quite sure how this will go, but he lines up anyway. It's not like Dylan has not already smelled him. He smells very odd compared to the other humans around here but nothing unusual about it for him.]