CHAPTER 7 ; INVESTIGATION

[themodsgrimm]

The Story Continues... CHAPTER 7 - WEEK 7??? Narrators Remain ; The clock begins to chime, and on the first note, curfew lifts. Your doors swing open, whether you are ready or not. Leaving your room is a blur. The person you fell asleep beside — are they still there? Have they vanished? Were they ever there at all? You can't seem to recall clearly. What you are most aware of is the pervading sense of wrongness in the air, and how you can't hear anything but the chime of the clock. Even the sounds of your own voice and your own footsteps do not reach your ears. By the time the time the clock strikes nine, you know one thing to be true: blood has been spilt. Search the castle carefully — you wouldn't want to miss a single important detail, would you...? Welcome to this week's investigation post! This time, the mods will be providing top-levels for you to search. Please note the Locations page for your reference. Evidence — or lack thereof — will be noted in these threads. We ask that group threads consist of no more than 1-2 characters. After the discovery of the body (or bodies) and any pertinent evidence, an IC announcement concluding the investigation will go up. You are then free to make your own toplevels on this post for any threads you would like to have between the end of the investigation and the start of the trial. If you have any questions, please ask on our Discord server or ping us on plurk. Please direct pings to Britt (bloodthirstiest) and Danielle (entrappings), as they will be taking point on this investigation! Instructions on this week's investigation can be found in a pin in the General chat! full navigation. locations taken (statuses) stories (profiles) info & faq wishing well private conversations

Comments

LABORATORY

[themodsgrimm]

There are three freestanding counters in this laboratory to give people space to work on their experiments. It's hard to tell what some of this equipment does at first glance, unless you're incredibly familiar with scientifc equipment, but it's possible to hazard an educated guess - the one at the center, for example, seems to be used for mixing things, as it has openings to pour liquids into and a spigot at the bottom where one might set a flask. The big pieces of equipment on the other two counters are a mystery, but all three of them seem to have been partially repaired from how rusted over they were when the room was first uncovered. Each counter has a set of three burners, and there are two drawers in each that can be pulled out and rifled through. There is a wicker basket in the southeast corner of the room which contains fire strikers and a wooden supply cabinet in the northwest corner of the room, which does not have a lock.

Also, in the shadows of the back of the room, there's a vaguely humanlike shape standing motionless.

[vigilantics]

[ ha ha well obviously she's gonna check out those fire strikers!!!



no what's going on with that. humanlike shape. sup. ]

[themodsgrimm]

[What is up with that humanlike shape. As she gets closer, she might notice that whoever it is isn't moving...that's weird. Even though the shape is in the shadows, the way it's positioned free standing doesn't seem like it could be a puppet or a corpse.]

[vigilantics]

[ JUST TELL ME WHO IT IS STOP DOING THIS

but steph will... reach over to poke?? whoever it is. ]

Um, hello?

[themodsgrimm]

[I'm trying to build suspense god!!!

Stephanie pokes the mysterious figure. She's poking cold, solid metal.

She'll be able to recognize him, now...how do we even put this.

Fon Master Ion stands before her, a still, golden statue.]

TAILOR

[themodsgrimm]

Three tables lie at the center of the tailor's room to allow people to work without crowding each other.

Along the southernmost wall are four racks of clothing - two with women's clothes, two with men's clothes, all vaguely fantasy themed. There are four mannequins on either side, showing off outfits and accessories such as hats, gloves, and slippers. On each side there is a wooden trunk, in which accessories and shoes have been found in the past.

The eastern wall contains four spinning wheels, along with baskets of wool and other fibers to spin into yarn. The western wall contains rolls of premade fabrics, baskets of supplies such as needles, thread, thimbles, and pincusions, and even a selection of patterns for simple pieces of clothing. For those who are unsure where to start, there are three beginners sewing kits containing everything one will need for the basics.

[sanguinairy]

[WELL HERE SOUJI GOES fucking wheezing his way to the tailor. Why is he still alive yall. Why did you do this to me.

