The clock strikes twelve. The gong of the grandfather clock in the foyer tolls out the time in slightly unnecessarily obnoxious loud noises. The ambiance of this old mansion demands respect, care, awe --
Okay, no, wait, why are you even in this stupid dusty house?
No reasons are forthcoming, because everyone knows that people just end up in places like this sometimes. That's just how the narrative device works. The hows and the whys don't matter -- all that matters is that you're all here, so you'd better get cracking and start exploring, because it's not like you can leave yet.
Or ever, maybe.
 Good day, sirs and madams. Might I interest you in a nice glass of blood...y mary?
|
PHASE I [ 02 15 ] All you see is white. The crash of thunder hits your ears next, punctuated by the piercing pitch of white noise in the background. After a few blinks, your vision comes back to you. Oh good, glad that you’ve joined us in the land of the living. Unlike the nondescript corpse at your feet – it looks like… a butler? Oh dear. You’ve already killed Murder Suspect Number One in most situations. How terribly ironic.
After all, who could’ve killed him but you? You might not remember, but there is definitely a murder weapon in your hand. It’s probably a knife or a poisoned glass of wine or-
Wait, is that a toaster? A full on toaster? Or maybe it’s a taser. Maybe you bludgeoned this poor guy with an entire encyclopedia. Either way, it looks like your murder weapon is a little unconventional, whether it’s a stranger’s pair of underwear or a hair curler. Are you really supposed to believe you committed a murder with these? (Yes.)
That said in the next second the double doors will be opening up. It’s pretty clear you’re not alone. Think quick!
PHASE II [ 0600 ] Exploring more around the compound, you’ll find plenty of those tall, oil portraits of people hung around the walls. When you start walking, they’re all strangers. However by the time that you feel like you’re wandering around for an hour, two hours, they might start looking a little bit more… familiar? Mom? Is that you?
You don’t have time to think about that, though. You were clearly framed! You don't’ have a motive for killing some random NPC –
“Or do you?” a portrait will ask.
Oh. Holy shit. Well it’d just be rude to leave, right? Whether you stick around for conversation or not, you’ll find that was just the beginning. The portraits are going to start grilling you. Welcome to CERES Central’s Roast of You. What was your motive? Don’t you know you should respect the servants? How would you feel if you were caught like that? Careful turning your back on them though, because if you ignore them for too long, the subjects in the portraits may just reach out and snatch you to join them in their portrait world.
At that point, the only way to get out is to swap places with some other poor, unsuspecting soul wandering around.
PHASE III [ 1045 ] You know what makes me hungry? Murder.
What’s the point of making a mansion this big anyway? Who’s even here? Either way, whether you’re looking for the kitchen to make a fine post-homicide sandwich or just trying to escape, you’ll eventually make it to a stairwell. The most finicky stairwell ever. Is that a trail of bloody footprints leading up the steps? What? No. Stop it, just climb.
Or well – don’t climb too quickly now. The staircases apparently have a mind of their own, swapping from one doorway to another. You definitely haven’t seen this before. It would seem that these stairs might even be interested in keeping you in a circle forever, no concern for whether or not you’re hungry or, god forbid, need to use the restroom.
However the portraits in the stairwell will provide a little tip: “The stairs are gossips, you know. Why don’t you tell us a little something about yourself? Make it good!”
Weirdly enough, sound advice – that is, if you’re interested in shouting out your most embarrassing secrets into the void so a mansion can keep talking shit about you. Oh well. Your alternative is just being a stair golem. There are worse fates.
PHASE IV [ 1430 ] This hall is oddly quiet.
Well, until you hear it – the soft sniffles coming from down the hall, the broken sobs. It sounds like someone’s crying. For one reason or another, your footsteps take you forward – there’s really no point in going back now after all, right? Yet as you continue to walk… walk… walk… the crying becomes louder and louder. More desperate, more despaired. In time, it’s clear that this person is wailing, screaming, “How could this happen?!”
Within the span of a breath, all the lights in the hallway go out, leaving you in pitch black.
It occurs to you then that you hear a second set of steps. When did you stop walking? A cold chill runs down your spine and you find yourself running then, despite the fact that it feels like this pitch black hallway goes on forever. The other footsteps pick up, remind you that you’re not alone. No, certainly not.
