Game 96 - Trial 1 Results

[Peregrine]

The discussion, now raised to a frightening pitch, is suddenly cut short by a booming voice:




"Everyone, it's time to stop!"


All the heads in the room nervously turn to face Monotuff.




"I think we can all see this discussion has reached its end! With that in mind, I think it's time we ask once and for all... who's the Meanie?"


A chorus of voices tinged with anger and fear arise from the congregation, cries of a single name overpowering the din, until they're interrupted again:




"Enough! This is how we will decide: raise your paw if you really, really think Emolga is the Meanie who... who... killed Rayquaza!"


Several hands and paws shoot up immediately. More rise moments later, and several others in the room shut their eyes as they slowly, meekly raise their arm. With every vote, Emolga feels his body grow colder and colder...



When all is said and done, 12 hands and paws are raised in morbid solidarity.



After a cruel, prolonged moment of contemplation, Monotuff once again speaks.




"Well, then. I guess it's decided! If that's how you really feel, it's time for the reveal... 🎵Results! Results! 🎵"


"Emolga, the Super Duper Expert Glider, is..."

SPOILER: Click to show

{Spoiler}
The Meanie!



Grimaces and looks of shock and disbelief adorn the apprentices' faces.





"A real Meanie, and how! We were supposed to be... friends. Friendly friends! But now... one of our friends is gone..."


A period of deafening silence falls over the room. The atmosphere is grim.

Emolga grips his podium and cries out , "I... I can explain!"




"*Sniff* ...Explain? There's an explanation for this...?"




"Well, then we'd be glad to hear it! You should always apologize for doing bad things, after all!"

---

The Punishment will begin shortly.

Good luck!

[crazynuto]

For once in his life, Emolga isn't flying around. He stands up on the podium and looks over the crowd of Pokemon, a sad expression on his face.

---

"Honestly, I first want to apologize to Rayquaza and Arcanine. I let my own ego blind me and I did some awful things to the both of you. Yes, you were correct Arcanine. Every thing you said was right. I did it.

This idea of revenge started after I failed a trick in front of everyone. I couldn't figure out what happened. Was it nerves? Or maybe I just wasn't as good as I thought? But I took a look at the Info Board and I realized that it was Rayquaza's fault I failed. I tried to shake off the feeling but I kept thinking, "If only that dumb Rayquaza wasn't here, I could show off how cool I am to everyone".

I know, a pretty petty reason to do something like this. But looking cool is what I cherish most in life.

Still, after I...did it I couldn't stop thinking about how nice Rayquaza had been to me. It wasn't his fault he had that dumb Ability. I really should've just talked with him and maybe come up with some kinda solution. But well, it's too late now."

---

Emolga wipes away a few tears and puts on a brave face.

---

"S-Still, I don't plan on going out sad! I'll give you all one last trick, my magnum opus just you wait! That way you can remember me and Rayquaza for how cool we were, and forget about these dumb mistakes."

---

He gives a thumbs up, his arm shaking slightly.

[Vaellin the Bard]

Mel beams. "I'm sure you'll be fine. Next time maybe you can do some tricks at my concert! Then we can share a spotlight--both beautiful and cool!"

[Evie The Bat]

Evie laughs a little and says

"Well you sound optimistic at least. I'm not sure what'll happen next however, you did kill someone."

[crazynuto]

---

"Thanks Meloetta. I appreciate it. I hope someday we get to rock out together."

---

[ruah]

"just because they had an ability you didnt like isnt a reason to hurt a friend" Bayleef says holding tears back from someone doing something so bad."and doing something hurtful is never cool"

[Peregrine]

A sharp clap is heard, bringing everyone's attention back to Monotuff.




"Okay, everyone! We've heard his explanation, yes? Though I really do regret it, I'm afraid I have no choice."

---

"I get it. My... my apprenticeship's over, right? I guess I should just—"

---

The ground begins to rumble gently.




"Our Code of Conduct states that as of now, Emolga's apprenticeship with our guild is done and dusted... and that it is!"


The shaking beneath the apprentice's feet grows stronger.

---

"H-hey, wait, what's going on here—"

---

"You had everything you needed to be a great explorer... but I'm sorry to say you are no longer welcome in our guild!"


The trembling grows ever more violent...

---

"...what do I tell Mom?"

