The Unfinished Duet, part 8

Log Info

• Title: The Unfinished Duet, part 8
• Emitter: Delilah
• Characters: Ashes, Elyanna, Donna, Seldan, Merek, Donna
• Place: A16: Nobility District - The Courts
• Time: Thursday, November 12, 2020, 4:32 PM
• Summary: Recess is called. Ash, Ely and Donna discuss options, and who else might have killed Bethany. The magistrate calls everyone back. Delilah's dragonspitter is submitted as evidence. Most of the defense have nothing to say about it. Merek disassembles it, finding incriminating evidence he doesn't share, and Ash examines the bullets, finding nothing.

-=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--<* A16: Nobility District *>--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=-

The Noble District contains the vast majority of the government offices, guild headquarters, noble headquarters and political functions of the city. All the splendor of technology, eclectic energy and bustling of the city-state of Alexandria flow outwards from the towering structures of this district. The very air here thrums with importance. The architecture is pompous and enourmous, consisting of mutli-leveled edifices and great justting towers. Buildings seem to grow out of the very mountains, and hanging gardens and mana lamps are strewn about. Everything is insular, self-contained and aiming upwards, reaching for the freedom of the sky but grasping only the hubris of the self-important. The grand towers stretch heavenwards, compensating for the lack of leadership. High in the skies above, activity of all sorts is a constant, with ships small and large moving towards Skygates, and Griffon Riders flitting from perch to perch.

The fortress-castle, Castellum Alexandrae, is here. Ever eastward and the focus of much of the foot and flying traffic. The nobility is concerned over their lost leader and focus their efforts on restoring him to his throne. The rest of the city is left in the hands of the idealistic and corrupt guards and the mercenary adventurers they hire when things get too tough.

-=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=-

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=  Appearing, in Recess  =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Ashes        5'11"    177 Lb     Hobgoblin         Female    A somber arvec in grey clothes with a skull face
Donna        5'4"     106 Lb     Human             Female    A black-haired human girl in black robes.
Elyanna      5'11"    153 Lb     Half-Orc          Female    A grim, Arvek-blooded woman in raven feathers.
-=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=  Joining, in Court =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Seldan       5'11"    187 Lb     Human             Male      Ginger-blonde human in armor wearing Eluna's symbol.
Merek        5'10"    215 Lb     Human             Male      A black-haired, dusky male with golden eyes.
-=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=  As the GM  -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Delilah      5'4"     106 Lb     Human             Female    A golden haired human girl in white robes.
-=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=

The Magistrate Daverin lifts her gavel and abruptly slams it into its pedestal, bringing the current discussion to a sudden silence. She leans back in her seat, and holds the hammer up in front of her. "We shall have a recess," she states. "Tempers are flaring, and that will not do. Miss Valethor must have a fair trial. We shall return to these proceedings shortly. Miss Valethor, remain where you are." Not that Delilah has a choice, she's chained there. "All other parties may vacate the room and discuss amongst yourselves."

Out in the Hallway, the ashen Arvec is smoking and staring at it. The wispy tendrils snake up towards the ceiling, the edges curling in on themselves. Her breathing is slow and steady. Very slow, very steady.

Nearby guards glance at her, but say nothing. As do people passing in the hall. There's something about the mourner that makes people want to naturally avoid her, and standing there staring like she's death and looking up her next target isn't increasing her attractiveness.

"How would it go, if I magically cast two Dragonspitter reports to see how fast a witness pops out of that court?" Ashlee says, asking the smoke. The smoke immediately swirls and curls into a trail heading down the hallway. Woe. Definitely Woe.

"Don't do that," says an approaching guard. Who might have been the source of the air-currents.

Inside the court, the Magistrate calls a recess.

Woe indeed. Elyanna seems vaguely annoyed as she emerges from the courtroom, and adjusts the collar of her new attire, the curl of her lip baring several sharp, interlocked teeth.

She walks in at a choice moment, and half-growls an even, "Don't do what....?" before looking quizzically at Ashes. Her approach begins soon after.

