Law & Order: Leanbox
The Lynx
by Derald Snyder
Part 8- Trial Day 2
DISTRICT COURT
TRIAL PART 34
SEPTEMBER 20, 10:10 AM
"Miss MAGES.," Rei began, "Could you please tell the court about your examination of the victim's body?"
The Mad Magician nodded, taking a sip of water, wishing she could have her favorite soda instead. "Yes, well, I determined that Mr. Lotson likely met his end from being immolated by four fire spells, closely clustered together for maximum damage. Clearly the perpetrator was a professional, or a fast learner..."
"So you don't believe Mr. Lotson was killed by a improvised flamethrower, as the prosecution claims?"
"OBJECTION! Your Honor, we already went over this with the ME yesterday," Jared argued.
"I agree. Time to move on, Miss Ryghts," the judge ordered.
"Yes, Your Honor," the horned woman acquiesced, walking back to her bench and retrieving a piece of evidence- the burned-out magic detector. "Miss MAGES., your name was found on the back of this device recovered at the crime scene. Does this device belong to you?"
"No," the Mad Magician replied, "The reason my name is inscribed on the back is because I patented the design."
"In that case, could you please describe what this device does?"
"Of course. It's capable of detecting residual magical energy left over from spells, as well as tracking people with substantial magical potential. It can even be used to track the unique Share Energy signature of CPUs. I had wanted to call it The Incredible Tracker Of Potential For Magic Prodigies And Goddesses, but I was vetoed by the patent office, who named it simply, a Magical Energy Detector. Although in hindsight, I suppose that IS a more marketable name for it..."
"OBJECTION! The witness is rambling on..." Jared sighed in annoyance.
"Sustained. We get the picture, Miss MAGES.," the judge concurred.
"Hmph. None of you have any appreciation for scientific genius," the bluenette sighed.
"A-anyway, m-moving on," Rei interjected. "Miss MAGES., can you tell us whether this device was burned out by the same spell that killed Dirk Lotson?"
"No. As I said to the detectives yesterday, it was burned out deliberately by a more focused spell- most likely to ensure any data on the detector was rendered irretrievable."
"I see," the former goddess nodded. "So, in your expert opinion, does my client have any magical potential?"
"To put it succinctly, if she tried to enter magic school, she would be laughed off campus by even the weakest students," MAGES. stated. "In other words, none whatsoever."
"Thank you, Miss MAGES. No more questions," Rei ended her examination, walking back to her bench.
Not wanting to look like he wasn't putting up any fight, Jared stood up and asked, "Miss MAGES., would you happen to have any explanation for the large bruises on the victim's body?"
"...it's not any magic spell I've ever seen," the Mad Magician demurred. "Of course, they could have been inflicted by a good old-fashioned fisticuff assault, as well."
"Thank you, nothing further." MAGES. then stepped down, taking a seat in the pew directly behind Rei's bench.
"Do you have any other witnesses, Miss Ryghts?" the judge inquired.
(It's finally time,) the bluenette thought to herself as she stood. Raising her voice, she declared, "Your Honor... the d-defense calls... D-Dr. Alisa C. P-Pear t-to the stand."
The doors at the back of the courtroom opened, the woman in question riding in on her hover-chair, her bulky visor looking straight ahead, attracting many a curious glance. As she approached the judge, she rasped, "Where's the witness stand, Your Honor?"
"To your right," the judge instructed, Dr. Pear hovering in that direction, turning to face the gallery. As the bailiff walked up with the 4GO guidebook, Rei Ryghts and Jared McCoy briefly exchanged glances. This was the moment of truth... it was time to see whether the detectives' hunch had been on the money, or it had been a wild goose chase.
Once Dr. Pear had been sworn in, Rei stood and walked up to her hover-chair, standing slightly off to the side. "Doctor," she began, "D-do you know w-why you have b-been c-called to this t-trial?"
