first trial

[airlockedmods]

[When the announcement sounds and the evidence gathered it’s time for a trial. When the remaining champions are all gathered by the repaired docking bay doors they slide slowly slide open.

There are two lines of robots, silent as sentries, creating a border path from the docking bay doors to the circle of metal podiums. The podiums themselves were made of strange metals in red and gold and orange and black, each one etched with the name of one of the Champions. There are flood lights - like spot lights - in front of each podium, but the lights in front of Shirou, Hamilton, and Albel are dark, and hung on the front of their podiums are greyscale portraits, printed from their profiles.

Blaze Dudely stands on a repair deck on top of his ship, which looms over the proceedings ominously. Rather than the glee the Champions may think he would take in this kind of display, he merely stands there with his arms crossed, expression unreadable and his cyborg eye scanning the Champions with a piercing scrutiny, like he's searching for one of them to act out of line.]

Mornin’, Champions. Here’s how this is goin’ to go: take the evidence ya found, piece together what happened and find who took out the Champion Swordsman. If ya find them, they’ll be dealt with. If ya don’t, they’ll be free to go and the rest of ya will face punishment. Take the time ya need but don’t bore me.

Comments

[tenimuho]

[Oda stands at his podium and sets down a book with a few pages bookmarked (with tarot cards, since that's what he found on short notice).

From the title, it looks like it's about robotics.]

The case files on our PIP say that Albel died of a broken neck at 12:02 AM, with an additional head wound. His body was found with broken glass around it.

Did anyone find anything the glass might have been from?

[chides]

Is that a book you were reading or is it relevant to the case?

[ NOT TRYING TO BE CONDESCENDING just. genuinely curious ]

[tenimuho]

[It's a fair question.]

It was misplaced when I was investigating. I don't think anyone would mistakenly put a textbook about robotics in the fiction section unless they were in a hurry, it doesn't look at all like the novels around it did.

There are some pages that have been bent so they can be referenced again, about cybernetic prosthetics.

[chides]

...Do you think Albel was the one reading it? He had a metal arm, right?

[tenimuho]

It's possible. I can't really say anything for certain about that except that it was misplaced and obviously had been read recently.

[induality]

Robotics? D-doesn't that guy have a mechanical arm?

[She means the dead one, but there's actually two of them....]

[silverguitarhero]

Albel's arm was a prosthetic, and it'd been damaged. Do you think perhaps the killer was trying to find a way to disable it?

[induality]

I-If his neck was snapped, d-does that mean they were tampering with it after he died?

[tenimuho]

...Most of us probably don't know enough to get use out of them, but those parts would probably still work.

[ebonyknight]

Could it have been made to do something Albel didn't want?

[tenimuho]

I don't know enough about robotics to say that with confidence.

[induality]

W-what would they use them for though? M-most of us wouldn't have any use for something like that...

[silverguitarhero]

[John's eyes slide towards Rick and Doomfist, although he doesn't say anything.]

[heartswapped]

I can tell you right away that Akande probably isn't who you're looking for.

[She's had to provide ice to his ass all morning. She should know.]

[goldrighthand]

[not even looking up from the book]

If you want to ask something, ask.

[induality]

[Her too, friend. Her too.]

[tenimuho]

Wires are wires. I don't know anything about how to use them, but it wouldn't have to be for a robot arm.

[induality]

Do you think they wanted to tamper with the electronics here?

[God she hates electronics. There's a reason she says she's allergic to them.]

[goldrighthand]

[he may have a mild concussion but he glances towards Oda at that]

...may I see it?

[tenimuho]

[Oda will hand it over, circling around the stands as necessary to do so.]

Here.

MODS?

[goldrighthand]

Thank you. [And he'll take it, trying to see if there's any sort of subfocus on the earmarked pages. Eg- how cybernetics are made, how they're connected, potential flaws, etc - or is it seemingly general?]

[airlockedmods]

[It seems more general.]

[goldrighthand]

[Fair enough. He closes the book and sets it down]

I don't think whoever was reading this knew much about the technology. They would have had a greater purpose in their research.

[andneversaydie]

Oh... did you find something in the library, Oda? I kept looking, but ... yeah, I didn't see anything.

[tenimuho]

This was all I found that was out of place.