WEEK 2; TRIAL

[killerwaves]

TRIAL

Whether you investigated or decided to take it easy, before you know it the speakers crackle to life instructing you to head to the beach. This is a demand not a request, and anyone who doesn't comply will find themselves forcibly moved there by the kitty bots—even if it takes a whole swarm of them.

Once you get there, you'll see that this isn't quite a beach party, instead a gigantic sandbar dotted with some type of constructs has risen out of the sea and tides. The path to the sandbar is solid enough even if it is relatively narrow, and once you arrive you'll find that you're far out in the ocean, way farther than it's comfortable to swim.

And once everyone is gathered, the pathway recedes back into the sea leaving you trapped here, all twenty-eight of you. At least there's ample seating, a kind of amphitheater made of sand with space in the middle for grandstanding or dramatic revelations. Though the area is mostly open, there are lone pieces of sand wall around the edges, maybe to dissuade you from tossing someone into the ocean without stopping you entirely. Thankfully, a lone outhouse rests again one of the walls just in case you need to use the bathroom, though it's not much in the way of actual privacy.

Settle in, get comfortable or just complain about all the sand you'll be tracking back, if you make it back that is. There's still another sacrifice to be chosen after all according to your administrators and—

Maybe you've noticed there's no palm trees or speakers here? It's just you, and the sand. For now.

(( OOC: Welcome to your first trial! You'll have 7 hours (8PM EST/5PM PST) to find the killer and send them off their death, if you believe in justice at least. Since this is scapegoat style, finding the correct killer is not mandatory!

Please remember to vote before then unless you've spoken to a mod, as votes are our stand-in for AC. ))

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Comments

[conchy]

[HE'S PROUD OF WHO HE IS, LACUS KNOWS THIS WELL]

Perhaps he was struck with the club in order to throw him off balance? The wound is jagged but the killer had no difficulty piercing through his body. That would suggest to me they had a straight shot at his heart.

[idologue]

[ This is why she's not SAYING anything, but STILL........ ]

That would certainly make sense. Whatever inflicted the initial bruising was not enough to get Chai to back down and give the killer a clear target, so they went for the head to either knock him unconscious or at least make him dizzy?

[conchy]

I'm not certain what may have caused those circular bruises — perhaps one of our amis has a guess — but they must have had some weight behind them. That, and the killer must boast impeccable raw strength... so my intuition tells me.

Still, I didn't see any wounds on his head. There would've been bruising consistent with an attack if he'd been subdued in such a fashion.

I CAN READ I SWEAR... 'head of the golf club' is not 'head of Chai'....

[idologue]

Mhmm... I see.

The circular bruises remind me of what it might look like if you had something ball-like thrown at you? But I am not sure what or why that might be.

[finalmix]

Something circular like those gumballs, maybe?

Actually, given the entire set up, I'm more inclined to think that the crash happened last since Chai may not have been conscious or alive to step on the gas pedal. Hence needing those to weigh them down.

[idologue]

So... the assumption is that his killer was in the car with him, yes?

[dupiety]

Ah, well... The go-karts are made to seat one. Had the killer been with him, they would have been on top of him.

[He hates that he knows this from experience.]

[idologue]

That appears... unlikely.

The more likely idea is thus that he was placed in the car while completely unable to drive. Say, have we tested his drinks for any signs of drugging?

[conchy]

[HON HON HON]

[dupiety]

[die]

[dupiety]

I believe Joshua has the right of it here. Had those wounds been inflicted later, they would have had to tuck him back underneath the wreckage.

[microtransactions]

So they stabbed and killed him, then decided to take the time to aim a go-kart at him and run him over after he was already dead.

That sounds a bit much, doesn't it? Are any of his wounds particular enough that they would need to disguise them somehow with the ones a car crash would inflict?

[idologue]

Since he has actual bruising from the car wreck, I imagine that he must have still been alive at the time he was either run over or crashed with the go-kart?

[dupiety]

Indeed, "overkill" is certainly an understatement here.

If it wasn't to disguise a particular wound, it was to get us to spend an inordinate amount of time figuring out where each of them came from and when.

In either case, with the stab wound, we can determine with certainty that the killer knew where to stab to ensure a quick kill.

[butcherspice]

Most distinct ones 'side from the circles are the wedge-shaped bruise and the impalement--Mr. Audiophile finger-banged that last one enough to think it coulda been a blunter instrument that done it, so if he's barkin' up the right tree it'd have to be strong bloke that'd done it.

[plunges]

When I discovered Chai's body, he was tucked under a number of those large circular objects found at the golf course.

[ Gumballs. He's talking about the gumballs. ]

The circular bruises could have been from those.

[conchy]

Oui, good observation, petit Xiao! Their uniform shape and size would certainly support that theory. Ah, but do you happen to know how much they weigh?

MODS

[plunges]

[ Not sure if I should've asked this here or in the Discord, but since Xiao lifted the gumballs, how much did they weigh... ]

[killerwaves]

[ Thereabouts 3-4lbs (1-2 kg.) ]

[plunges]

Around one to two kilograms.

[ 3-4lbs, etc. ]

[dancing_flames]

Which would indicate that our killer has a considerable amount of strength to be able to get the blade clean through. Even if Chai were incapacitated, it takes a great deal of force to be able to stab all the way through a person's body.

[Ask him how he knows--]

[conchy]

[WELL LUNA, SINCE YOU ASKED—]

Oh? Your observation sounds like it comes from a place of expérience. Could it be that you've killed in such a fashion before...?

[dancing_flames]

I was a bounty hunter for years. I've been on both ends of a blade. Quite literally.

[Just a couple of weeks ago, in fact... not a fun time.]

[passetemps]

I would imagine the killer likely had some level of experience as well, as a straight stab to the heart is not exactly a simple task... though perhaps the broken ribs did make that access easier if they came before the wound.

[dancing_flames]

[He nods.]

I was thinking the same thing. It's hard to hit a target that small unless you know exactly where in the body it is to aim for.