Anyway he'll start like he usually does: from the doorway, scanning the area to make sure nothing is obviously out of place along the walls, on the floor, etc. Also making sure no murderers are ready to jump down from the ceiling to stab.]

[psychedelica]

... You're still alive?

[ hello, Hikage is here, too, backing Souji up with his cursory initial observation. ]

[themodsgrimm]

[More bodies--no, no bodies here. There's definitely nothing obviously out of the ordinary. Time to break out the clipboard for an inventory check!]

[sanguinairy]

[HE'S FUCKING SURPRISED TOO, HIKAGE.]

It seems so.

[Or maybe he's also a hallucination, who knows. ANYWAY time to check the three tables at the center! Anything on them? Below them? Taped under the tables?? A confession letter, maybe.]

SHRINE OF THE TIGER

[themodsgrimm]

There isn't a lot in the way of furnishings here aside from pillows scattered about haphazardly that weary visitors can recline on to take a break. The room is dimly lit by torches on the wall (though one torch seems to be unlit) and candles at the altar (which has a vaguely body-shaped figure on top of it), which is overlooked by a golden statue of a tiger.

As you enter the room, take care not to trip over something heavy by the door...

[asswipe]

[Yeah. Veronica is just gonna zoom in on the body-shaped figure on top of the altar and just






trip over whatever's by the door.

Hello, heavy thing. You are totally a corpse, aren't you.]

[themodsgrimm]

[Actually... no!

It's a very, very heavy book. You okay there, Veronica?]

[asswipe]

[ON ONE HAND: THANK GOD!!!!

On the other hand, has Veronica ever been okay???? Anyway— She's grumbling as she pushes herself up from the ground, into a crouch so she can take a look at the book. Time to pick it up so she can look at it from all sides.]

... Who's the dipshit who left this on the floor?

[Did someone use the book as a murder weapon or are y'all bad at returning shit to the library? :/]

JOUSTING GROUNDS

[themodsgrimm]

To the southeast of the castle lies the jousting grounds. Stakes and ropes form a jousting ring with pennants flying from every corner, marking out a field about a hundred and forty feet long. Seating encircles the area so that Narrators may watch matches, with a covered tent shielding two gilded chairs from the sun at the head of the ring, placed so that VIPs may have a prime view of the center where two knights would face off.

And speaking of the center of the ring, there's something vaguely body-shpaped in the center of it...

Further southeast lies the stable, but it doesn't look like anyone's gone in there recently.

[axilium]

[hmm.]

[doublecrows]

[hmmmm]

Good morning, Belph-san.

[a pleasant morning greeting]

[themodsgrimm]

[A pleasant morning greeting indeed! It's almost like there's not a body in the center of the ring.]

KITCHEN

[themodsgrimm]

An oven with a stovetop lies across the room from the entrance - counterspace lines either side of the oven to give any would-be chefs plenty of space to prepare. A sink is set into the counters to the right of the oven, and a refrigerator is to the left. Drawers - for cutlery, measuring instruments, and the like - are set into the counters, and cabinets are mounted on the walls above them. There is a spice rack on the countertop as well as a knifeblock (though it's... empty...), an alcohol cabinet (thankfully unlocked) along the northernmost wall, and a door leading into a pantry along the southernmost wall.

Of course, before you notice any of that, you'll probably notice the two bodies lying out in the open - one closer to the sink, and one closer to a freestanding counter in the middle of the room.

[concasse]

[Congrats you fucks, Sanji is shocked and upset and can't even squeak out a bellow as he stares at all of this.

Instead he makes a thin noise of frustration (HIS. KITCHEN!.) before marching over to the closest body... probably the one by the freestanding counter]

I thought we all decided the kitchen was off limits...!

[Let him have this lie. Anyway uh... who is this body? Please be a puppet]

[themodsgrimm]

[It's...not a puppet. This is obvious enough as he approaches the first body, with the amount of ink in sight, the way the body is crumbled. It isn't hard to identify who this is.

Shirasu Kinjou is dead.]

[concasse]

[...

But where is Shirasu's knife?

Sanji is deadass looking for it.]

