trial #4 - execution

[judgejudy]

DAY 8 (evening) Complex Population: 19 At 7PM, a tone rings out, but it's not Judy's voice that filters out over the intercom. "TALLYING VOTES. . ." The voice is mechanical and robotic, and a pause lingers in the air. It seems that the voting system is run by some kind of AI. "CONSENSUS REACHED. MAJORITY VOTE. RHYS, EMPLOYEE ID VTSCI62270894. STATUS: GUILTY. RHYS, PROCEED TO THE JUDGEMENT THEATER. CHARGING..." There's the sound of clicking, and Rhys will receive a very sharp shock to their ankle monitor. If they don't step into the judgement room, the shock will increase in strength every ten seconds until they're unconscious. Regardless, the voice continues to drone on. "DESIGNATING EXECUTIONER. . . AL—" The protocol starts, but cuts off abruptly. Instead, Judy's voice speaks up. "Consider this an official notification for the entire population. If you feel a noose tightening around your neck, I am at least accommodating. If there is someone in particular you want to take your life, I can override the selection protocol for that purpose. Perhaps next time, Alice, since Rhys has requested Jack. Please proceed to the judgement theater." No one else will be able to step into the judgement theater after them without receiving a nasty shock before they can step too close, and once they're both inside, the door closes behind both of them. There's a clicking sound from the walls, and the panels on the right side of the room are pulled up to reveal a thick glass that allows you to look into the Judgement Theater. It seems justice is meant to come from the the hands of the jury. — ic rulebook character statuses character profiles votes

Comments

[jackhole]

[ my god is he getting tired of this. he pulls the scalpel off his wrist for a moment to sigh very loudly because holy shit. ]

Oh my god, I don't care? I can't stress enough how much I don't care. You're just -- you're trying to manipulate me, you know? Trying to bait me but. There's only two people who can do that to me after -- after everything and one of them is already dead back there.

[ the other one, rhys thinks, isn't here. he finds himself intensely grateful for that since, well, he doesn't want fiona to see him like this. he'd rather continue to be a good memory for her than a bad one. ]

So, tell me the truth or you're not going to get anything and Angel will die. You tell me the truth and I'll tell you --

[ a pause and he looks delighted for a moment. ]

I'll tell you what you need to do to leave. You won't get that information even if you let me kill Angel, huh? Why do you think you've all been dying in the first place?

[tearable]

[ Fucking deal with it????? Rhys be a patient killer, please. Angel is concerned and she shoots her a glance. There's hesitance there. She's trying so hard - she sees Angel collared... and there's regret. There's memories there. There's .. too much for her to feel. She lifts a hand to Angel, trying to soothe her.

Elizabeth knows... how Angel feels. How she wants to do good. How she wants to... just be free. She won't selfishly deny her that, but - ]

It's alright - no, they won't get what they ask for because that's not how the cards fell into play.

[ She snaps back to Rhys. ]

Coincidentally, your little buddy back there - [ Sorry, Jack. ] - he told me everything. He told me how he was using you to get a ticket out of here.

[ Elizabeth can't get close to Rhys without getting shocked, but she points to him for a second. He wants the truth? Okay. ]

What information are you trying to hold over our head, Rhys? That only five people can leave the complex alive?

[ Elizabeth's finger turns into a bird, flipping him the fuck off. ]

Jack told me a long time ago, you son of a bitch.

[jackhole]

[ the more elizabeth talks, the more rhys looks exhausted and bored and just groans, letting his head fall back and placing his hand over his eyes. ]

Seriously, I knew that. I assumed he told you and his other friend -- uh, who was it. Sakyou? Yeah. Jack's got a big mouth and loyalty to no one except himself. You look at who he hangs out with and you know who knows your secrets. That's just -- that's just Jack, plain and simple.

[ and just like that, he jams the scalpel really deeply into his arm to shock angel. he grits his teeth with a frown before -- ]

Again. Stop baiting me. I know Jack was using me. I don't care? That's just what he does. I still want to know who told you since I know your sources were someone else. Do it, already, stop wasting my time. And I'll tell you something aside from the five.

[tearable]

There is no who. Jack hacked the damn terminal and lo and behold, your dirty receipts were plain as day!

[ Elizabeth looks scared now, glancing between Rhys and Angel. There's going to be bloodshed and she can only hope Angel is spared. She's cutting the bullshit and if no one can catch her in time, she's going to probably stumble forward until she's electrocuted a fair amount. Pls save her. ]

Blame Judy for keeping a log on everything. The amount of items you took from the commissary was far more than anyone else. It was a stockpile and - heh. You just couldn't cover your tracks well enough.

[jackhole]

[ rhys just gives a shake of his head and again, looks exhausted like nothing liz is telling him here is new. ]

No, I knew that. That's just -- that's Jack, seriously. He's weak when it comes to a hot, aggressive woman. Spine like dust, morals go out the window. So seriously, can we stop talking about Jack? He's irrelevant here.

[ HE'S GETTING TIRED OF THIS... he's already done with jack, so can they like. stop. he doesn't care. ]

No, I want to know who else you talked to. Also, I knew about Judy too so? Yeah.

[tearable]

Just like Luke, you're not getting the answer you want to hear.

