N´Kai will remain alert, looking for any signs of trouble or hostile intent among the crowd
Edwin's mouth twitches slightly. As if contemplating a smile.
"Ah yes. It is good to know that while individuals can be most perplexing and challenging at times, a good mob mentality is always easily predictable." He murmurs aside to the others.
"I may be able to disperse this lot with a few well chosen words. But I don't think its worth the effort. Or the danger. There are plenty in this town waiting to take their place. Right now the balance between action and inaction are balanced upon a knife's edge of fear of the unknown and misunderstood. They want to act, but are far more fearful of their own safety and hope that the trial provides closure for their fears instead. Changing that balance, even a little, even in a peaceful and good way, may upset that precarious balance. We are not currently prepared to deal with the aftermath of THAT just now I think." Edwin muses aloud to his friends.
"Best to let it keep to a low simmer, and make sure it does not boil over. Far easier than trying to put out the fire. For now." He rubs his chin thoughtfully.
"Actually, that may provide another means of discovery of the villain we seek. If we see a sudden rise in the action of the crowds, that may indicate the hand of the master manipulator. We must be prepared to move swiftly if that occurs."
"We must decide, and agree, whether to proceed at a speedy pace that forces our unseen opponent to keep up with us, or to drag out this 'trial'",... Edwin's expression indicates he has another name for the event. ,... "in hopes of taking longer than anyone wants, and forcing our opponent to try and force our hand."
Nobody's getting unruly, just murmuring.
Leik ponders Mr. Drood's words, his buggy face unreadable.
"To the inn it is, then??"
Rholf nods all friendly-like to some in the crowd, bidding them a good evening. "Aye, to the inn."
Larissa follows, looking back over her shoulder as they leave.
Nothing much happens on the way back to the inn.
You're convened around a late dinner. There's nobody much around in the inn's tavern this evening.
Ed sits back from the table. He nibbled a little when the food first arrived, but now he ignores it completely. His eyes focus on parchment only he can see, and his lips move slightly as he subvocalizes in conjunction with his slightly twitching finger, as if he is scribing something onto parchment. Every once in a while Edwin frowns, and his finger sweeps as if crossing out a line of writing.
Soooo what now?
Who's doing what?
When they reach the inn, Edwin excuses himself and heads to his room. Anyone listening at the door hears him muttering and talking to himself the rest of the night.
:)
In the morning Aethorduil makes his way into the gallery as before, ready to start his muttering campaign to try to sway these simple people.
In the morning Edwin joins the other. He seems calm enough and in good spirits, but he belies the nervous energy of a performer just before a show. And barely manages to munch a little bit of toast and butter.
When they arrive at the courthouse stands in front for a moment. He tilts his head first one way, then the other.
"Showtime!" He whispers with a smile.
N´Kai wakes up later than usual, having spent most of the night going over the case details and reading some legal text he managed to borrow at the university library. He breaks his fast with some ham, cheese and toasts and follows the rest of the group towards the courthouse.
"I´ll definitively let you handle the case today, Edwin. Yesterday I did my best but I am confident your silver tongue will astonish both the justices and the public this morning."
Hello,
I'm kinda having a bunch of craziness atm; might be back on in the next few days. Nothing too bad.
Yeah; I'm....gonna be real busy this weekend.
Lotta work to do.
Be Well
There's a lot of that going around. My world is upside down, and sometimes the artificial gravity works.
Second day of trial.....Hergstag.
The alleged slaying by the Beast of numerous children.
The prosecution opens by having the three sisters who live on the ouskirts of Lepidstadt and did live in Hergstag at the time recount the events; how the children were murdered, and how the beast, laughing, did carry one of the children about.......
it is an abbreviated version of events.........
Feel free to cross examine.
The crowd is surly throughout the entire time at the courthouse.
The beast seems taciturn.
Leik appears in the front row behind the defense, well-dressed in a style inspired by Mr. Drood. He anxiously watches the proceedings.
Edwin stands, smiles and walks around to stand in front of the ladies.
"Hello ladies. Lovely to see you again. I hope you are well? No troubles traveling here for the trial?" He greets the ladies warmly.
"I'm curious ladies. If you don't mind, could you please elaborate on how the suspect acted when you saw him? You said he laughed while carrying the little girl around? How did he laugh, exactly? Joyously? Desperately? Maniacally, like a villainous mastermind from a midsummers play?" He asks, smiling.