As recess is called, Donna leans her elbows on the table, dropping her face into her hands for a moment. Heaving a long, shuddering sigh, the brawler rubs her face, then squares her shoulders and gets up from her chair. Pausing at Delilah's seat, the dark twin murmurs a quiet "'s gonna be okay, D." before leaving the courtroom.

Once out in the relative informality of the lobby, Donna clenches a fist hard enough to pop knuckles from pressure alone, then makes her way to her fellow defense, slowly relaxing her hand. "...So is she lookin' as fucked to anyone else as she is to me?" "Fire a Dragonspitter in the hallway," the guard answers Elyanna, and makes a waggling finger gesture at Ashlee, before returning to his post.

The mourner stares at him, then looks at Donna and Elyanna, "Yes."

She exhales a long puff of smoke. "The Magistrate set aside the evidence that proves her innocence. The prosecution keeps bringing up irrelevant details attempting to prove their conjecture. The potential corruption of the authority involved is ignored."

"The knight-commander is not on trial, but his competency and methods should be."

"If I take your meaning, yes." Elyanna replies softly.

There is a quick nod toward the guard on his clarification, though the finger wagging is a question for another time. She looks to the Mourner first, then Donna, "I do not grasp the rules, here." she remarks, but, "I agree with your assessment." Her arms fold in lieu of fiddling with her blade, "Aside from a happy accident, I do not see a way to turn this around."

Donna looks from Ashes to Elyanna, jaw flexing for a moment, then closes her eyes. "...Well shit. I woulda been nice to have some kinda hope, but... fuckit, work with what I got I guess."

"Seldan has scry'd Ella's location. Merek can teleport and plane shift." Ashlee states in monotone, "They could bring her in, then her night with your sister would be beyond reproach and they'd have nothing."

She's returns to staring at the wall, and her smoke, "I don't either. The prosecution presents first, and we introduce reasonable doubt. That's how it's done in Blar except when it's a military tribunal and everyone knows the person is guilty."

"Can I cast silence on the prosecution when I'm asking questions, so they don't interrupt?" It's not clear who, or what, is being asked this. Her fellow dependents, or the smoke.

There is a grim nod from Elyanna, "In Bludgun, there are few trials." She turns to look between the two women, though she finally leans against the wall, "I expect overtly preventing his objection would harm our defense, as much as his voice angers me."

Steel eyes swivel, then to Donna, then half lid for a moment or two as she tries to consider the woman's dilemma in a less intellectual way, then, "The first part of righting the ship is realizing it is tilted. It has not sunk, yet. There have been concessions given us so far, if only for appearance of equity. We just need to figure out how to properly exploit the opening." she offers in what she intends to be a soothing tone.

Back toward Ashes the Keeper's attention swings, "Why have they waited, then?"

"Hell if I know," Donna murmurs. "This whole mess is so far outta my league I'm just wishin' they'd get it over with already, so's I can do somethin' that makes sense."

"Maybe that's where they are now." Ash replies in monotone. Her cigarello is burning down. Her centipede remains around her neck, hugging with his body, and her lizard clip-earring remembers earlier days when he had many more things to do besides chew on a goblinoid ear.

"The prosecution also hasn't resolved how she got enspelled without seeing it. She was hit in the front. The caster must have been silhouetted." The mourner looks at the enforcer, "Right? From how she fell? The attacker was closer to the street and the lights, not deeper in?"

"So I think there are two who did it."

Goblinoid ears lend themselves to a certain amount of nibbling.

Elyanna pushes off from the wall, then, and reaches out for Donna's shoulder, still trying to be reassuring, within her limits.

When Ashlee speaks again, she nods her way, "Also, he tried to wrest the time after I mentioned the writ, and slip past the bullet to the dragonspitter."

"Okay? So how do these questions help us, then?" Donna asks, raking scarred hands through her hair as Elyanna does her best to reassure. "I'm really tryin' here, so... what's this get us?"

The dark sister's state has not escaped Ashlee's attention. She isn't sure what to do about it. She considers breaking out the big sympathy guns, telling her that everything will be all right, but she's already used that and it wasn't terribly effective. She would ensure that she got to tend Delilah's body, and her head, and do a good job on her makeup. This likely isn't the happy news the mourner believes it might be.