Best hope that you find some assistance soon – otherwise it looks like the Butler Association is going to ignite some righteous vigilante justice on your ass.
BONUS [ why o'clock ] You’re in the grand ballroom now, ready to present your case. Armed with a cob pipe (don’t smoke inside, it’s rude), a detective hat, and a single spotlight aimed right at you, you now have to explain how you came to the conclusion about the True Killer that is Obviously Not You. Rather, it’ll just be the character of whoever tags into this prompt – yes, you are suddenly so very sure that they’re the ones who are the ultimate mastermind of this entire game and… you’re just going to have to bullshit the reason why even if you know virtually nothing about them. It’s a dog eat dog world out there, you know?
Sorry about that.
Should you actually provide enough of a compelling case or they take pity on you, having a villainous breakdown for the sake of the plot, you’ll be awarded with a coupon that’ll give you three free scoops at your local ice cream parlor! (Note: you must buy the first two scoops in order to qualify.) Of course, if you’re not able to nail them down as the killer, you are obviously the killer yourself (citation needed).
From there, you’ll be dragged off to face your punishment: for six grueling hours you will be tickled mercilessly.
[ Remember to apply proper warnings on threads with sensitive or inappropriate material and do let a mod know if your thread careens off into maiming or canoodling so we can lock the log. ] |
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Trucy Wright | Ace Attorney
[ This is a predicament that Trucy Wright never expected to be in. Everything's happened so fast; literally she'd been in one place, and now she's... she's here. Wherever here is, holding onto a single Ace of Spades card that's got, ironically, a single drop of blood on it. There's blood spatter all over the place and that guy on the ground sure is dead, a slashed throat it would appear. It takes her a few moments at first to really take in her surroundings and the fact that she's holding onto... a murder weapon? A card. She killed someone with a card.
There's no way. She finally makes a rather loud startled noise and drops the card, backing away from the lifeless figure on the ground. She can hear the doors opening with a creak, and she can feel herself starting to panic. She didn't do this. They defend people like this all the time at home, but this isn't home and she's got no idea what's going on. ]
This isn't what it looks like!
[ Phase IV. ]
[ This is way too odd for even her, and that's saying a lot. The talking portraits were kind of cool, but now... now it's just silence. Or rather, it was; someone's crying somewhere and she's got the urge to go and see if they're alright. She freezes at the screaming, though, and then she finds herself in the dark. It takes a lot to scare Trucy, but this is definitely doing the trick.
She's got goosebumps, because she can hear footsteps. She's got no idea where she's going, but she's certainly not sticking around to find out. So off down the hallway she runs. Someone may want to give the magician a hand. ]
[ Bonus. ]
[ This day just keeps getting better and better. Trucy stares at the detective; she's told her story over and over, how she's got no idea what the heck is even going on, but he just keeps finding flaw after flaw in her story. She's nervous, but she refuses to even give a single twitch; she's on her own this time and now she's going to have to take what she's learned from her dad and Apollo and use it to the best of her abilities. ]
Objection! [ Trucy takes the time to point a finger dramatically at the detective in question. ] There's evidence to back up my claims, and I'll prove it right now!
[ She's bluffing probably. That's the best thing she's learned from daddy and Polly. ]
Bonus
...And she's pointing a finger at him. It probably doesn't help that when he was teleported here, it was in a certain suit from a past case which Trucy might have been shown pictures of at some point in the past. In fact, the game may have had some subtle clues pointing towards a certain tiger as the culprit.]
Objection! [It almost breaks his heart to have that finger pointed at him. But Phoenix points right back.] This - this isn't right! And there's no way you could have evidence like that!
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That's not happening, though. Everything is adding up, at least in her mind -- and he's wearing that really dumb, ridiculous outfit. Why is he wearing that? There'd been evidence... but he wouldn't do something like that, and neither would she.
She's still pointing at him, but there's really not a lot of fight in it. ]
Hold it, daddy! First off, why are you wearing that outfit? Secondly, I do have evidence! And it's the murder weapon itself! I know you, and I know you well. You didn't do this, and neither did I! It's not like either one of us to go and kill someone!
[ Finally, she drops her pointed finger and slides the murder weapon -- the Ace of Spades card -- forward. ]
Has this been examined for fingerprints? Are we sure this is even really the murder weapon here? It's got one drop of blood on it. Shouldn't at least one edge have blood on it, too?