:)
"And why, if he did such terrible things, would he return at all? And WHY bring back the body of this one child? But not the others?" Edwin asks loudly, turning round to address the entire room as he does so.
"It will please the court, I think, to know that we DO know who, or should I say WHAT, is truly behind the deaths of these poor children. My associates and I went to the village to investigate the deaths, and the sighting of Dobitoc at the scene. During the course of our investigation, we soon realized that Dobitoc could not have been responsible for the last girls disappearance. Her window was on the second floor of the house, and neither the walls nor window were damaged in any way. Certainly if Dobitoc were involved, there would be,... property damage." Edwin offers with a smile.
"Unfortunately, the children were lured and killed. And the creature responsible was still there. A Wraith or fearsome appearance and Dark Magics. He had slain the children, and raised them again as dark spirits, bond wraiths, to serve him. We faced the creature in his cave. And we defeated it. It was a short, gruesome battle. Not one to inspire great tales. For we sought to slay that which was already dead. We succeeded, and laid to rest the souls of the children that it had slain. Then we buried the bodies. Not the funeral they deserved, but we laid them to rest properly. For proof, I present my companions. They can relate the same tale under oath and truth magics if the court pleases. Or, If it pleases the court, you could question the children themselves, using priestly magics."
Edwin looks disturbed by this possibility.
"I certainly do not wish to disturb the children any more than they have been. And I am certain these good folk would agree. The dears have suffered enough, and are now at rest. But if you wish ultimate verification, the children themselves could relate the tale of terror they were forced to live. I pray that will not be necessary." Edwin bows his head humbly to the judges.
Edwin suddenly gets a sly look on his face as another piece clicks. And his eyes widen for a split second as it sinks in. He steps swiftly across the room to stand in front of Dobitoc. He stands closer than he should, even for one who has shown the golem kindness. He whispers, but the whisper carries across the sudden stillness that blankets the room at his bold move.
"Why DID you bring back the girl to the village Dobitoc? What was her name? Why did you bring her back? Why did you bring Elsa back?!?"
"LAdies and gentlemen. I submit to you that Dobitoc was not carrying his victim and gloating. He was returning the body of,... a friend." He steps back slowly, and speaks softly. But Edwin's words ring through the courthouse like a bell.
:)
At the mention of Elsa's name, the golem starts crying. But he has no tears.
It's a pitiable sounding thing, and one which is often the case, that could be mistaken for laughter.....
"Elsa...." he says over and over.
The crowd starts murmuring and yelling.
"Burn the bastard!!!" somebody yells.
One of the judges' face turns red as he bangs his gaffle shouting "ORDER! ORDER! BAILIFF! I WILL HAVE ORDER!!!"
And the bailiff and some guards go into the crowd to quell emotions.
They agree with everything Edwin proffers, and it's added that, indeed, one of the others was killed two nights later when the Beast was nowhere's around....
"Elsa," murmurs the Beast sorowfully.
Edwin looks pained.
"I am sorry my friend. I did not mean to pain you." He whispers softly to Dobitoc.
"As you can see your honors. A Flesh Golem can cry, but would seem it cannot shed tears."
When he turns to face the room once more, Edwin is wearing a face his companions have come to know. Edwin is mentally preparing,... A Speech. In capitol letters.
"You want the ones responsible? For everything that the Wraith was not?" He asks the room. Softly.
"Do you want the ones truly responsible for these heinous crimes?!?" He asks again. Firmer and louder.
"DO. YOU. WANT. THE ONES. RESPONSIBLE?" He asks the third time, his voice challenging the level of the gavel itself.
"Then I shall give them to you!" He cries, almost in tears himself.
"Following the clues we had found, the empty graves, the skin mask, the surgeons tools, and all the other tiny pieces of the puzzle we uncovered, step by step we followed the trail." Edwin prowls the courtroom as he relates the story, drawing even the loudest naysayers into his world.
"The trail led us to the steps of the Chymicule Works. Where we were greeted by a most unusual doorkeeper. The guard dog was not alive, but was an alchymicule creation. A merger of alchemy and sorcery. Alarming, but not as alarming as what we found inside."
Edwin takes a dramatic pause.