(frozen comment) SUMMARY ;

[themodsgrimm]

Gather 'round, dear Narrators, for this little rhyme
so to hear the next chapter of who has run out of time
With each new part of the Great Beasts' tale
Take caution and tread lightly lest you should fail
You've entered the castle to play along
but listen closely, Narrators, for one of yours is gone…


Once upon a time, there were 38 Narrators. Together, they began to mingle and get to know one another, forming bonds and alliances. However, one day, the Tiger and the Dragon appeared and told them the tale of their great war.

"Every week, at least one murder will occur. An investigation will follow the killing on Fridays and a trial thereafter.

This is a game to determine the winner between the forces of good and evil, a battle royal that requires blood. This is our story, and this is the way that things are."

On Thursday night, 15 Narrators were confined to their rooms 'til the clock struck nine on Friday.
It was then, that early morning, that they emerged to discover who had passed away.

The Narrators sought to maximize the number of people who would survive,
And so that week they attempted to work together.
In a way, it worked; the number of locations with evidence was only five.
But how many Narrators closed their eyes forever...?

Wasting no time, Stephanie Brown rushed to the laboratory
Where she found a statue of Ion made from solid gold.
But this was not the end of the Fon Master's story,
For he returned to flesh; it was a sight to behold.

In the tailor, there was only a little to be found,
Although Souji Okita and Hikage looked and looked.
A thief ignored the clothing and accessories lying around,
And a bolt of cloth was all the culprit took.

Outside, however, Belph discovered a scene at the jousting ground,
Goro Akechi's body lay in the center of the ring with a sword in hand.
Though he believed his friend had been with him, once the body was found
The vision of Akechi disappeared - just as planned...?

Inside the castle, Veronica Sawyer visited the Tiger's Shrine,
Which was clearly the scene of some sort of fight.
The book by the door and the unlit torch on the wall were undoubtedly a sign
That what they would find here would not be a delight.

Rebecca Bunch lay on the altar, having breathed her last.
Her neck was covered in ink and bruises, but not scarred.
However she died, it may have been fast -
Though there were parts of the ground that seem to have been charred.

Ah, but did you really think that was the end?
I'm sorry to say, you must read on, my friend...

The kitchen is where Sanji and Belph uncovered a most grisly scene.
The scent of blood and ink was thick in the air,
And the bodies of Shirasu Kinjou and Cardia Beckford were not at all clean.
How could this happen? Isn't it unfair?

Near Cardia, there was no small amount of real blood,
And Shirasu's wounds were oozing ink.
Shirasu had clearly fallen with a loud thud,
But Cardia was laid gently down, one would think.

Shirasu's fatal wound was large enough to have come from a sword,
Although there was no weapon of that size anywhere they could see.
But his stab wound wasn't the only hit scored -
One of matching size pierced through to where Cardia's heart should be.

In the sink there was some water and nearby, a dishtowel;
Though it was not used to clean up the mangled wound on Cardia's shoulder.
And although there was no one who had been disembowled,
Shirasu smeared his own ink while trying to survive, on the ground and the counter.

But what of the weapon? What took someone's life?
Try as they might, at the end they would only be able to say -
That inside in the room, there was a single kitchen knife...
The blade coated in blood and then flung away.

With this evidence discovered and the story unfolded, the Dragon and the Tiger, their hair still dyed bright pink, gathered the evidence and locked it all away behind several glass cases. Standing before the group, they gazed upon them and spoke in unison, although they vanished after they spoke. The glass cases remained in their wake for viewing by the Narrators.



"Goro Akechi, Rebecca Bunch, Cardia Beckford, and Shirasu Kinjou have been slain.
The trial will begin tomorrow at noon in the gardens."

[sanguinairy]

[HM, BAD. Souji is standing in front of the cases, expression tight with some difficult emotion. It's Cardia's in particular that his gaze seems to linger on, though he sure doesn't look happy to see... any of these corpses...

Though he's quiet, he'll linger here for a little while.]

[concasse]

[... Oh Rebecca.

You were so close, too.

Silently, he knocks his knuckles against her case in particular, expression heavy, before he takes off.]