---

*BOOM*



The back wall explodes in a violent shower of stone and wood, a thick, grey cloud whirling through the room. When the dust settles and the startled apprentices open their eyes, a dark tunnel stands before them, extending far beyond the back wall...

Before he can react, Emolga suddenly lifts off the ground, his legs kicking with all their strength before he is frozen, as if he were bound completely in mid-air.




"As Guildmaster of this guild, I declare the apprenticeship of Emolga, the Super Duper Expert Glider... over! Yoom... TAH!!!"


With blinding speed, Emolga is thrust backwards, a look of panic and confusion on his face. Within seconds, he is out of view, his cries a distant echo.

A moment of hesitation passes among the remaining apprentices, before the guildmaster's voice pipes up again.




"Would the rest of you join me for a little field trip?"


Unsure of what to do, the dazed apprentices follow along behind Monotuff as he exits the trial room, up the stairs they entered from.

Under the glistening starscape of night, whose gentle beauty clashes harshly with the weight of the apprentices' moods, Monotuff leads them to a large tent, and enters.

Marching across the floor of stone and dirt, the group arrives at two archways, one of which is blocked by a thick, iron-clad door. With tremendous effort, Monotuff pushes the massive gate open, revealing behind it...


...clouds and blue skies.


The apprentices stand warily on a rocky cliff-face overlooking what looks like a titanic canyon. Some struggle to keep themselves in place, as strong winds blow across the length of the great gulch. Far above, no more than a speck in the distance, the apprentices suddenly spot Emolga, still suspended in mid-air, crying out, though his voice cannot carry over the harsh winds.





"Welcome, everyone, to a little something I like to call..."

SPOILER: Click to show

{Spoiler}
The Expulsion of Emolga: Watch For Falling Debris!


Emolga is suddenly released from his invisible bindings, and falls a short distance. His reflexes quickly kick in, however, and he manages to pull up. The strong winds buffet him in every direction, and while he struggles to keep himself upright, such a feat is trivial for an Expert Glider such as himself.

A loud rumbling is heard, as Emolga looks up at the stone cliffs above the apprentices—he lets out a cry of panic and swoops out of the way, just in time to avoid a massive boulder, which barrels down from above and crashes heavily into the ground far, far below. He tucks his arms in, clearly aiming to return to the platform the other apprentices are standing on, but the winds continually push him back.

Another loud rumbling.

He pulls back hard, narrowly dodging an enormous chunk of carved marble.

Another rumble. Then another.

The strain shows on Emolga's face as he swerves and dodges piece after huge piece of debris, as it gradually becomes a constant torrent of stone. Suddenly, the edge of a rock grazes his shoulder with a sickening crack, and he's sent into a tumbling nosedive. With the last of his strength and an expression of agony on his face, the wounded flyer forces his cracked arm to catch the wind, and he soars further forward, inch by inch...

The apprentices, shocked by the horrid display, can't help but let out cheers and encouragements as Emolga draws ever closer to them—


Crunch.


The remains of a thick granite pillar land hard on top of him, and in an instant, the expert glider is swept out of view. The pillar slams into the ground with a dull, resounding thud, and the wind finally dies down somewhat. The less squeamish apprentices brave a glance over the edge of their platform, and see the long, long way down...

...nothing but a red stain.

Content warning: graphic descriptions of struggle and death.

[Evie The Bat]

Evie is at a loss for words, her cheery demeanor completely gone. She doesnt fully understand what just happened.

[⋆⋅ Sage ⋅⋆]

Vigoroth stares at the blood, transfixed. He doesn’t smile, but he certainly isn’t frowning, either. Gently, he reaches down to ruffle Slakoth’s head and cover his eyes, never shifting his gaze from the fatality in front of him.

[Vaellin the Bard]

Mel's eyes widen and they pull back, nervous. Dear Arceus, the guild master is insane.

[⋆⋅ Sage ⋅⋆]

Once the shock wears off, Vigoroth looks up and remembers that Monotuff orchestrated this.

“Wait just a Kumaing! second. There’s no way I’m spending another Kumaing! goddamn night under the same roof as this psycho! No way!” He turns to Slaking. “Dad, you need to get us the Kuma! out of here!”

