Rei Ryghts: Ace Attorney
The Mech-Suit's Turnabout
by Derald Snyder
Trial- Day 1
Court Record:
-Pudding
-Mech Remote
July 8, 9:45 AM
District Court
Defendant Lobby No. 3
"Wow, Nepgear, you don't look so good."
That was an understatement. The CPU Candidate looked utterly disheveled, her purple hair mussed, her clothes dirty, with tear streaks going from her eyes down her cheeks. She was unsteady on her feet, and appeared to have not heard her sister at all.
Rei couldn't help but feel her heart twist a bit at this. (I'd heard those security officers put her through the wringer, but...)
"Hey! Nepgear!" Neptune snapped her fingers a few times in front of her sister's face. "You with us here?"
Nepgear blinked before slowly turning to her sister. "Sorry, sister... I'm just kinda tired..."
Rei spoke up, "We don't have much time, Nepgear, but I have to ask you a few things." She took a breath. "Just so we're clear, you were *not* piloting that mech suit of your own will, right?"
"Right... that's what I tried to tell those officers, but they wouldn't listen...! They just kept saying stuff like 'don't deny the obvious' and 'it'd be better for you to come clean now'!" The goddess hiccuped as tears began flowing down her cheeks again, prompting Neptune to grab her in a hug.
"Hey, hey, now's not the time to go to pieces here, OK? Rei and I are gonna everything we can to prove you're as pure and innocent as the wind-driven snow!"
"B-but it's summer, not winter..." Nepgear pointed out.
(Well, if she can still make a joke, she's not completely broken...) Rei thought to herself. "N-Neptune's right, we'll do what w-we can to find t-the truth..."
"You don't sound very confident..." the CPU Candidate sighed.
(I'd be a little more confident if we had more than one or two pieces of evidence...) thought Rei. (I really hope IF managed to come up with more proof to present at trial... We got a call from her last night, confirming that remote has the weak range Mortez said it had...) "I just hope my disguise as Yuu Kobayashi holds up..." She adjusted her sunglasses, before pulling at the collar of her hoodie.
"It should," stated Neptune. "I got a text from Iffy earlier this morning, she said she and her fellow Intelligence agents were altering paperwork and stuff to make sure you weren't found out. Last thing we need is this place going up in panic..."
"Isn't your defending me a conflict of interest, though?" Nepgear asked. "I mean, you were the one that stopped me..."
"With all due respect, Miss Nepgear, that was Rei Ryghts that stopped you, not Yuu Kobayashi..." the lawyer retorted. "Besides, I didn't even know it was you, until I pulled the helmet off..."
"Ms. Attorney!" the bailiff called. "Court is about to begin! Please bring the defendant with you and take your seat at the bench!"
"We're coming!" Neptune affirmed. "OK, this is it, everyone! Let's do this!"
July 8, 10:00 AM
District Court
Courtroom No. 3
"All Rise!" declared the bailiff. "Court is now in session for the trial of the State v. Nepgear, the honorable Judge Theodore Kintobor presiding."
Everyone stood up as the slightly-rotund judge walked to his seat. Though he was completely bald, his large, bushy mustache had not grayed, showing that he had once been a redhead. A tiny pair of glasses rested on his reddish, pointy nose, giving him a quaint, old-fashioned look. Once he had settled in his seat, the gallery followed, though Neptune and Rei remained standing.
"Well then," muttered the judge as he looked through some papers, "never thought I'd be seeing one of the goddesses in the defendant's seat... just when you think you've seen everything..." Looking up, he locked eyes with Rei. "Ms... Yuu Kobayashi, was it?"
"Y-yes, sir, Your Honor," Rei stuttered slightly.
"I've received your papers detailing your cases you've worked on in Lowee." Shaking his head briefly, he continued, "Though I can't say I agree with your fashion sense, your record's certainly nothing to sneeze at. The number of acquittals you've scored is almost unprecedented. Most lawyers working in Lowee's court system are lucky to get *one* Not Guilty verdict in their entire careers!"