"A most disturbing creature, at first glance a gnome of diabolic bent, and his partner in crime. A rather large brute. With a penchant for collecting."
Edwin pulls out from under the table of the defense a large bag. One by one he empties the contents and places them upon the evidence table.
"My lords. I present further evidence. The brute was not only a murderer. He was a thief. I do not know why he and his partner needed the corpses. Yet. But the brute parlayed whatever job they were upon into something that served as a pastime for his twisted, evil, mind. He collected skins. And he used them to pass among others without revealing his true self. Ergo the mask left in the swamp village."
Edwin pauses. He has now laid out all of the contents of the Skin-stealers grisly trophy case. All but one.
"But this one, this was his favorite. For these partners in crime knew all about the legend of 'The Beast'. In fact, they counted on it. They used it. Then they fed the legend. WHen they ran out of fresh corpses from the swamp graveyard, they made their own. And they blamed 'The Beast' for their crimes. For when the Skin-Stealer went out and killed, he wore THIS!"
And Edwin pulls out the skin-stealers 'Dobitoc suit' from the bag, holding it up for all to see.
"THIS is what the brute was wearing the night the Swamp-folk lay in wait for him. It was the Skin-Stealer they chased into the swamp that night. And it was the Skin-Stealer who was attacked by the monstrous gator. It was the Skin-Stealer who cursed vehemently enough to make a sailor, and a few swamp-folk, blush like a lass. You want the ones responsible?" He asks, dropping the last skin onto the evidence table.
"You'll find them at the Chymicule Works. They resisted being brought to justice most vehemently. I'm afraid that you'll HAVE to question them with priestly magics. And that bothers me not at all. Bring the bastards back as often as you like. I'll gladly dispatch them back to Hades for you when your done." Edwin finishes with a soft voice. Like an Iron Golem covered in velvet.
;P
The prosecution asks to approach the bench, and they lead him into private chambers.
They allow the defense to send somebody as well; I assume Edwin goes. Send the whole group if you like
The prosecutor says, in private chambers,
"At this point we're looking at a full acquittal; I'm just sensing it. However,......" he pauses, "I don't really know how well that will play to the madding crowd. The subject of Hergstag has them all riled up, and I don't think they're seeing things logically as Mr. Drood has presented them. The only thing we have the beast dead to rights on is the theft at the University. However, that was hardly a capital offense. The crowd's not going to like not getting their bonfire.
I suggest we drown the beast, instead of a burning. Commute the thing's sentence to drowning. If we can give him a horrendous beating, perhaps even a drawing and quartering before we send him down to Davy Jones' Locker as it were, I feel their bloodlust may be sated. And it won't do any undoable damage to the damnable thing.
That's my only suggestion. That's the only thing I can think of. Wind him up in chains. Commit him to the depths of the nearest deep dark lake. Will that provide succor enough to all involved? If not there's going to be trouble."
Edwin's mouth twitches as the Prosecutor speaks. But covers anything else by rubbing his face in thoughtfulness.
Despite his initial thoughts, the detective does think before speaking.
"Your honors. I certainly do not envy you. And I certainly understand playing to the crowd. But, we must ask ourselves,... IS this justice?"
"Certainly dropping Dobitoc in the lake will likely do him no lasting harm, given his unique birthright. But is it right? Beating him with sticks and stones will do no lasting Physical damage,... but while he is intelligent, as best I can tell he has the mind of a child. What kind of psychological damage are we going to do to the poor fellow?"
"Perhaps, if he were mentally more developed, or we had more time to explain and reason with him, so he could understand and participate with us in the sham of a punishment,... Well. I still wouldn't believe it was right, but I could work with it."
"But this? I do not know. Dobitoc already has,... anger management issues, clearly. I fear that doing such things to him without his understanding and cooperation may send him over the edge, and create the very monster the crowd already fears."
Edwin almost scowls at the floor, rubbing his temples as if he can massage an answer to the dilemma to appear to him. He looks to his companions, , but does not speak to them. He sighs, as if accepting a great weight.
"There are still clues we have not managed to unravel. Yet. I firmly believe that when we do, it will prove that Dobitoc was innocent of the theft at the Library as well. At best, I believe he was a distraction, allowing the theft to occur. At worst, I believe he may have been, coerced, into doing it. Either way, we cannot prove it, yet, and accept that the court must take the evidence it has into account."