"I don't know. I doubt his assignment to that writ was any more random than the trial date moving up and him being chosen to deliver the news."

"And he handled handled the bullets, the dragonspitter, and Delilah's bullets after his minions gave him a report to sign that identified her and her weapon being involved." Ashlee states, "but that is gold standard investigation. It's all irrelevant. You know she wasn't there. I know she wasn't capable of the magic. Someone else did it, end of story. We need to prove who that was."

Elyanna lingers with Donna, absorbing what her countrywoman says and gives a tiny, conceeding dip of the hin. "It may get us a modicum of time. That they had to flee behind this recess means our efforts have some traction, even if we are dragging the wagon uphill."

"So," Donna says slowly, brows furrowing, "in order to keep this farce from goin' through, we gotta find out who did it, prove it, an' present them in front o' court? Like, *now?*"

"Hopefully. And yes."

The cigarello has burnt down, but it gets a second life as Ash flips her fingers through a quick prestidigtation and turns it into a marker. She walks to the wall, draws a circle. She moves over and draws a second, intersecting the first. A rough venn diagram. Over the left one she writes: Kill Bethany; over the right one she writes: Frame Delilah.

She pokes the intersection.

"Whoever fits should be looked at. Delilah here yes, here no. Bethany here no, here yes." Ashlee taps one side, then the other. She writes a 'N' in the intersection, "Who else?"

Elyanna grumbles somewhat, "I should have brought my whips." then, she arches an eyebrow, looking more toward Donna who would be more likely to know, "Was Bethany the heiress apparant?" she shrugs her shoulders and rolls her neck a little bit, "Perhaps the guard bred with the sister, and Bethany revealed that she knew of the affair?"

She turns and approaches Ashes graph and sets a hand on her hip, "Unfortunately, we need much more information."

"I don't know!" Donna says, throwing up her hands. "All I know about her's she was a spoiled bitch who had to be forced to pay a gambling marker, 'n then tried to take us to court over it!"

Ashlee moves to the side of the 'Kill Bethany', and makes some marks. 'L', 'R', 'F', 'O'. Lorf, or Flor, or... it doesn't anagram into anything useful. She recites, "Lovers. Rivals. Family. Other."

She moves beside 'Frame Delilah', and writes the same letters. "Other, is a hired killer. That would trace back to the three, or she stepped in the middle of a drug deal or an Animus Shard exchange or something."

The mourner stares at Donna, unblinking, her skull face hiding all expression. "Any rivals in common between you and Bethany? Any Lovers?"

"Did you kill her?"

Elyanna frowns, but takes the outburst from Donna without any more response than a slight glower of irritation. Perhaps her own frustration is finally wearing her down. The red woman turns sidelong to the diagram and takes out the writ to see if perhaps it lists the sum owed. As Ashes's final question comes from her lips, the halfbreed's eyes freeze for a second, then flick toward the Mourner with brows knit.

Ashlee's round of questions prompt what might have been another tirade, but Donna squelches more than the first syllable, loosing the rest in a growling, frustrated sigh. Glancing around the lobby, she picks a guard at random, and nods in his general direction. "We had 'bout as much to do with each other as you do with that guard over there. If I *had* anythin' in common with'r, I'd'a walked away from it just to escape the association. And no. No I didn't, 'cos I was *expecting* to beat her in court, so she'd finally stop harping all over us."

Ashlee makes a few more marks, 'HA?' and 'PS' on Bethany's side, for Hieress Apparent and Pregnant Sister. There was a name, but the woman was still alive so the mourner forgot it. She crosses out 'F' on the Delilah's side; Donna has been distraught throught everything, and never really a suspect. The hobgoblin is meerly being thorough and isn't very delicate.

Althought it would be a very interesting defense if there was a surprise confession. Almost worth letting them reel out the rope with their contrived story, then springing that. Almost.