Rei felt her face heat up from the judge's praise. "W-well, I like to t-think it w-was because I h-had a r-really good m-mentor..."
"I see," the judge chuckled. "Though, I am somewhat disturbed by the large number of blackouts on these papers..."
"Necessary redactions to protect the innocent, Your Honor," IF spoke up from the witness stand. (Although Rei herself isn't exactly innocent in my eyes...)
"Yes, yes, of course. How silly of me," Kintobor nodded gruffly. "Anyway, Ms. Kobayashi, I trust you understand that this is a jury trial. I hope the different format doesn't trip you up."
"Y-yes, Your Honor," Rei nodded. "I-it helps that t-this courtroom is s-similar to the o-ones back home..."
"Which of course begs the question, where *is* the jury, anyway?" Neptune spoke up.
"Watching the trial on closed-circuit camera," IF answered her. "It's to prevent coercion or intimidation by the defendant or the lawyers."
"Speaking of which, where is the prosecution?" The judge asked, looking over at the still-empty bench.
"I can explain that, Your Honor," IF stated. "Because of the nature of this trial, we had to find a prosecutor that would not be biased either against or toward the defendant," she indicated Nepgear. "Unfortunately, said prosecutor was out training in the mountains, making it difficult to locate him... but find him we did. He should be on his way in now..." Suddenly, there was the sound of triumphant music. "...Ah, I think that's him right now."
"Huh..." pondered Neptune. "I swear I've heard that music before..."
~The lone man who gave his soul to gaming
Today, he returns once more~
The courtroom doors slammed open, revealing a Japanese man with short, bushy black hair, dressed in a karate gi tied with a black belt, carrying what appeared to be a giant white colored console on his back.
~He will punish those who don't play seriously
Their battered bodies will never forget!~
The man trudged over to the prosecutor's bench, setting down his console before taking his place.
"Wait a minute..." The judge blinked in surprise. "Aren't you...?"
"No way!" cried Neptune. "It can't be... but it really is!"
~Segata Sanshiro!
Segata Sanshiro!
Sega Saturn, shiro!~
"N-no way!" Rei squeaked, sweating. "*The* Segata Sanshiro?!"
"Indeed, it is I!" the man declared. "I was summoned by the Guild to prosecute this case, and so here I am!" The crowd erupted into excited chatter, most of them never having witnessed this legend of a man in person before.
"Order! Order!" Judge Kintobor declared, banging his gavel. "I'm just as surprised as you are, but we must have order!"
"I don't think there's anyone here who *isn't* surprised," Neptune muttered to Rei, who could only nod in agreement.
Once the crowd had quieted somewhat, the judge shook his head. "I honestly cannot believe this man, this legend is standing here before me! I'd heard you had perished defending the Planeptune Basilicom from a missile attack years ago!"
"Indeed," Segata responded. "Even I believed I would perish that day... but, it seemed fate had other ideas. So, here I stand."
"I see," Kintobor nodded. "But, seeing as you were called here on such short notice, are you really prepared for this trial?"
"I reviewed the case's files on a mobile device during the helicopter trip." Segata then slammed his hand onto the bench, as if he were trying to karate-chop it in two. "Do you think I would be standing here, were I not prepared for battle?"
(Last I checked, this was a trial, not a judo match...) Rei thought to herself.
"Hmph!" scoffed the judge. "Well then, if you're so confident in your knowledge, why don't you prove it with your opening statement?"
Segata nodded. "Very well." Clearing his throat, he began, "The incident occurred on July 7, around high noon. The annual Planeptune Higher Learning Institute Robotics Expo was in full swing, when suddenly disaster struck. A person in a purple mech suit appeared and started blasting all the other projects to pieces, before turning their attention to the citizens. This was bad enough on its own, but then something even worse occurred. The psychotic goddess known as Rei Ryghts, once thought to have been defeated, suddenly appeared on the scene!"