"I will speak with Dobitoc after the trial tonight. And attempt to get him to understand what we are trying to do. And why. NO beatings. But the chains and the lake. Make certain that the chains have a sufficiently weak link in them to allow Dobitoc to escape on his own once he is in the lake. And it must happen during the day. Not in darkness. Darkness is for the crowd to enjoy the bonfire."
"Will you be pronouncing judgement immediately? Or shall we continue this act to it's inevitable conclusion?" he asks casually.
Edwin turns to leave, but stops at the door and looks back over his shoulder.
"One last question my lords and ladies. And I confess that I personally feel that 'laws' are more 'guidelines for the masses' than absolutes that must never be broken. But, If we intend to bow to the whims of the fearful or angry public every time they do not like a verdict, what need have we of courtrooms? Food for thought." he says politely, and exits the chambers.
Once in the hallway, Edwin reaches out, grabs his nearest companion by the arm, and pulls him or her in close enough to hiss directly in their ear.
"We must free Dobitoc. If they give in a step to the mob mentality they will take a mile. They won't be satisfied until they take Dobitoc to the bonfire." He hisses so softly his companion is not even sure they actually heard him.
"If he's found innocent, which seems to be the case here so far,.....he will be freed," says the wisened female who hired you guys under the table to investigate this thing.
No diplomacy is needed......
"We'll rule when all evidence is displayed, or when the defense agrees to rest its case."
The prosecutor scowls at Edwin;
"I've done all I can. Let the mob's madness be on your conscience. At least.....justice will be served.
To a creature whose very existence is one of abomination and damnation."
Edwin inclines his head to the prosecutor in a small, almost polite bow.
"It is good to know that Lepidstadt is well-looked after by such an impartial servant of justice." he says straight faced.
"Thank you your honors." He adds, giving the judges a deeper, more socially acceptable version of the stilted bow received by the prosecutor.
The hallway conversation happens as above.
Then Edwin adds, in a normal voice so all the group can hear him.
"Tonight, we should assist in guarding the jail again. Give us time to plan. Tomorrow, If I have no more breakthroughs, I will rest our case. That gives us tonight to figure out a backup plan, and tomorrow to execute it. If it becomes necessary. Agreed?"
:)
No diplomacy is needed......
Edwin inclines his head to the prosecutor in a small, almost polite bow.
"It is good to know that Lepidstadt is well-looked after by such an impartial servant of justice." he says straight faced.
"I hope that nobody else has to pay for your smug, self elevating as well as misplaced and fairytale world sense of idealism. You have no idea how things work. Just go home and stroke your ego, heroboy." he rolls his eyes and leaves.
'I hope so too.' Edwin mutters to himself.
I'll wait and see if anybody else wants to add anything/yell at the prosecutor and then move things onward....to the night of the second day of court proceedings. Reckon I should wait irl 24 hours or thereabouts.
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That seems to go with our recent schedule. Thanks Heathy! :)
I know right? It assumes I don't work 7 to 3 tomorrow and then get called in from 4-9, but whatev's.
Leik listens quietly as the great Mr. Drood carries on. Leik is acutely observant of how the beast is treated, being something of a beast himself.
"If it comes to fire... I'll make them wish fire had never been discovered." the buggy fellow thinks to himself.
heh heh. No fire,....uh....just pitch forks. Yeah; this mob doesn't have torches.
Unlike any other mob in the history of mobs.
j/k
N´Kai listens with interest as Edwin displays his oratory before the court. When both sides are required to meet with the Justices in private, he happily strolls along with Mr. Drood, eager to have some insight as how law-related affairs are played behind closed doors.
When the prosecutor states his view, N´Kai will reply with a calculated naiveté: "I beg your forgiveness, sir, for elven laws in my native Kyonin are applied based on proof of innocence or guiltiness, not on the bloodlusty desire of an angry crowd. Maybe I need to take another look at your legal texts to grasp your angle."
He then speaks to the Justices "I concur with Mr. Drood, your honours. Lepidstadt is lucky to have you to uphold the principle of law, since you understand the Beast alien nature and appearance should not matter if proof of his innocence surfaces, as seems to be the case. I am afraid I can not say the same about the prosecution, but I understand legal systems, as its members, are hardly without a fault."