[ Elizabeth doesn't break her eye contact with Angel now. There's a sympathy in her eyes, something that she feels genuinely towards the other woman. She was dead, like her. She was caged, like her. ]

I talked to no one and if you're that much of a child, I can lie to you if you'd like. Tell you Judy told me everything and whispered little nothings in my ear.

I told you what you wanted to know - [ She glances back to Rhys out of her eyes, even if the shocks started when she got close. ] - l-let her go.

[jackhole]

[ there we go, a straight answer even if still mildly insulting. rhys looks at her with a narrowed gaze before letting out a slow breath and asking, not to elizabeth, but to judy. ]

Judy, in the context of Elizabeth discovering my identity as staff, is she telling the truth or is she still omitting things from my knowledge? My identity as staff, for the record. Not the others.

[judgejudy]

She is telling the truth, Rhys.

[ There's a pause, and Judy adds: ]

In addition, I will be unlocking the door shortly. There is only so long I can keep it locked before decontamination procedures will begin.

[tearable]

Thanks, Judy. You're a hell of a gal.

[ There's a sarcastic twang and instead, she points to Angel. ]

Let. Her. Go. If you want to die so badly, get the show on the road, but follow up your end of the deal.

[jackhole]

[ just gonna rub his face here and right. okay. hm. ]

... Okay, cool.

[ and then he lifts his hand and fiddles at the collar a little before there's a clicking sound and it drops to the floor. the one on angel does the same thing too. ]

Now, god. Okay. I really wanted to answer some questions but someone had to keep trying to argue with me. Judy, can you give them... ten minutes? Ten minutes to ask me stuff and then I die and we're good. Uh, on the condition that Elizabeth doesn't ask anything since she's sort of wasting everyone's time here.

[tearable]

I don't even want to talk to you, mister. Please kill yourself.

[ OH MY GOD, WE ARE ALL SO TIRED!!! ]

Thanks being a man of your word.

[ And she's off to Angel. Rhys, you can rest from Liz. ]

[injectors]

[for the record

angel is going to marry elizabeth???

what a gal]

[tearable]

[ if i cant bang jack, ill bang his daughter. god bless. ]

[judgejudy]

Ten minutes, Rhys. Though it seems I will not need to do anything about your secondary request.

[selfdenying]

[HEY JERK HE'S BACK, ALFENDI RETURNS 2: ELECTRIC BOOGALOO]

Why the hell is the staff killing us? And I don't want some vague bullshit, answer the damn question.

[jackhole]

[ HE'LL TAKE AN ALFENDI OVER THAT NONSENSE. he just taps his temple here, shrugging. ]

I can't answer directly because I don't know. I forgot. But I remembered enough that I think it's part of the things all of us have forgotten.

[selfdenying]

What?

[That's....ugh, whatever, he should've expected this kind of thing.]

What's the deal with our memories, then? How do we get them back?

[liven]

Unless you plan to tell us who your compatriots are or who any of the other killers are, feel free to kill yourself. It isn't as though any of us care about anything else.

[ or at least shijima doesn't since: ]

This has long since felt like an ego trip...I don't see why we have to entertain it.

[jackhole]

I can't do that, Judy's going to stop me if I do. I would though, because I'm kind of mad at them for being dicks to me.

[ a shrug ]

And -- and it wasn't supposed to be. I just wanted to go out decently.

[liven]

Decently.

[ she drawls out the word. glances towards angel and elizabeth. alice had gotten shocked earlier, too, trying to defend elizabeth. shijima still hasn't bothered to learn everyone's names, but she does know the names of everyone in her room. and they take priority.

accordingly, she's acerbically furious. ]

...Well, I think that was a failure, but if you have anything you think we should ask you by all means give us the question so we can move on.

[selfsufficiency]

[Alice has been glaring at him this whole time because fuck you, Rhys, she wanted to kill you. But now that he's opened the floor for questions - ]

If I give you three names, will you confirm whether or not one of them is one of the other staff members? You don't have to say which one. A yes or no will do just fine.

[jackhole]

[ he seems to consider this for a moment. ]

I... want to but I think if I try, Judy will just electrocute me. I'm not supposed to reveal identities. Or give hints. I think the only one I can control the information on is my own.

[selfsufficiency]

You're about to die anyway. You could at least try and leave a clue or two.

[Phooey. Alice glares for a little bit longer before she raises her arm so he can see it and mimes carving out a letter over her vein.

...Judy can hear them. Can she see them? Will he be able to carve out the first letter of a staff member's name in his arm? Is he even smart enough to get what she's going for here? She doesn't have a whole lot of faith in him but since she was denied the chance to execute someone, she feels like he owes her. I'm so sorry.]

[injectors]

[Now that she's free, she's rubbing her neck and glaring spades at this fucking asshole. There's so much she wants to say. So much she wants to ask, but. There isn't enough time, and there's only one thing she needs to know at this moment.]

I'm sure your eager to send yourself to Hell, Rhys, but before that— [Not even going to apologize for her language. She's tired. She's angry. She's done.] You told Jack that Elpis doesn't exist. Was that the truth?

[jackhole]

[ a dismissive handwave here ]

It's not hell, it's better than this.

[ but right. angel's from their world, isn't she? he looks a little awkward here. ]

Yeah. My memories are a bit of a jumble but, yeah? I'm... mostly sure Elpis isn't real. I haven't had a chance to really figure out the rest though since I only found out last night.