"W-Whaaaaat?!" gasped the judge. "R-Rei Ryghts was there?!" The crowd murmured.
"Indeed. Thankfully, she seemed to focus solely on the person in the mech suit, preferring to simply taunt the civilians as they fled," the Savior of Saturn stated. "It was a miracle that no-one was seriously injured in the incident... but I digress. Anyway, Rei Ryghts engaged the terrorist in battle, and after a brief fight managed to disable the suit. But when she started to pry open the suit, the one inside was discovered to be none other than the defendant!"
"Meep!" squeaked Nepgear, bowing her head and sweating as the crowd chattered.
The judge's gavel silenced the crowd. "But, what of Rei Ryghts? Why was she not subdued?"
"She promptly fled when confronted by security, though not out of fear, but out of boredom now that there were no other worthy challenges in the area. The police are still searching for her as we speak..."
"Ahhh-chooo!" Rei sneezed, nearly knocking her sunglasses off her face, quickly pushing them back on.
"Bless you, Ms. Kobayashi!" said the judge.
"S-sorry, sorry! I'm so very sorry!" Rei apologized. "P-please, d-don't mind me! *sniff*"
"Hmph. Why you're even here is beyond me, seeing as how open-and-shut a case this is..." stated Segata.
"OBJECTION!" Neptune cut in. "Open-and-shut or not, everyone deserves a fair trial, especially Nepgear!"
"Miss Neptune makes a fair point," Judge Kintobor nodded. "So then, Prosecutor Sanshiro, I believe it's time you called your first witness..."
"I would, Your Honor, but she is already here," the judo master gestured to IF. "So then, if you would state your name and occupation for the record."
"Yes, sir," IF nodded. "My name is IF. I'm an agent working in the Planeptune Guild's Intelligence Division. My fellow agents and I are assisting with the investigation, seeing as Goddesses are involved."
The judge blinked in confusion. "I-F? That's it? Is that a code name, or is it an acronym for something?"
"It stands for 'I'dea 'F'actory, of course!" stated Neptune.
"Neptune! Now is *not* the time to break the fourth wall!" IF scolded.
The judge then banged his gavel. "Very well then. Miss Factory, you may begin your testimony, about what your investigation has uncovered."
"I-it's 'IF', Your Honor..." the agent sighed...
*WITNESS TESTIMONY*
"The attack began at about 11:57 AM, in the southwest portion of the PHLI courtyard."
"The first casualty was a large walking robot that was blown to smithereens."
"After about five minutes, the mech suit moved on to the northern courtyard."
"Not long after, Rei Ryghts appeared and engaged the mech suit in combat."
"After a few minutes, the goddess emerged victorious, and pulled off the helmet, exposing Nepgear as the pilot."
"Security then arrived on the scene, prompting Rei to flee, after which they took the defendant into custody."
"Hmmm..." the judge pondered. "So the attack started in the south before moving to the north..."
"Yes sir," nodded IF. "I have a diagram here, showing the points of interest in the attack..."
"Very good, the court accepts the diagram into evidence."
*Crime Scene Diagram added to the Court Record.*
"Now then Ms. Kobayashi, you may begin your cross-examination."
Rei thought, (My best bet right now is to gather as much information as I can... as my mentor once said, even the smallest detail can turn a case completely on its head...)
*CROSS-EXAMINATION*
"The attack began at about 11:57 AM, in the southwest portion of the PHLI courtyard."
"HOLD IT!"
"If I recall correctly..." Rei pondered. "Isn't the garage where the mech suit was first built located in the northwest? Why would the person inside attack the south courtyard first? Wouldn't it be faster to attack the north courtyard first?"
IF answered, "Well, as far as we could confirm, the mech suit actually flew just outside the fence at low altitude. And even if it had been spotted, people would have simply believed it to be one of the projects being shown off."
"Perhaps," Segata spoke up, "The pilot of the mech suit meant to be seen in a non-threatening manner first, to lure people into a false sense of security before attacking."
