Geartopia : The Case of the Assassination Plot

[cityship]

||Attention, Attention. Would the following personnel please report to the Observation Deck. Please bring with you any weapons and tools you might need. Attention, Attention. would the following personnel please report to the Observation Deck:

Allenby Beardsley
Maridian Gladespring
Ellyn Vitner
Red Robin
Sam Winchester
Dean Winchester
Kanoe Zouichi

Attention, Attention, would the following personnel...||

Stacy's voiced called the entire crew, until all of them were gathered at the Obs Deck. Then, a dossier appeared on the screens, along with the image of a rotating planet.

Planet Designation: Geartopia
Status: Terrestrial, H-class.
Non-sentient life: Extensive flora and fauna.
Semi-Sentient Life: Yes.
Sentient Life: Homo Sapiens, Homo Animalia, Machina Erectus.
Water: 20.6% of the planet's surface.
Climate: Earth-like, Arid desert
Landscape: 70% Desert..
Air: Normoxic concentration.
Air Pressure: 101.3 kPa (kilopascals) = 14.7 psi (pounds per square inch)
Sky: Blue
Sun: A class G2V, yellow star.
Warnings: Wildlife, humanoids and plant-life can be hazardous.
Mission: Find out of town mayoress Nomalanga's suspicions of foul play are correct. Full shore leave will initiate once this is problem is resolved.

Once the entire team was ready, they were whisked of to the planet with little fanfare, their ship landing close to a town, where a woman...well not quite a woman, but a cross between a woman and a hyena dressed in a strange outfit, greeted them along with three other figures behind her. They had arrived near the end of the day, and the sun was beginning to set behind them, staining the sky a deep orange color.

She greeted them with a bow and a wave.

"I think you for coming 'ere just barely an 'our after I send out my distress signal." She mentioned for them to follow her, while the three other figures remained behind.

"I will make this quick, as we are short on time. My name is Nomalanga, and I'm mayoress of Utorian, 'ave been for the past five years. We have asked for a small team to aid us cause some of Snidley's damn dogs have been trying to upsurge the town from my grasp. "e's was the mayor before me, but was removed for having no 'onor. He still has control of some sections of the town due to loyalty and fear, and some townsmen still suspects I threw 'im out to get more power. Now 'e's trying to regain it all, but I have no proof except for a tip I was given by one of my own that says the attack's in two days and there's enough clues stuffed in the 'aunted cave to get the entire town behind me."

She pointed to a cavern on the far left, covered by the dunes of soil and desert sand.

" 'Alf the townsfolk believe the place to be filled with ghosts at night so no one enters unless they have to. But during the day we go in and get our supplies of underground water. The entire place is a maze. I wish I could 'ave send the distress beckon sooner, but we had problems with space pirates recently."

"There is also another problem...the tip also told me one of my own three is a spy. If you could also find out which one, we could end the terrible man's grasp on the town and myself. I am pretty sure they already suspect that I have doubts, but you may find clues inside the cavern. You can also speak to them and ask a few questions, but you should get into the cavern as soon as possible, as not to get too many ghosts attacking you. And there are also men-eating bears spotted inside. My people are strong, but our technology is nothing compared to yours. Once we have more time I can explain to you how I was able to contact you at all. But for now, I can supply you with guns and torches, if you don't have any."

She seemed like a truthful woman, even if her speech was strange and spoke of someone who had lived a harsh life, despite the clothing she wore.

"My three don't trust you at all, due to our stance with outsiders and our last distress signal falling into pirate ears. I understand if you refuse, but if you accept I will make it worth your while, and the rest of your comrades on your ship will be welcomed with open arms one justice and truth is brought to light. My people do not have much but we can offer clothing and animals from our lands in exchange for your services."

[And done! There is no posting order, feel free to all start you own threads to ask questions, or butt in each other's threads while they talk back and forth]

Comments

Talking with Nomalanga

[cityship]

As she finished her speech, the woman stood there, waiting to see if they had more questions to ask her. They couldn't stay there too long or ask too many things, but perhaps she might be able to provide them with a a bit of aid. She could also supply them with weapons, if they needed it.

[seesbosscrotch.livejournal.com]

Mar stroked his goatee for a moment. Given that he was in full plate armor right down to thick metal gauntlets, this seemed like it ought to cause some serious pulling, but evidently he could do it without harm.

"Have any of your three had any obvious changes recently? Change of habits? Spending more than it seems like they should have?"

He wasn't used to asking questions of questgivers, but every once in a while you just had to....

[combustible_me]

Ellyn had listened, for her, rather patiently to all the information she'd been given. Nor had she interrupted the hyena-woman's speech. She knew that she wasn't likely to be much help in questioning, unless someone needed a strong arm, but something struck her in the woman's words.