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His face looks strained as he faces his daughter. He absolutely refuses to believe that it's Trucy, but there's no other suspects. Of course, this could always be some weird ViViD game. But he hasn't been able to tell for sure. What if this is real? What if the stakes are real?]
Hold on, Trucy! One question at a time! If you go at the speed of a motorboat, no judge will be able to keep up with your findings! Especially not the ones we deal with. [Is this really the time to try to teach her...]
For your first question? ...I honestly don't know! We're in a very weird place right now, and sometimes it does weird things like putting us into strange outfits. I didn't choose this! [I hope I don't have the paper badge, too...]
And... well, those are some pretty good points, Trucy! I don't have my fingerprint kit with me, and I didn't see anyone around with one. Just... an alarming amount of butlers and talking paintings...
You may be onto something!
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She shifts a little, her frown deepening. She's usually good at smiling through anything, but she can't make herself just smile while she's being accused of something as heinous as murder. ]
I know, I know, but I can't help it, daddy! [ She heaves a sigh and folds her arms over her chest, shifting yet again. ]
But... but how? I don't understand why any of this is happening. I was kind of assuming you were dressed up to be in costume or something... [ Okay, her prank theory obviously is blown out the window for sure now. Her hands clasp together for a moment or two, before she looks down at them. They're gloved as per usual, but there's no blood on them, they're still the same crisp white color they've always been. ]
But no one else has bothered to do it. It shouldn't be up to you or me, if these people are really in charge of investigating they should be doing their jobs! So there's no proof at all that I did it! Or that you did it, for that fact!
Even still, if it were the true murder weapon, there'd be more blood than just a single drop. And I'd think such an injury like a cut... throat [ She shudders at the very reminder of how she'd found the body, thank you very much. ] would have left blood on my gloves, too. But there's nothing. There's no real proof, no real evidence, and no real witnesses.
...
You... believe me, don't you, daddy?
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But this is the truth, the reality of the situation. Phoenix stares her down firmly, but at the last moment, his expression softens, and he smiles warmly.]
...Of course I do, Trucy. I'll always believe you. You're the most important client I have! [One I'll be defending for my entire life.]
I know a lot of things might be scary and confusing at first... especially if all of this is new to you. [He can't tell if she remembers her previous time in the city or not. But that's less important right now so he glosses past that quickly.] But I'm here, Trucy, no matter what ridiculous outfit I'm stuck in, and we'll find our way to the truth together.
[He takes some hesitant steps closer.]
Now, it sounds like you're been picking up a lot in terms of logical deductions! You've guessed a lot about this card, and a lot about this case. ...But it's still not enough to add everything together. If this isn't the murder weapon... then how did the blood get on the card in the first place? And what was the real murder weapon...
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Phase I | S'uuuuuuuuuuup.
Had she not lacked the foresight then, perhaps an innocent child would have not died at the hands of her foes, against Rip van Winkle.
It is here, among the crowd of onlookers, a voice pipes up from the audience. )
It's practically impossible, actually.
sUP MOM
But she's glad to see her... unfortunately, these are once again hideous circumstances. ]
I didn't do it. I wouldn't do something like... like this! [ She's gesturing massively at the deceased on the ground, before she looks off to the side. ]
You believe me, don't you, Sir Integra...?
a;asdfhdsdsjfhnerjdhf Hello daughter....
The corners of her lips twinge into something that could just about be considered as a smile. What was that? A smirk? A trick of the light? Whatever it was, she seems fairly assured in her proclamation: )
Of course I do, Trucy.
hklsdfjweroiusdjflkjwer
Th-thank you... you have no idea how much that means to me! I... where are we? Did you just get here as well?
[ She's assuming, of course. She inches further away from the corpse on the ground, shuddering. ]
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No. Actually, I've been here for some many months now. This place is 'Cerealia', they call it. I'm certain I don't have to inform you of the severity regarding your circumstances.
( As always, not!mom has to be so damn technical. )
However, you'll find there are many from your world have long arrived-- including of which, your father.