"How cruel that would be, if it were true," stated Judge Kintobor. "So, exactly what did the mech suit attack first?"
"The first casualty was a large walking robot that was blown to smithereens."
"HOLD IT!"
Rei stated, "I assume that particular robot was chosen as a target because of its size?"
"Most likely," IF nodded. "It certainly got everyone's attention..."
"Well, this is probably a really silly question..." Neptune began. "But did you check to see if Morty or anyone else had a grudge against that robot builder specifically?"
IF shook her head. "Not as far as we were able to determine, although said robot builder was quite upset over his life's work being destroyed... And of course, he's not the only one. Nearly all the robotics projects in the south courtyard were destroyed in the attack."
"What about the north?" Segata inquired.
"I was just about to get to that, Mr. Sanshiro..."
"After about five minutes, the mech suit moved on to the northern courtyard."
"HOLD IT!"
"What were the students and visitors doing at this point?" Rei asked. "You think they would have been fleeing by now..."
IF nodded. "A significant portion of the students and visitors had indeed fled by that time, though were still quite a few hanging around. I should point out that the pilot of the suit had apparently not targeted any humans yet, though a few were injured from shrapnel from the destroyed robots."
"So, perhaps those people did not believe their lives to be in mortal danger yet?" Segata pondered.
"Most likely," IF shrugged. "Either that or they were frozen in panic. Which would prove to be a near-fatal mistake as the mech suit did indeed start targeting humans. But then..."
"Not long after, Rei Ryghts appeared and engaged the mech suit in combat."
"HOLD IT!"
(OK, don't say anything that gives yourself away...) Rei thought, before asking, "What were Rei Ryghts' first actions upon her appearance?"
"Actually, her first action was to protect a quartet of students from the mech suit's missiles..." IF stated.
"Wh-what?!" exclaimed Judge Kintobor. "The psychotic goddess actually saved lives?!" The crowd chattered in confusion.
"Are you certain of this?" Segata pressed.
"Yes, I confirmed it personally with a witness," the Guild agent nodded. "Obviously, once Rei made her presence known, all the remaining civilians fled. I can't really speak to her reasoning though..."
Neptune jumped in, "Well, when I and the other Goddesses fought her back then, she was completely out of her mind. Maybe this time, she was... a little less insane?"
"Hmmm..." pondered the judge. "Perhaps that is a possibility..."
"OBJECTION!" declared Segata. "With all due respect, Your Honor, Rei Ryghts is not the one on trial here, Miss Nepgear is! Perhaps we could get back on topic?"
"Yes, yes, of course. Miss Factory, if you could continue with your testimony..."
"'IF', please, Your Honor..."
"After a few minutes, the goddess emerged victorious, and pulled off the helmet, exposing Nepgear as the pilot."
"HOLD IT!"
(Obviously, trying to insinuate anyone other than Nepgear was inside the suit isn't going to work, so I need to approach this from a different angle...) The defense attorney inquired, "So, were you able to recover the mech suit from the scene of the crime?"
"Of course... what was left of it, anyway," IF affirmed. "Unfortunately, the damage the suit suffered caused its internal programming to be completely wiped out. Forensics is still checking the suit, but I managed to bring the helmet in as evidence." As she said this, the agent hefted a large plastic evidence bag with said helmet inside.
"Very well, the court accepts the helmet into evidence."
*Mech Suit Helmet added to the Court Record.*
"Check out that weird bulge around the mouth area," Neptune observed. "That looks kinda suspicious,huh?"
"Definitely," Rei agreed. (I should keep that detail in mind for later...)
"So, what happened after that?" The judge prodded.
"Security then arrived on the scene, prompting Rei to flee, after which they took the defendant into custody."
"HOLD IT!"
"What was the defendant's state of mind at the time she was arrested?"