"Because I was questioned by the detectives when they were searching for The Lynx, I presume?" the old cripple guessed.
"Y-yes, if you could p-please d-describe your d-discussion w-with them..."
"I suppose I could do that... but who was who, again? I don't think I got their names..."
"Bennie Crisco and Eddie Green," Jared spoke up. "Cricso's the older one, Green's the younger."
"Ah, thank you, prosecutor," Dr. Pear nodded. "Well, it started when the two detectives knocked at my door. I asked who they were, they identified themselves, so I came out. Mr. Green seemed a bit taken aback at my appearance, which I called him out on... handsome young man, though."
"S-so then what happened?" Rei asked.
"Well, they told me that my old student, Kyle Daidouji was sitting in jail for illegal cloning, and that they were looking for said clone... they didn't tell me she was The Lynx until later, though. Anyway, they searched my apartment and found nothing, and then they got called away to a murder scene."
"D-did they say w-why th-they were l-looking at you specifically?" the lawyer pressed.
"Because I had a criminal record, due to the damage that occurred with the lab accident that left me in this wretched condition," Alisa muttered. "I told 'em, yes, Daidouji had contacted me recently, but that I had nothing to do with the cloning experiments."
Rei nodded curtly, retrieving some papers from her bench. "I have here a sworn statement from Detectives Crisco and Green. They say here that you said you had nothing to do with any cloning experiments, as you said. However," she continued, "when pressed further, you stated that you were, quote, 'not involved in the conduction of any other experiments either,' end quote. That's an oddly specific choice of words, don't you think?"
"Pah, you lawyers," Alisa scoffed. "Always tryin' to define what the mean' of the word 'is' is..."
"...Permission to treat as hostile, Your Honor?" the bluenette requested.
"Granted. But don't go full psycho-goddess on the witness, understand?"
"Yes, Your Honor," Rei nodded, before turning back to the old woman. "I have a very good reason for mincing your words, maggot... because I have reason to believe, that while you may have been technically telling the truth, you did so in a way that would mislead the detectives!"
"And just how did I mislead, Miss Ryghts?" Dr. Pear growled as she crossed her arms in annoyance.
"You say that you weren't involved in the conduction of any other experiments... however, that still leaves open the possibility that you were a test subject!" The gallery started to murmur in confusion at this.
"OBJECTION! Relevance!" McCoy stood up.
"Your Honor, this line of questioning is crucial towards my establishment of an alternate theory of the crime," Rei explained. "If you'll please grant me some leeway, things will become clear soon enough..."
The robed man banged his gavel once to quiet the audience, then pondered for a few moments. "...Alright, I'll allow it. But I suggest you get to your point quickly, Miss Ryghts."
"In that case..." The former goddess retrieved another bundle of papers from her desk. "This is a transcript of the victim's case files on searching for The Lynx, which if I may remind the court, is The People's statement of motive for my client to kill the victim."
"What the-?!" Alisa gasped. "I-I thought- I-I-I heard his office had been burned down by an arsonist!"
"These were retrieved from backup files on a mobile device the victim had hidden at his apartment," Rei retorted smugly. "Since your eyesight's bad, Doctor, allow me to read this off for you:'Today, I learned that The Lynx actually has the face of Rei Ryghts. While most people think they're one and the same, it doesn't add up. I need to look further into this...' And then, the last entry: 'I learned that the army shut down a cloning laboratory a couple months back. My Army contact told me that they were trying to create their own CPU from Rei Ryghts' DNA, and that there was a victim who was put in witness protection. He wouldn't tell me who or where though... but I think I have an idea how to track her down.' End quote." Rei looked back up at Dr. Pear. "And the device he was using to track this woman was none other then Miss MAGES.' Magical Energy Detector, which was found buried in a trashcan nearby the victim's body... as if someone was trying to hide it."
"I don't know anything about that," Alisa shot back.