"Sorry. If you had, that would be reasonable enough doubt to let your sister go, but they would likely kill both of you so the innocent didn't escape." It's kind of an apology.

"I meant the guilty."

She gathers her thoughts, bites her lip. Her lizard bites her ear. Chippen considers biting her throat, but he's not a vampire and Ashlee might pass out. "Bethany's side then. Who loves her, who hates her, who in her family has something to gain if she dies?"

Elyanna shakes her head, "I had thought perhaps the writ originally was a summons to resolve the marker, especially after that Sergeant verified it to be in order in the Ironbrew, i presumed the court date would be a probable win for your sister, destroying greed as a motive. After all, if the law was going to make a debtor finally pay me, killing the debtor the night before would be beyond assanine."

She considers the Arvek's menagerie, particularly the hors d'oeuvre on her ear, but doesn't ask. A little shake of the head, then, "While acerbic the one occaision I saw her, she was also capable of courtes as I understand it, here. I am uncertain how many enemies she would be likely to have."

"......I mean, that's great," Donna sighs, pressing the heel of one hand to her eye. "But it ain't what happened, so..."

Trailing off, the brawler just seems to deflate a bit, shaking her head.

An end to the recess is called, by a guard poking his head out the door and saying so, basically. Filing back into the courtroom finds everyone resuming their places -- excepting Delilah, of course, who never left her spot. As everyone eventually settles down, all eyes are on Daverin, who promptly slaps her gavel on its pedestal.

"I call this court back into session," she states. "Now then. I believe when we left off, the matter of the pistol used to end Lady Alenthor's life was brought up. I believe the guards allege that they have this pistol in their possession, having taken it from Miss Valethor at the time of her arrest. Is this correct?"

The Prosecutor nods his head once. "It is, your Honor. And if it please the court, we would like to submit the weapon for examination."

"It does please the court," replies the magistrate, before she looks to the table where Delilah's defenders are waiting. "Does the defense have anything they wish to say, while before this piece of evidence is shown?"

For her part, Delilah remains standing where she is, resting one hand on the railing around her fort support. She looks, in a word, haggard; and this day isn't over yet, by any stretch.

Seldan had been listening in silence to the proceedings for the last little while, but now stands. "I would have the prosecutor submit their evidence, and then I would question the prosecution regarding it. This evidence was not made available to the defense."

Ashlee already has a bunch of unanswered questions, and isn't about to offer more to the unforthcoming. She sits in her spot on the defense's bench. Her lizard earring has been moved down to her lap, where he is biting the web of her left hand while she strokes his back. Carbuncle will get a nice tasty fly in the future, in the meantime he will have to settle for tasting Ash.

Elyanna returns as well with a faintly irate glower on her face. She assumes her previous place as the gavel strikes home, though the renewed talk of the alleged murder weapon brings her eyes back toward the prosecutor, then to Seldan as he renews his barristric maneuvers. She passes the writ down the line his way, with a soft, "In case it is of more use to you than I." She remains ungnawed upon thus far.

"Very well." Magistrate Daverin gestures towards the prosecution, as a guard walks in and places a box on their table. "We shall allow the defense to hold their turn for the moment. Please discuss the murder weapon in this case -- or at least, the weapon that was recovered and can be examined, since MIss Valethor's magical ability is always going to be subject to some speculation."

The Prosecutor wastes no time; he opens the box and produces, in order, two glass vials with a spent bullet in each (along with some residue, well, Bethany); a cloth bag full of what is presumably ammunition; and one dragonspitter, laid on the table.

"I present to the court one pistol, found in the possession of Delilah Valethor," states the Mul'Niessa, rising from his seat and holding the weapon up to be clearly visible. "This one is an adventurer's weapon, naturally. It is Gnomish made, and as our weapons specialists have assured his, built to the highest quality. Of particular interest with Miss Valethor's weapon, it is constructed with a variable barrel." He holds the barrel and twists it sideways, until it clicks.