"Ya said ya go down in th' cave ta get water. D'you got markings to direct the pass'ges down there, or d'ya just trust yer familiarity with th' place ta guide you?"

[battorch]

Tim was going to pass on those weapons, thank you.

"Red Robin," he introduced, feeling he should be polite with their hostess, considering her own efforts at diplomacy. "How well do you know each of the three in question?"

Suspect #1 Mekaisto

[cityship]

Mekaisto, much like Nomalanga, was a humanoid animal-like creature, a raven. Petite (standing at around 4'11" at most), prompt and well-dressed, she wore clothing that allowed her easy maneuverability and so that her wings did not get caught the helm of a dress. She had a tiny pair of spectacles hanging on the bridge of her nose, and a few books under her arms.

"I am Nomalanga's secretary, Mekaisto," she explained, looking at them with calm eyes, if annoyed and distrustful. "I've been working with her for the past ten years, ever since she was promoted to governess and then mayoress, once Snively was banished."

She took something from one of her bags that looked like a bright candy, and promptly ate it.

"Oh! I'm sorry. I'm quite fond of sweets. I have a hard time resisting, even when talking. Good thing my kind don't have teeth!" Well it seemed funny enough for her to laugh at her own joke, and loosen her mood. "Hmm yes. Well. Dreadfully sorry again. Perhaps we can talk before you enter the cavern."

Re: Suspect #1 Mekaisto

[zouichi.livejournal.com]

Zouichi gave her a slight bow. "Pleased to meet you, Miss Mekaisto. If you've been with the Mayoress for ten years, you must know her quite well. Are you family friends, or...?"

He paused, then added, "Would you mind telling me in a little more detail about the circumstances under which Snively was banished?"

[combustible_me]

"Beggin' yer pardon, Lady Secretary, but th' Lady Mayor said ya might have a map o' the caverns that ya might be lettin' us borrow?" She curtsied to the bird, and did her best not to loom.

"Be right grateful if ya at least let us take a look at it, if ya'd be so kind."

Suspect #2 Allard

[cityship]

The first thing that was easily noticeable with Allard, was how comical he looked, stuffed in that tight outfit of his. Allard was partly the earth equivalent of a manul cat and the fur spilled out on all sides of his overcoat and he had a rather large gut to accompany it (quite possibly due to beer drinking).

He carried a cane, but didn't seem to need it to walk and stood very upright, giving off an air of nobility. That is until he would regularity stop to spit out the sunflower seeds from his mouth, before cramming more into his mouth, which seemed hard to do with the gloves he wore. He only stopped when the strangers got to him, and he did not look happy about them. He took out his glasses to get a better look at them as they approached.

"Name's Allard," he explained. "I'm Nomalanga main agent. The frontier is pretty cruel and all, and they need a few capable men to pull strings behind to make sure everything is running smoothly. If you have questions, make it quick."

[battorch]

Tim could be succinct, so he'd do just that. He wasn't going to dress this up or dodge around, he'd just ask his questions.

"How long have you worked with the mayoress?"

Suspect #3 Taworri

[cityship]

Taworri was the textbook definition of goon. As Nomalanga's bodyguard the tiger stood at an impressive seven and a half feet tall, easily towering everyone. His ears flickered at the sounds around them, and he kept looking around, looking like he was expecting them to get ambushed. There was a large, almost comical-sized shotgun strapped to his back that could have easily passed off as a bazooka in the hands of anyone else.

The growl that escaped his lips when he saw the party was not welcoming in the least. He adjusted the tie of his outfit, carefully due to his bandaged hand.

"Taworri," he simply stated. "I don't trust you, you don't trust me. Now that we're over that, just ask what you need and be off."

Re: Suspect #3 Taworri

[zouichi.livejournal.com]

Zouichi gave Taworri a brief smile. "Mind if I ask what happened to your hand? Looks pretty nasty."

Re: Suspect #3 Taworri

[battorch]

Well, at least he was upfront and honest about it.

"You obviously spend a lot of time with the mayoress. Have you noticed anything strange lately, from such a close perspective? Even if it doesn't seem particularly noteworthy to you, it may still be helpful."

The Haunted Cavern

[cityship]

The map procured by Ellyn by way of Mekaisto can only be carried by one person. There are places which it abrutly ends - clearly those ways have not been fully explored yet or had dangerous drops. Using the strings, you can easily make your way back here. Therefore, the best course of action is to separate in different parts in groups and mixing if you meet each other and look for additional clues both as to who might be the traitor, along with proof of Snidley's involvement in a plot.

[You are only allowed to visit 3 areas per character each, and they all hold different clues. A few also have hazards so chose carefully! Reply picking out an area for your character, and we'll go from there.]

4

[zouichi.livejournal.com]

[Hopefully I'm doing this right?]