[jash]

Nov 8, 2020 16:34:21 GMT -6 ⋆⋅ Sage ⋅⋆ said:

Once the shock wears off, Vigoroth looks up and remembers that Monotuff orchestrated this.

“Wait just a Kumaing! second. There’s no way I’m spending another Kumaing! goddamn night under the same roof as this psycho! No way!” He turns to Slaking. “Dad, you need to get us the Kuma! out of here!”

"I'm sorry son, but to be honest we have no where else to go. Our tree was taken away from us cause I haven't made mortgage payments for a few months, and so taking this job that comes with room and board is really our only option. Plus aren't you always saying how you wanna die, so I don't see why it's such a big deal for you. Buck up champ. You gotta be strong for your little bro."

[Evie The Bat]

Evie, after gaining more of her composure back just sort of asks to no one in particular

"So this is what happens to the Meanie when we are right...what wouldve happened if we were wrong?"

[Tetsu]

Ark stood there and looks away.

“I...feel bad...this...this shouldn’t have happened...not like this.”

Ark then began to Howl in sadness

[Ktoasty]

Sandshrew's Explorer Journal

1. Apprenticeship is Dangerous

Today was my first day at the guild. I was really enjoying myself, it was amazing to meet new friends, but things took a turn for the worse all too quickly. One of my fellow apprentices, Rayquaza, was killed by another newcomer. We had to hold a trial to find their killer, and we succeeded but at a terrible cost. I feel like I need to write the story down or it will haunt my nightmares tonight.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Spoiler}


The killer began their plan to murder after our big dinner. Everyone left one by one, thanking Chatot on the way out, but the killer had other business to do in the Mess Hall by themselves. They saw their target Rayquaza leave up the ladder, then they went to the fountain for their first task. After so many goodbyes, I imagine Chatot would need a long drink though, and the killer already wasn't on good terms with the bird. They kicked him out, sending Chatot flying to the upper tent, and got to filling their backpack to the brim with water.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Spoiler}


They still needed more items for the murder, tools to frame someone else for the crime. The killer would usually fly quickly, but the heavy water meant they had to walk the bag all the way to my and Arcanine's room. Unluckily, Arcanine was already there himself, and he got attacked with a Nuzzle to get paralyzed while the killer took his items. They grabbed his orange bow and some hay from his bed to set Arcanine up for murder, then hid all the items in their own room until Rayquaza was back.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Spoiler}


The killer flew up to Sublevel 1 and waited there with others to create an alibi for themselves until they saw Rayquaza fly back down the ladder. Rayquaza went to their own room to take a nap, but another wrongdoer caught the dragon before the killer could. I noticed Spiritomb was... a bit damp around the edges of their spiral. The urination we discovered on Rayquaza and coating their room was likely caused by the ghost's pinwheel technique. Meanwhile, the killer was already flying down to grab their tools to murder.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Spoiler}


The killer lurked in the shadows until Spiritomb left back to their own bedroom, then snuck into Rayquaza's bedroom to kill them. They splashed Rayquaza with the bag full of water and dropped the bits of hay down the path of attack to imitate tinder for a fire attack. Then they struck the legendary serpent with a Thunderbolt to put an end to their life forever. To finish off the crime, they placed Arcanine's orange bow inside Rayquaza's mouth for framing, and they swapped their backpacks to avoid any water sloshing later on that could incriminate them.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Spoiler}


The rest of the night was for the killer to keep up their alibi. They flew all the way up to the outside, planning to jam out to Wobbuffet's rapping skills until bedtime. The killer didn't account for their guildmates using air-based moves though, now that Air Lock wasn't a problem. The first instance by Feebas clued us in for the time of death when she used Icy Wind right after the murder. The second and probably most important was Vigoroth's Uproar that brought us all together at the Guildmaster's door. If it wasn't for him, the killer could have destroyed all of the incriminating evidence in our sleep, making for an impossible murder.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Spoiler}


That's how they did it, all because of that Air Lock ability. The killer was you. . .

SPOILER: Click to show

{Spoiler}

Lightning McReine, Expert Glider

I didn't want to believe it, he was one of my first friends at the guild. I guess I didn't know him that well at all, and now I'll never get to know him. The Guildmaster has proven, with his own actions, that apprenticeship is dangerous at his guild. I hope I never see another day that someone breaks one of his rules.