"I am told it is an upgrade sometimes used by adventurers who can afford it," he explains, before upending the bag of ammunition and dumping the contents on the table. "Miss Valethor's stock of ammunition includes rounds from, well, everywhere; and most of them are not precisely the same. Her weapon is designed to take this into account." He sets the weapon down, and holds up the paired vials. "The two bullets used to kill Lady Alenthor are not the same; but witnesses declared seeign only one person fleeing the scene. This necessitates that the killer either had two weapons, or -- since these weapons are not common, like daggers or knives are -- someone who had a weapon capable of firing multiple types of rounds. Like Miss Valethor's does."

Seldan's expression remains impassive, and he listens in silence, examining the gun with some interest.

Ash gives her lizard a little squeeze to make him release her hand. She holds him out towards Elyanna, on her palm, in case Carbuncle wants to nibble on her, or she wants to be nibbled on. She stares straight ahead at the base of the desk the magistrate is behind.

In monotone she says, "I am a hobgoblin. Not a goblin. I can tell you about dead bodies. Not firearms. I have a gnomish crossbow. It's very nice. Very fiddly. I have nothing else to say about weapons."

That's a neat feature, admittedly, though it adds another level of complexity to the spell-draw-shoot-reload-shoot-and effect an unnoticed getaway.

Elyanna absently reaches out as she sees the grey hand coming her way, but doubletakes when she sees the lizard on offer, affording her companion a particularly 'What am I going to do with that?' look for a moment. She holds up a finger, perhaps willing to come back to that, then, "Your honor, may I ask about the operation of the weapon so that everyone understands?" she asks, rising to her feet.

Merek takes time to listen to everything while he prepares notes, eventually speaking then to Ashlee, and anyone else, "We should focus upon Delilah, and not Norrington, the Magistrate already looks like they want to make the situation that much more difficult if we keep on with that." Then he notices the weapon, "I would like to examine it, I know a lot about Artifice."

The Magistrate steeples her fingers, and casts a nod towards Elyanna. "You may," she replies. "What is the nature of your question?"

The Prosecutor swivels in his seat as well, and gazes towards Elyanna. "It's a gun," he points out, "That accepts multiple sizes of ammunition. Beyond that, you pull the trigger and it makes a hole in whatever you were pointing it at; I'm not sure I understand your confusion, but by all means, ask, as the Magistrate has given permission."

Ash's irritation grows. This is somewhat of a unique experience for her. She's always thought of herself as an undisciplined, random, and while not exactly chaotic, definitely not a structured hobgoblin. Truly unaligned, in the best sense, unbeholden to hierarchy and procedure. Which is why it's unexpected to be getting such a strong reaction out of attitudes she thought were undeveloped, atrophied. It would seem however, that while one can take the hobgoblin out of the regiment, or boot her along through several different ill-fitting ones, it's hard to take the regiment out of the hobgoglin.

Ash turns and stares at Merek as he lectures her. She doesn't stop staring. It's the kind of look she gives while laying down hexes. Her lizard ends up in her satchel and Chippen climbs up behind an ear. Her voice is monotone, "Proceed with your defense."

Elyanna glances sidelong to Merek as he chimes in on his expertise, "Come." she says simply, beckoning the man out with a quick toss of her head. "The complexity of operation as relates to use in a crime of passion, or discretion your Honor." She steps out toward the Prosecutor and reaches out for the weapon itself, first, even as she asides, "Delilah, how does this contrivance propel ammunition?"

The halfbreed starts to turn the 'spitter over in her hands, twisting the barrel as he did, then looks up to Delilah, "Is it so simple a thing as this one" an indicative nod toward the Mul'iessa, "would inply? Could one simply shove a rock into this device, give a twist, then kill?"

She holds it cradled in her hands toward the bound woman, "Though first, do you vouch that this is the weapon taken from you as you remember it?"

Not being an expert in ballistics, or in firearms, it is Seldan's turn to remain silent, to listen.

Merek stands up while he nods to Elyanna, then looks along to Ashlee. He doesn't comment, he instead looks like he was completely focused upon the case and little else. There's a shift of the scarf while he nods, waiting for Delilah to answer while he takes a look at the device to remember all its intricacies. There's a look to the Magistrate, "Might I present my own dragonspitter for cross-examining comparison?" he asks, while waiting for the questioning to finish.