IF bit her lip. "Nearly hysterical, from what I hear. She was screaming and pleading about how it wasn't what it looked like, she had no control, stuff like that. The security officers weren't having any of it, though." She then sighed. "But did they really need to be so harsh on her in interrogation...?"
"OBJECTION!" yelled Segata. "Miss Factory, you are here to testify, not give your personal opinion! Move to strike, Your Honor!"
"Objection sustained," agreed the judge. "The jury will disregard the witness' last remark." He then banged his gavel. "Anyway, I think that about does it for this examination. Miss Factory, you may step down." IF silently complied. "There's still one question that bothers me though. Who actually designed this mech suit, anyway? And why didn't they try to stop the defendant?"
"A good question, Your Honor," the judo master-turned-prosecutor nodded. "Which is why I have brought that very man in to testify. The prosecution calls Mr. Mortez Doez to the stand!"
Morty's expression was a mix of bored and depressed as he took the stand. It looked like he had attempted to comb his hair for the trial, and failed miserably.
"Witness, state your name and occupation," Segata stated.
"Mortez Doez," he responded. "I'm a second-year student at the Planeptune Higher Learning Institute, in the Mechanical Engineering department." He sighed. "And yes, I'm the one who constructed the mech suit that wreaked havoc at the expo. My sincere apologies to everyone involved."
Segata faux-chopped the bench. "You were not asked to come here to apologize, but to testify! Now, as the judge has stated, why did you not deactivate the mech suit before the defendant absconded with it?"
"Y-you think I didn't try?!" Mortez protested.
Judge Kintobor banged his gavel. "Calm down, witness. All we want is your honest testimony on what happened that day. Try not to let your emotions get the better of you, please."
"Y-yes, Your Honor."
*WITNESS TESTIMONY*
"Nepgear was helping me test out my mech suit that day..."
"She got inside, then I closed it up, and activated it remotely."
"I didn't expect her to suddenly hijack it!"
"I tried to shut down the suit, but she escaped."
"So..." Judge Kintobor began. "You tried to override her control, but failed?"
"I swear, that's the truth, Your Honor," Mortez affirmed. "Honestly, if I could have stopped her, I would have!"
"Nepgear is quite proficient with machinery," Segata said. "It wouldn't be that surprising if she could override him, especially with that weak remote!"
"I guess he read the evidence report..." Neptune sighed.
(Morty's testimony was somewhat vague,) Rei thought to herself. (I should try pressing him and see what comes out...)
"Now then, Ms. Kobayashi, your cross-examination, please," the judge requested.
*CROSS-EXAMINATION*
"She got inside, then I closed it up, and activated it remotely."
"HOLD IT!"
"Mr. Doez, this mech remote..." the disguised lawyer held up the evidence in question. "You said you used it to activate the suit, and I assume it can be used to shut it down as well. What other functions does it have?"
Mortez bit his lip. "Just basic movement and flight, really... it can't activate any of the weapon systems."
"So much for that line of questioning..." Neptune muttered under her breath.
"Why would you equip a suit with such dangerous weaponry in the first place?!" The judge demanded.
"L-like I said to Neptune and IF yesterday, it's for military application!" Morty yelled, sweating. "I wasn't even planning to show it at the expo! I just thought it'd be a convenient time for me and Nepgear to get together!" Taking a breath to calm himself, he continued, "Besides, I thought I could trust Nepgear not to do anything stupid..."
"A trust that was clearly misplaced," muttered Segata.
"OBJECTION!" Neptune protested. "You're out of line, Mr. Sanshiro! Move to strike!"
"W-withdrawn," the prosecutor hastily amended.
(Wow, Neptune can be scary when it comes to her sister...) Rei thought. (Not even Segata Sanshiro is immune!)
Judge Kintobor banged his gavel. "All right settle down, everyone. Mr. Doez, please continue your testimony."
"I didn't expect her to suddenly hijack it!"
"HOLD IT!"
Rei inquired, "What did my client do exactly?"
"Well, she turned and flew out the garage door," Mortez said. "She didn't even say anything, she just went! It kinda caught me off guard, honestly..."
