Take Responsibility.

[trustharder]

And after all has been said and done and all clues have been found, those large steel doors at the end of the hallway open up. The elevator both is and isn't a particularly nice one; it rides smoothly and quickly and it's obviously been kept-up, but there's nothing on the interior walls, lending a claustrophobic feeling to what's already a relatively small space, particularly with all of you in there. (Well. Almost all of you.) No distractions from what just happened, nothing to take your mind off of considering what might, just you and your fellow Survivors in an unadorned steel box. There's no visible panel for buttons, either; looks like it's pre-programmed; at least the ride is a relatively short one, though it's difficult to tell the distance traveled before the door opens again. You would be forgiven for your initial thought being that it opens into a void. It isn't complete darkness, but it's enough of a visual shift from the elevator that it probably takes your eyes some time to adjust; instead of the usual concrete and steel, the walls are a dark, heavy black, making the room look far smaller than it is. There aren't any corners to it, either; the room is tightly circular, complimenting the setup in the center of it. In the center of the room is a circle of podiums, twenty-seven in total, arranged so that everyone standing at them can see each other. So everyone can look each other in the eyes, if they so choose. The podiums are interlocked - there's no cutting across the center of the circle, and for good reason, it looks like there's a lot of nothing down there where the floor should be, just a massive black pit in the center - and each is bearing the title of the person who's assigned to stand at it. No names, just adjectives, emblazoned across two brass panels on the very top and the front of each podium. Affixed to the podium itself is a glass touchscreen panel; it's dark for now, but it'll probably be relevant later. At least the glass is shatterproof, in case things get heated. In general, though, all of the podiums are identical, except for the one intended for Zagi. The podium that should bear Adaptable's title has had a black cloth draped over it, and a copy of Zagi's profile photo is sitting on top of it, framed and colorless, an image in greyscale. It's hard to tell where the Kingmaker's voice comes from, when it does; it seems to come from everywhere and nowhere at once, like it's being piped in from someplace you can't see. But he's very definitely audible when he does speak. "Adaptable has been taken from you. Looks like the guilty among you is attempting to end the exercise by carrying out Rule Seven. It's up to you whether they're held responsible for their actions or not."

Comments

[captainobnoxious]

... You kind of have to, birdy. Your talons could make a mark if you wanted them to.

[cherryblooded]

A bird's talons wouldn't be in the right pattern to make the kind of marks that were on the body. His Majesty is probably the least likely person here.

[isafraid]

He never did strike me as the killing type.

[neverafters]

T-that's right! There was that size mismatch too... [ If his feet were that huge, they'd probably still show from under his cape. ] The King thanks you both.

[captainobnoxious]

So no go for the shrimp and the bird. Who's our other inhuman and ancient people here?

[Because it's not human.]

[cherryblooded]

Pearl told us she can change her form under specific circumstances... Besides that, there's Yato and Kamui.

[captainobnoxious]

Maybe even in to a set of claws? My brother didn't really hide his love of fighting, so the pointy nosed rock could've seen him as a threat to the peace.

[cherryblooded]

Don't see a reason why not, but you'd have to ask her about it.

[wokeupdead]

Yato doesn't have his weapon here! And he's really attached to him so he probably wouldn't do this.

[NOT HER OTHER FRIEND.]

He uses a sword anyway.

[captainobnoxious]

So it's down to the normal looking broody teen and the rock that can change her form.

[Is there any question?]

[cherryblooded]

...There is actually one more person I'd like to mention.

Not someone I know for certain is inhuman, but considering what's on the profiles and that we seem to have memories missing, it's a thought.

Mr. Gabriel Knight dislikes both werewolves and being bitten.

[notjustawriter]

You think I'm a werewolf.

[He just looks confused.]

You want me to take off my shirt to prove I'm not injured?

[cherryblooded]

It's a possibility. We're only throwing around possibilities right now.

But, would you mind?

[notjustawriter]

[He sighs, setting his jacket down on the podium before he pulls off his shirt.

There's not a scratch on him.]

[cherryblooded]

Thank you, I appreciate it.

[notjustawriter]

'Course.

[cherryblooded]

While I have your attention, however - how much do you know about those sorts of creatures? People that turn into other shapes.

cw: cannibalism

[notjustawriter]

Not much.

From what I was told of werewolves-- alleged werewolves, they look like actual wolves. Four feet 'n all that. I don't think it could be a werewolf, not the type I was supposed to be lookin' for.

A little girl was killed by one, and it.... ate part of her. If this was the work of a werewolf, I'd suspect we'd be seein' bite marks on him at the very least.

[cherryblooded]

That does make sense. Thank you, again.

Re: cw: cannibalism

[sleepingkogoro]

It was suggested earlier the neck wound was licked by the culprit.

Licking and biting seem pretty similar to me.

[...well they both involve the mouth, and that is all. Yep]

[notjustawriter]

The fatal wound was from having his throat slit, wasn't it?

[goodforsomething]

[Uggggh.]

Yeah, uh...can't say I've ever heard of real-life werewolves, but dogs in general don't claw people. They go for the throat. With teeth.

[sleepingkogoro]

That is a problem! The victim's mortal wound was done through a slit neck.

The culprit must be irrevocably human. If the whole "werewolf" theory is true then it'd require the culprit to have turned back into human before killing Zagi-san.

[sleepingkogoro]

Wasn't there somebody who is said to be like a god or something?

Yato-san, was he named?

[captainobnoxious]

Gods don't punish people unless they're non-believers, like the Danes who can't retain their land worth a damn.

[Simple as that. Her people worship the old ones since the Illness struck through.]

They're also in the right, so even if fancy toes did it we couldn't convict him.