Delilah looks at the pistol, and bobs her head. "That is my dragonspitter," she confirms. "And it looks like it is the way it was when I last had possession of it. The barrel does do exactly what the Prosecutor says it does," she adds, "And it's fairly easy to do. You can put the round in first and then twist, and you'll know when it's at the right position because it'll stop." She pauses, and shrugs her shoulders lightly. "Most rounds that pistol can use have a charge in them. The dragonspitter has a pair of aligned crystals, and when you pull the trigger they set off the charge and fire the round. ...And no, you couldn't just stick a rock in it, that wouldn't do anything."

The Magistrate looks towards Merek, and nods her head. "If you wish," she affirms. "I am interested to see what the defense would hope to gain by such a comparison."

Merek nods a bit, and moves to the guard to ask for his equipment back, because he didn't bring it directly in. He knows to follow process, then he brings back the weapon to place upon the table next to Delilah's, with his being a more black in tone with golden detailing. "It is as the defendant states, an important note of fact though is that all firearms are unique, no two artifice are exactly the same."

The man begins to take his apart to show the way it works, "Most are built to specifications of the user, and any sign of not using them in the correct manner would be notable, subtle differences with the nocks and turns would leave marks where it wasn't meant to be used. Every gun owner, I would imagine, takes wonderful care of their own, any use in another's own hand would probably note a difference in examination. I ask of the Magistrate to permit me to dismantle her own, and to check it for any marks of misfire and misuse."

"There would be a few subtle differences with the bullets used, often brass, to note, if we kept the bullets," Merek notes.

Elyanna seems somewhat contented with that explaination, "I see, thank you." She rolls the weapon over again, then wonders, "So, this barrel sounds rather special, and, while I suppose it would make it easier to keep loaded through salvage... I would ask, does it not make it take longer? Rather, to have to adjust your weapon every time you load it, rather than simply use the same size, er 'round'?" She cants her head a little, brow arching, "Or am I overstating the complexities of using this weapon?"

She gives Merek a somewhat perplexed look in turn, not sure where he is going with this avenue of examination, but, as the Magistrate accedes the request, she presents Delilah's weapon to him.

"Merek, what are you hoping to demonstrate? Nels and Rumbo jam their guns all the time and both are goblins with a knack for them. What would a misfire prove?" Ashlee asks, staring as he starts disassembling the weapon.

She's managed to follow Elyanna's line of questioning, it was an observation the enforcer made earlier. The intricacies of artifice both don't interest her nor seem to hold the innocence secret.

"It's pretty quick," Delilah replies. "I don't like to hang around figuring it out in the middle of a fight, right? When there's a round in it, it either fits straight off or it's just a small turn one way or the other. Once your'e used to it, it never takes me more than a fraction of a second, really. I just get it." She pauses, and shrugs her shoulders lightly. "I mean occasionally I jam it but, not very often."

The Magistrate gazes down at Merek, and shrugs her shoulders once. "Dismantle it if you wish," she replies to him, "But as Miss Valethor herself has just acknowledged, she has jammed her own weapon before. ...I suspect that this is not a grave admission on her part; if she had claimed never to have jammed it, I would not have believed her and I'm sure nobody else would have either. But if you feel you have something to prove, then by all means, make your point."

"Yes, misfires do happen, but often the telltale signs of if they were made by the wielder," Merek looks then to the people, and nods a bit while he begins to dismantle it, "If nothing else, I want to do a bullet comparison to check inside," he notes, if they would bring that to him, if not he works along with what he actually knows, all of that. "I will do it while you all, do your questioning, I would not like to make progress slow."

GAME: Merek casts Arcane Sight. Caster Level: 11 DC: 18

Whatever is going to be demonstrated goes over Ashlee's head. Misfires are somehow wielder fingerprints? It sounds absurd and she decides not to think about it. Instead she concentrates on other questions she might ask. The well is coming up dry. She might as well put the bucket on her head and worry about rescuing sweet-rolls.