(Hmmm...) "Your Honor, this supposed behavior of my client's seems important. I'd like it appended to the official testimony."
"Very well, the witness will revise his testimony accordingly."
"She didn't even say anything when she flew off!"
"OBJECTION!"
"Yes!" cried Neptune in joy. "About time you found a contradiction!"
"Neptune, please," Rei groaned. "*ahem* Mr. Doez, you said that the defendant didn't say anything when she flew off, correct?"
"W-well, yeah... that's the truth!"
"Mr. Doez, have you forgotten how you designed your own suit?" Rei countered. "More specifically, the helmet?"
"The helmet?" The judge blinked in confusion.
"Your Honor, if you look here..." Rei pointed to the helmet, "you'll see that there's a large bulge about where the mouth is located. What would you think would happen if you put this helmet on?"
"Well, I can't imagine it being very sanitary..." Kintobor muttered in disgust.
"Exactly! With this helmet on, Nepgear would've been completely muffled! It's not she *didn't* say anything..." She pointed her finger. "...it's that she *couldn't*, even if she wanted to!"
"Ah...!" The judge's eyes widened in comprehension. The crowd murmured.
"That's right!" cried Neptune. "That means if she was hijacked, she couldn't even scream for help! Remember how Iffy said Nepgear was hysterical when she was pulled out?"
"OBJECTION!" Segata cut in. "Or maybe she was hysterical because she knew she'd been caught red-handed."
"Urk!" Neptune grunted. "Ugh, Sorry, Yuu... guess I jumped the gun there, huh?"
(Actually, you just gave me an idea...) Rei thought, as the judge gaveled down the restless crowd.
"Order! Order!" Once the crowd had quieted, he stated, "Mr. Doez, would you mind telling the court why you designed the inside of the helmet in such an... unsanitary shape?"
Mortez chuckled as he put his hand behind his head. "Ah-hahahaha... oh right, I forgot. It was meant to be a mouth guard of sorts, so the pilot wouldn't lose their teeth if they crashed." He shook his head. "I mean it *is* a prototype..."
"But the point still stands!" The purple-haired CPU protested. "Nepgear still couldn't say anything one way or the other!"
"OBJECTION!" Segata shot back, "Whether she could speak while she was in the suit or not is irrelevant!"
"OBJECTION!" Rei retorted, "Neptune just said that Nepgear wouldn't have been able to scream for help! What if someone had hijacked control from outside the garage?"
"Outside?" questioned the judge. "Ms. Kobayashi, please elaborate."
Holding up the mech remote, Rei explained, "As stated by Mr. Doez and conformed by forensics, this particular remote has a very weak signal, and can't operate the suit outside of 10 meters." She then slammed her fists on the bench. "Which means, the possibility exists that someone outside the garage could have easily overridden the signal and hijacked the mech suit themselves!" Both the judge and prosecutor visibly flinched at this. The gallery chattered briefly, before the judge banged his gavel.
"Well, Mr. Doez?" questioned the judge. "Is this possible?"
"Well, I guess..." Morty muttered, one hand behind his head again. "In theory, anyone with a stronger signal could have overridden my control... Heck, even a police radio would've done the job..."
"Woo-hoo! That sounds like 'reasonable doubt' to me!" exclaimed Neptune.
"OBJECTION!"
"What?!" the CPU yelled in shock. "How can you refute that, Segata?!"
"Very easily," the Savior of Saturn asserted. "The official investigation will show that none of the remote controls present at the scene were that much more powerful than Mr. Doez's! Certainly none strong enough to cover the entire range of the courtyard!"
"S-so they were probably following the mech suit around!" Neptune tried to argue.
"At the speeds the suit was flying around at? Said person would have had to be superhuman! And needless to say, no witnesses saw anyone running after the mech suit with a remote in hand!" Segata faux-chopped the bench. "In other words, your so-called remote hijacker... never existed!"