( Who, unfortunately, does not remember her at all. )
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Phase I
[ Well.. this was quite the predicament. She'd been trying to get a little exploring in of the place around them, trying to figure out the ins and outs of this building and all that it held. And.. knowing Re-L, probably hoping that she'd stumble on a study that had some interesting philosophy volumes that she hasn't read as of yet so that she could do a little light reading. They were already stuck - why end up utterly miserable about it just yet?
The caveat of "just yet" exists because, well, she's also incredibly able to be impatient when she wants to be.
She hadn't expected to stumble on Trucy and a body, though, and she stands in the doorway, for a moment, examining the situation in front of her. Then, dryly: ]
You do realize that's the way to convince people that this is exactly what it looks like, don't you?
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I... I know, but it's true. I just got here. I don't know... I don't even know him. [ Him being the deceased, of course. The magician frowns and looks away pointedly... for all she knows, this lady is a cop, here to arrest her and charge her with a murder she didn't commit. Or maybe she's just as clueless as she is. It's hard to tell. ]
I don't know how this happened, Miss. What I can tell you, is that I didn't do it. He was already dead when I got here... [ ...She thinks. But none of this is making any kind of sense -- maybe she did do it, maybe she'd blacked out or blocked the memory. She'll push those thoughts aside for now. ]
...Did... did you just arrive, too, Miss?
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[ Fortunately Re-L isn't really all that interested in incriminating Trucy, if she's honest. Normally she'd be deployed to these kinds of cases to find who did it and make sure that they were properly punished for the murder of a fellow citizen, but - this place was not Romdeau, and considering the state of this house? There is nothing around that convinces her that this place is entirely what it presents itself to be. She scuffs a finger along the nearest book shelf, face scrunching to show her disgust at the amount of dust she finds on the shelf - ]
These butlers clearly haven't been doing their jobs all that well. [ - Strike one for why there were butlers here, particularly dead ones. The dust gets wiped off on to the nearest cloth surface that isn't her clothing, which she's trying to keep away from every dusty surface considering she's in her typical uniform of black. ] Anyway, I'm no longer in the position of an inspector so it isn't me you have to prove your innocence to. Who that person would be in this dusty wreck isn't really apparent, either, at this point.
- Either way, something isn't right about this place. [ Subconsciously, pale fingers reach to make sure that the strap on the rifle strapped to her thigh is loose, so that she could pull it out at a moment's notice, if need be - ]
I did. And in much the same situation. Except someone ruined a perfectly good volume of Voltaire to get rid of the old butler.
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[ Ideas are forming in that head of hers; they're not very good ones, of course. Perhaps these butlers are all assassins, trying to off one another but pinning it on newcomers. Or maybe this is a prank to welcome them to their new 'home'.
And Re-L is right, boy is it ever dirty. ]
Inspector-- oh, neat! I had a feeling you had something to do with law enforcement, everything about you practically screams it. I've got somewhat of a background in law myself! My daddy's a defense attorney, and I'm also the assistant to another attorney.
[ Oh, if only they were here. She sighs softly, thinking about her dad and Apollo. They'd know what to do... ]
...Wow, they're not very creative, are they? Still, I don't understand the motive here. And something tells me we're not the only newcomers that have had to deal with this.
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That would seem to the the case from what I've seen so far.. [ Not that it wasn't something she was used to, anymore. After all, this was essentially what Romdeau had been like the last time she was inside of the dome - though the killers had been made of metal and a little harder to take down than their flesh and blood counter parts. ]
Oh? I haven't heard that before. [ And that wasn't sarcastic - not from a girl who's probably only ever heard accolades to do with her connections in life. 'His excellency's granddaughter' was her most hated title, so to be tied to anything other than Donov Mayer was something new to her. New - but certainly not unwelcome. She does seem mildly amused at the connection between her father and 'background in law' - ]
What, you've learned what you need to in order to get out of certain situations? [ Oh, Re-L - ]
No, they aren't. But considering all that seems to eb going on in this place there might not be much to do other than to try and frame people and see how they react..
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BONUS bc how could I pick anything else 1/2
You're back! You're okay!
[Phoenix is gonna be thrilled! Man, this is great!!]
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[she's accusing her of murder?!]
--Hey! Wait! I didn't do it!
[Ohhh, she can do this, she's watched Nick in court. She can bluff. She can make things up.]