Inspiration strikes, not so much as lightning, more like a flea bite. It's a long shot, but everything has been so far. She makes it out of the bench and over to where the evidence vials are. She picks up both of them, one is passed to Merek for whatever purpose. The other one she looks at the prosecution and the Magistrate. She rattles the bullet in the tube, much the way Norrington did in the ally, "Can I open and physically examine this?"

The Magistrate nods towards Ashes, "You may," she replies, "As long as the contents of the evidence are not modified or destroyed, and are returned to the tube afterwards. However, please make this brief; a lot of time is being spent on details that, to me, do not seem to be relevant." Daverin then turns her gaze towards Merek. "I do not see what you hope to gain by this avenue of investigation," she states. "Therefore I must ask you to make this brief. You have made your statements, but I fail to see how they would either condemn or exonerate Miss Valethor. Please reach your point immediately, or we will be moving on."

Elyanna purses her lips a little in bemusement.

She's no Barrister.... she's barely familiar with the laws of Alexandria outside of 'Not Bludgun', and she is again reminded that she enjoys being in over her head not at all. She closes her eyes as Merek takes the weapon from her hands and she steps around him toward the prisoner, asking the Mother for some kind of inspiration, some way she can level this tilted field and perhaps tick off some of the red in her ledger. The red woman takes in, then releases a slow breath through her nose and looks to Delilah's eyes, her expression grim, but resolute, before she bows her head, "Your Honor." She then pivots on her heel to return to the bench whispering, "I am at the end of my wits." a grave undertone in her voice.

Merek looks to the weapon while he seems to think about each piece, and examines. There would be a look to the bullet, while he checks that then takes a moment to maneuver the mechanisms of that firearm in thought. Then he places that back onto the table. "Nothing further Your Honor," he then steps along next to Ashlee to look at what she was doing though not getting involved while he seems to debate what to state. He does piece the things back together while he waits.

Ashlee nods, moving closer to the table as she unstoppers the vial. Less chance of the bullet making it to the floor if she drops it. She doesn't plan to. She tilts the tube and lets it roll out into her palm, and then carefully touches it with her finger.

Specifically, the flesh still attached to it.

The ashen Arvec clears her mind, and listens beyond the veil. Some things speak to her, and sometimes people do. If one does at this moment, nothing obvious happens.

It's not enough of a piece of Bethany. It's a little piece of flesh, not brain. It could have come from either of Bethany's wounds. It's kind of hard to get much insight beyond that, other than the obvious.

She tips the bullet back into the tube, reseals it and sets it down. Her gaze drifts across the prosecution, Bethany's family, Delilah. She nods to the magistrate and returns to her seat on the defense's side. "Thank you," she tells a piece of wood somewhere in front of her, "I have no observations regarding the bullet."

"Well," the Magistrate breathes, and touches her forehead with two fingers. "I am glad that we all agree it is indeed plausible that the weapon before us, being property of Miss Valethor, is also a plausible murder weapon in this case. More of course, will be required just than that, but I trust the prosecution is well prepared." She casts a glance towards the Mul'Niessa, and then back to the defense. "I believe the prosecution has witnesses they wish to bring forward. You will have the chance to question them as well, naturally." She looks back to the Mul'Niessa, and leans back, steepling her fingers. "You may proceed."

The Prosecutor nods once, "Please, bring forth the employees of the Iron Kitchen; the waitress, Zoey Demer and the golem known as Chef."

A guard leaves the room, and returns a couple of minutes later, escorting the two named individuals to the witness stand.

Seldan finally looks over at the others, and stands. "I see. In that case, if I may, Your Honor." An ice-blue gaze drifts to the prosecutor. "You say to this court that you are told that these things are true. This says to me that you yourself are not an expert in such weapons, and there is no shame in that, for nor am I. Yet would I hear from the expert who provided such analysis, if they are willing to speak before the court. I would know how it could be certain that both weapons came from the same firearm?"