"Aaaaaaahhh!" screamed Neptune.
"Nooooooooo!" wailed Rei. The crowd started chattering again.
"Order! Order!" yelled Judge Kintobor, banging his gavel several times.
"As I said before..." stated Segata. "This is an open-and-shut case from beginning to end! There is no need for further argument! I believe we can proceed to jury deliberations now."
Judge Kintobor nodded. "Ms. Kobayashi, if you have no further arguments..."
"C'mon, Yuu! Think of something!" Neptune pleaded.
(I'm trying...) thought Rei, (but my mind's coming up completely blank!)
"Huuurghlglhlgllll!" A voice sounded from the defendant's chair. Everyone turned to see Nepgear fall over, her body convulsing.
"NEPGEAR!" Neptune immediately leapt over the defense's bench and ran to her sister's side. "Somebody call a doctor!" she screamed in panic.
"My word!" gasped the judge. "Bailiff, what are you doing?! Get a medic at once! Court is in recess!"
July 8, 11:05 AM
District Court
Defendant Lobby No. 3
Nergear had been laid out on a bench, a wet washcloth on her forehead as the medic checked over her.
"How is she?" inquired Neptune worriedly.
The medic bit his lip. "Well, I can't seem to find anything wrong with- gak!" A fist to the face cut him short, causing him to slump to the floor, knocked out, as Nepgear sat up looking perfectly fine.
"Hee hee! My plan worked perfectly!" The CPU Candidate proclaimed, causing her sister's eyes to shrink to white circles.
"W-wait, you m-mean you w-were never r-really sick?" Rei realized in shock.
"Seriously?!" Neptune concurred. "You even had me fooled! But why?!"
"I-I was trying to buy time," Nepgear explained. "I was hoping Rei could come up with something while we were in recess..."
"I'm sorry," sighed the lawyer, rubbing her temples, "But all you did was give me a headache..."
"Aw, man! This sucks like quicksand!" sighed Neptune. "If only Iffy had had more time to look for clues...!"
(...more time? Wait, that's it!) Rei immediately straightened up. "You're right, Neptune. What we need is to buy ourselves some time..."
"B-but how will we do that?" Nepgear pondered.
"Well..." the former goddess bit her lip. "We need to come up with another person, someone specific, who could have done this. If we can do that..."
"It'll take them so long to shoot us down, we'll get another day to investigate!" Neptune finished. "That's A-plus brilliant!"
"B-but who else could we say did it?" The CPU Candidate asked worriedly.
Rei looked Nepgear in the eye. "Y-you're not going to like it, I'm afraid..."
"You don't mean..." Nepgear's eyes went wide.
The lawyer shook her head. "I'm so sorry, Nepgear... but it's either this, or a near-certain guilty verdict from the jury."
"Oooohh..." The CPU Candidate sighed, looking down forlornly. "Well, I guess if there's no other choice..."
July 8, 11:17 AM
District Court
Courtroom No. 3
The gallery was chatting and mumuring as Neptune led her sister back into the courtroom, seating her back in the defendant's chair, as 'Yuu Kobayashi' retook her place behind the defense's bench.
Judge Kintobor nodded his head in relief, before banging his gavel. "All right, settle down, everyone. It looks as though Miss Nepgear has recovered, so now we can continue."
"Continue?" Segata shook his head. "Don't you mean 'end this trial', Your Honor?"
"OBJECTION!" Rei shouted, as Neptune stood by her side once more. "Shame on you, Mr. Sanshiro. Now who's jumping the gun? After all..." She slammed her fists on the bench. "There is still a viable alternate suspect in this case!"
"There is?" The judge blinked.
The prosecutor shook his head. "I grow bored of this. Fair warning, Ms. Kobayashi... If you waste any more of my time, I will judo-flip you!"
"Meep!" Rei squeaked, sweating.