10

[zouichi.livejournal.com]

7

[battorch]

2

[combustible_me]

11

[notadamnangel.livejournal.com]

1

[seesbosscrotch.livejournal.com]

Is this Wailing Caverns? It looks like Wailing Caverns.

5

[battorch]

Because that looks like a dead end and only good things can be in dead ends.

8

[zouichi.livejournal.com]

6

[notadamnangel.livejournal.com]

It was close to 11 and seemed quick to explore.

[cityship]

There is a single fountain. Buckets are found in the center, with the usual dried flowers and glowing plant.

The back wall is light from the plant and appears to be a normal cavern wall. The number of tracks makes it seem like this well is frequently used and it is impossible to just track a single pair.

The Gathering of Clues

[cityship]

Around three hours have passed since you all entered the cave.

Your search has been surprisingly fruitful. You appear to have clues that point to all sorts of culprits, which can mean; some might have been deliberately placed there. Now it is time for all of you to look at them before you go outside and confront the group.

- A note that lead to a kidnapped child in an anrea hidden away by a holographic display
- Static pieces of the two goons below talking
- Two papers in proper, perfect handwriting, both seem to be a series of notes about the town's food and weapon supply, and how they could be used to increase their profits by selectively allowing only some families to have children and train them at a young age. Nomalanga's name is at the bottom.
- A ghost that turned out to be Snivley's father. You have static pieces of him talking
- A bow tie clasp with the letter T on it.
- A large dagger taken from a bear's back that is too large for most normal folks to use
- A cravat with Taworri's name spun in silken string.
- Sketches of jars with notes of their contents and symbols.
- Ammunition from one of the rifles
- A rifle without any name or indication of where it came rfom
- Vials of red and blue, black and white powders
- A book with pages of notes and a few decodable things as far as you're concerned.
- A piece of paper with the names Lioness Tavern, Beer Pub, Red Rose

Now all you need to do is to think who might be guilty. Keep in mind what you know of each character, what they have said, and what they wear. Keep in mind where each clue was found.

Then, perhaps, you might be able to make more sense of this puzzle.

You also have a strong ace up your sleeves with the safety of a returned child.

Re: The Gathering of Clues

[zouichi.livejournal.com]

Back at the rendezvous point, Zouichi took a brief moment now that they'd rescued the kid to see if the two town pieces of paper fit into the torn-out portions of the book. "I found the two papers implicating Nomalanga in a damp area, covered with dry soil, at a location that seemed like it received a lot of foot traffic," he said. "But in the context of what the kidnappers said (http://trans-9.livejournal.com/836167.html?thread=67988039#t67988039), it seems doubtful that Nomalanga is the one cooperating with Snidely. I'd guess that it was hastily placed where someone could easily find it, to sow distrust."

"I found the rifle, jars, and book among a large stockpile of firearms. My guess would be that the rifles were left there by Snidely's confederates; they do no one on Nomalanga's side any good while hidden in secret."

"The book does concern me, though. If we assume its owner was someone working with Snidely, it suggests that Snidely's plan was already found out by a member of Nomalanga's team before we arrived. The 'false... scatter' might be referring to the scattering of false clues around the cavern."

He paused. "I suggest this explanation: One of Nomalanga's three was working with Snidely. When Allard uncovered the plot, a plan was set in motion to kidnap his child to buy his silence, and false clues were scattered in the caverns to confuse the issue."

Of course, what he really wanted to do was mix the red and blue powders together. Just, you know. To see what would happen.

(OOC - Placing your bets here)

[cityship]

[Okay this is just an area for fun where you all post your guesses as who is guilty or not and how and why. Then we can get on to the final part.]

Re: (OOC - Placing your bets here)

[zouichi.livejournal.com]

IT WAS THE BUTLER

I'm rooting for Allard being involved but coerced into the plot because his kid was kidnapped, and Mekaisto at least being the accomplice. :|a

The final confrontation and the plot revealed

[cityship]

Their guesses done, it was time to talk to all four of them. Of course, the importance of who to address first, what information to withhold until ready and who to hold on to to make sure they didn't escape was just as important.

[[Only start posting here when you're ready!]]

[battorch]

It seemed to be the general consensus that they begin with Allard-- they had the biggest bargaining chip when it came to him, and the most to go off of. And considering his (unintentionally?) dropped hint at the very beginning of the mission, he was also the most likely to talk. They could approach him to get him to tell his side of things, and his testimony would likely provide a solid backing for their interrogations of the others.

"Allard," Tim said, flatly, as he approached the man with the others. He was careful to not let his voice betray accusation, but also to not sound totally at ease either. Even if Allard was likely a victim here, he didn't want to play his hand too early. "We wanted to speak to you about something we found. We were wondering if you could shed some light on the matter."