"I will allow it," the Magistrate acknowledges, nodding to Seldan. "These are good questions." She looks towards the Prosecutor and the various guards around him, "Please, name your analyst, and fetch them; in the meantime we shall hear what these witnesses have to say, but we shall return to this issue afterwards. I hope that is suitable for the Defense," she adds, keeping her gaze on Seldan for the moment.

"No need to wait, your honor," the Prosecutor indicates, "Knight Lieutenant Godswin is present, and he is the one who was responsible for the weapons analysis. You may question him immediately, if you wish."

The Magistrate nods, "Then, please hold for the moment," she asks of Zoey and Chef (the latter of whome mutters something about donuts). "Silver Guard, you may proceed."

Elyanna holds to her own counsel, now. Her own expertise in the matters of firearms and ballistic trajectories well established. Still, she wracks her mind to find an angle, something their missing, even as their expert is being called into the matter.

Ashlee looks at the other knight-lieutennant, Greaves, or Graves, or something. She had a death-like name, that was almost worth remembering. She's a good candidate for their magic expert. She finds this very interesting. Seldan is occupied, she's exhausted all the insight she can muster for the bullets, the wounds, and their trajectories. If some mystery remains inside the puzzle that will prove Delilah's innocence, she will never find it. So, she leans towards Elyanna, and whispers, "I have an idea."

<OOC> Ashes says, "Seldan, log is here, http://www.tenebraemush.net/index.php?title=The_Unfinished_Duet,_part_7 . Prosecution asked when Delilah said she would kill Bethany, interrupted whenever she tried to explain in detail, just asking whether she made threats, pulled her weapon or touched it. Defense got to ask for details regarding that. Merek had objected that the questions were leading, also asked her to explain the circumstances, Donna also asked a few things, adding circumstances and more details, like Bethany telling her guard to draw a sword."
<OOC> Elyanna says, "Ely tried to dispute Norrington's claim he had 'no part of the investigation'"
<OOC> Ashes says, "Ash went up, asked six questions that were also leading and got the prosecution and family objecting and interrupting. Last 2 were 'how many times has Norrington sexually made advances on you?' and 'How many times has Norrington had sex with Lady Velathor?" Got no answers to that, but Bethany's sister said Bethany hated Norrington and that he had a.... (interruption). Merek told Ash to stop asking things like that, so she told him to stop undercutting her and left the courtroom. Elyanna tried to continue, and Norrington objected that this was all character assassination, so the magistrate said Norrington and the guard's role shouldn't be brought up. They tried to go onto asking about the Dragonspitter when the log paused."
<OOC> Elyanna says, "yeah, ely was in the middle of asking about the writ, and how things were between delilah and norrington, when the prosecution tried to take the floor back and wanted to bring out the dragonspitter"
<OOC> Ashes says, "Norrington claimed he had 'no involvement' in the investigation. We argued that handling all the evidence, hanging around and pushing his theory that it was 'so simple' was interferring."

<OOC> Merek says, "Evening."
<OOC> Elyanna says, "hey"
<OOC> Ashes waves, "Hi."
<OOC> Merek says, "Merek would've mentioned in recess we should focus on absolving Delilah and not focusing upon Norrington."
<OOC> Ashes says, "Merek wasn't there"
<OOC> Merek says, "Why?"
<OOC> Ashes says, "because you and Seldan weren't there, so we speculated you teleported to Charn to get Ella"
<OOC> Merek :/
<OOC> Merek says, "Can I bring her in?"
<OOC> Merek says, "i.e. can I bring Ella in?"
<OOC> Delilah says, "I find it highly doubtful you'd have found Ella in the last five minutes."
<OOC> Delilah says, "So I don't think that one will work, no. :P"
<OOC> Merek says, "Then I was here yes?"
<OOC> Merek says, "Because I'm confused why he wouldn't be."
<OOC> Ashes says, "It's a big courthouse, you weren't were Ash, Elyanna and Donna were. We had a long conversation that your statement would have directly contradicted. You weren't in the outside the courtyard scene."
<OOC> Delilah says, "We'll just say you were elsewhere in the courthouse during recess. But you can definitely bring up what you wanted to say right now."
<OOC> Merek says, "Ok apologies"