"Now, now, Mr. Sanshiro," Judge Kintobor shook his head. "There's no need to resort to violence, when a simple penalty will do." He then banged his gavel. "Very well then, Ms. Kobayashi. Who is this other viable suspect?"
The lawyer cleared her throat, before standing straight again, crossing her arms. "Isn't it obvious, Your Honor? The other suspect is none other than Mortez Doez himself!"
"Whaaaaa-?!" yelled Morty. "Me?!"
"You were the one who designed the suit in the first place!" Rei accused, pointing her finger at the student. "Which means you were also the one who programmed it! It's not inconceivable to think you had a battle routine imbedded in the mech suit's software!"
"Gurk!" Mortez flinched.
"OBJECTION!" Segata protested. "There is absolutely no proof of this!"
"OBJECTION!" Rei shot back. "True, the suit's programming was wiped out... but was it due to battle damage, or did Mr. Doez program it to wipe itself upon shutdown?!"
"Gahh!" Segata crossed his arms in front of himself, as if to block an incoming punch.
"W-wait a minute!" Morty protested. "W-why the heck would I do something like that, anyway?!"
"You yourself told me that your brother was arrested for domestic terrorism using one of your prototypes," Rei argued. "Maybe criminal behavior runs in the family!"
"Aaaarrgghhh!" Mortez recoiled as if he'd been hit with an uppercut. The crowd went into a tizzy, prompting Judge Kintobor to bang his gavel several times.
"Order! Order! Order in the court!"
"OBJECTION!" cried Segata. "Your argument smacks of desperation! Surely IF and her fellow agents have already looked into this!"
"Actually..." IF spoke up. "No. We didn't."
"W-what?!" gasped the judo master, now visibly sweating.
"The trial date was set right after the incident occured! We didn't have time!" IF protested. "We barely had time to process the crime scene!"
"NGAAHH!" Segata once again 'blocked' a blow, before taking a defensive position.
Rei Ryghts slammed her fists on the bench again. "Your Honor, this is a miscarriage of justice!" Pointing at the judge, she declared, "How could you allow this case to proceed to deliberations... with an incomplete investigation?!"
"W-what are you pointing at me for?!" Judge Kintobor cried, flustered. "I'm not the one that set the trial date!"
"Maybe not," Rei crossed her arms, "but there is still something you can do, Your Honor..."
The judge narrowed his eyes at the defense attorney. "...Ms. Kobayashi. I can't say I appreciate your tone of voice. But, very well." He then banged his gavel, before declaring, "We will suspend proceedings for today, in order to allow Miss Factory and her colleagues to conduct a more thorough investigation. ...with emphasis on Mortez Doez's assets."
"Nnngghh..." Mortez was visibly distraught, sweat beading on his face.
"We will reconvene tomorrow at 10 AM," the judge stated. "That is all, court is adjourned."
July 8, 11:38 AM
District Court
Defendant Lobby No. 3
Rei let loose with a huge sigh of relief as she and the two Planeptune goddesses trudged into the lobby. "Pheeeeeww... that was t-too close."
"But still, you did it!" Neptune pointed out. "Now we have a chance to actually find some real evidence!"
"I'm not so happy..." sighed Nepgear, tapping her index fingers together. "Poor Morty... I still don't think he did anything wrong..."
"I-I know," Rei acknowledged. "L-look, I was j-just playing for t-time there."
"Right, I understand..." The CPU Candidate nodded grimly.
"You just hang in there, sis," Neptune patted Nepgear on the shoulder. "Come tomorrow, it's gonna be a whole new ball game! There's no way we'll let you get convicted for this!"
Nepgear allowed herself a tiny smile. "Thanks, Neptune..." With that, she let herself be escorted away by the bailiff.
"OK, then! Time to go investigate!" declared the CPU, before her stomach suddenly growled. "Um, oops... maybe we should go back to the Basilicom and have some lunch first, hee hee..."
"S-sounds good," Rei nodded, smiling. "I'm k-kind of famished myself..."
With that, the two women left the courthouse...
To be continued...