[She air-slams her hands on an air-desk, making the "BAM" sound effect, and then thrusts her own finger in the air. This is the best Phoenix impression ever]
OBJECTION!!
Whatever your evidence is, I have counter evidence I totally didn't make up!! Let's cross examine the parrot!
[nailed it]
i'M DYING LMAO
Whoa, Maya-- wow you're young--!
[ oh look. she's pointing back at her. The magician squeaks and quickly points back in poor Maya's direction, wiggling the finger in question at the other female. ]
OBJECTION!!
Why would we cross examine the parrot when we need to defend the orca?!
[ bam
how did they get to this point ]
;D
Um, obviously! I'm not an old fart like Nick, I'm young and beautiful!
[but anyway, onto more pressing matters.]
[Maya mimes sweating grossly, because that's a thing that Phoenix does, (also, why defending an orca??? Well, that does seem like something Nick would do) and then hits some air papers.]
That's where you're wrong, Prosecutor Wright. What we have to do now.....
[PAUSES FOR EFFECT]
Is clean the toilet!
[and back to the pointing. If only there were cornered music playing in the background]
TAKE THAT!!
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[ The only thing she knows is that this is definitely not the Maya she left behind at Ruby City. She doesn't have a whole lot of time to think on that, though, because she's having to focus on not bursting out into laughter at Maya's spot on performance.
...Prosecutor Wright is kind of catchy. Except cleaning the toilets is not. Her eyes widen, and she screeches indignantly. ]
B-but we can't clean the toilet! That's too much! It's too powerful! And that's Apollo's job, not ours! Why, we'd be stealing his livelihood!
[ She folds her arms over her chest, composing herself. Toilet duty will always be Apollo's. ]
HOLD IT!
But how can we clean a toilet... that doesn't exist! The defense clearly has no idea what she's talking about. Everyone knows it's Charley's watering day! The real victim here is Charley!
[ She's going to completely forget about the dead butler from earlier as she jabs a finger in Maya's direction again. ]
Did the defense see my magic trick? I just made your accusation disappear! Abra Kadabra, Ms. Fey! But this can be settled once and for all...
[ She tries to lean against the non existent desk, and nearly topples herself over in the process. ]
Tell me, Ms. Fey... ladder, or stepladder?
Phase I
(He keeps the bottle of poisoned nail polish in his pocket. Just in case.)
The mansion they're in is large and structured like a maze. Klavier's simply trying to find his way around without getting lost or walking in yet another circle. He finds a door that looks promising, but when he opens it -- ]
Fräulein Trucy?
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When the door opens, her eyes widen a fraction. Here's someone she hasn't seen in ages. He looks as lost as she does, and she's not sure if that's a good thing or not. ]
Prosecutor Gavin! Did you just arrive? Do you know where we are?
[ She shifts a little, looking over at the corpse again. ] I should add that I didn't do that... he was like that when I got here! As strange as that sounds.
[ She can only hope that he knows her well enough to realize she wouldn't kill someone... ]
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That's one, two, three strikes, he's out.
And he's known Trucy, what, nine days out of the last six months? That's not near long enough to get to know anyone very well at all. But it is long enough to get an impression. And, as the daughter of Phoenix Wright (a man he has wronged so, so very much), as Herr Forehead's co-council, as a teenage magician who was a fan of his music and his shows, does he really think she has done this?
No. No he does not.
Especially not when he had woken up in the exact same position not a few minutes earlier.
His smile is soft and reassuring when he sets about answering her questions: ] Not to worry, fräulein, I believe you. I myself woke up in a similar situation not too long ago. As for where we are? [ He shrugs. ] Aside from a very large mansion, I'm afraid I can't say.
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You too, huh? [ She should be used to this by now, this whole waking up in a different place thing. But it's never going to get any easier or less confusing, apparently. Still, she manages to flash the prosecutor a small smile of her own, stepping over the body and sliding over to him instead. ]
I'm sorry you're in this situation as well, but I'm glad to see you anyways! I guess the only way to find out what's going on is to explore a little and investigate. I hope we don't find anymore dead people...
[ Two dead butlers are enough, and they don't need to get framed for anything else. ]
i just realized that romein letouse is just romaine lettuce, i'm so angry
LMAO DON'T FEEL BAD i literally only figured it out like... last year myself