"Miss Ryghts," Jared spoke up again, "Are you telling me you have reason to believe that this old, crippled woman sitting before us, is in fact the test subject that was subjected to DNA infusion by those scientists that stole your DNA?"
"As a matter of fact, I am indeed saying just that, worm," Rei retorted, causing the gallery to murmur.
"Oh, come now," Dr. Pear shook her head. "I knew you were a psycho, Rei Ryghts, but this takes the cake! Do I look like I've been subjected to DNA manipulation?"
"I'm inclined to agree, defense," stated the judge. "Unless you have some way of proving otherwise, I'm going to have to strike this entire dissertation from the record."
"Of course I can prove it!" the horned lawyer replied. "For starters... Dr. Pear's testimony has a contradiction!" Turning back to the witness stand, she continued, "You see, Dr. Pear's medical records clearly show that her eyesight is completely shot, hence why she wears the visor. But a few minutes ago, Doctor, you described Detective Eddie Green as a 'handsome young man.' How could you have known that, if your eyesight is as bad as they say?!"
The old woman's dark skin seemed to pale slightly at this. "Oh! Um... Well, uh, I guess it was because of his smooth-talking voice, I just kinda assumed he was young and handsome! Eh-heheheheh..."
If anyone had happened to look at Detective Green sitting in the gallery at that moment, they would have seen his face blushing profusely. A blonde woman in a trench coat and hat wearing sunglasses, sitting next to him, placed a hand on his back.
Back at the witness stand, Rei gave a sinister smirk. "Nice save, witness, but it won't help you. I have a way of definitively proving that YOU were the test subject that was put into witness protection! Miss MAGES., could you come back up here for a moment?"
"Certainly," The Mad Magician nodded as she stood and walked to Rei's side. "I find it somewhat ironic that I am willingly assisting a final boss that I helped fight against in the past..."
"Only if somebody purchased your DLC," Jared muttered.
"OBJECTION! Breaking the fourth wall, Your Honor!" Rei protested.
"Sustained. The jury will disregard."
"Should've kept your mouth shut," Rizzoli whispered to her co-worker, who could only shake his head.
*Ahem* "Anyway... Miss MAGES., would you happen to have a Magical Energy Detector on your person?"
"Of course I do," MAGES. nodded, bringing out the device in question, which elicited a gasp from Alisa. "This is the latest version, capable of-"
"HOLD IT!" Rei cut her off. "Less talking, more scanning, maggot!"
The Mad Magician winced from her fellow bluenette's glare. "A-As you wish." She walked up to Dr. Pear, Rei taking care to back off a ways, so her own Share Energy didn't interfere with the readings... MAGES. then turned on the device, which hummed for a moment, then gave off three short beeps. "Oh, my... it seems you have quite a bit of Share Energy surrounding you, Doctor!" The gallery started chattering at this, as Dr. Pear gritted her teeth and clenched her fists...
"Share Energy," Rei chuckled, "which is something only Console Patron Units, such as myself, can possess! Don't you think it's time to come clean now, Doctor?"
The old woman sighed, before chortling slightly. "Well played, Miss Ryghts... well played indeed," she stated, her voice suddenly sounding much stronger. She then reached up and pulled the visor off her head, revealing a beautiful, youthful face with red eyes, causing the crowd to gasp in shock. She then pressed a button on her hover-chair, the metal dome covering her legs retracting, before getting off and standing straight, revealing a well-endowed and curvy body, clad in a red sweater and tight black skirt, her feet clad in high-heels. Alisa then gave the hover-chair a bump with her butt, sending it floating away, as she pulled out a pair of red-rimmed spectacles and slid them on her face.
"O-Oh my!" the judge gasped, his cheeks coloring slightly.
"Yes, it is quite a sight to see, is it not?" Alisa purred, as she swayed her hips. "I have to hand it to you, Rei Ryghts, I never imagined that being infused with your DNA would cause this result! I mean, look at me!" She did a quick pirouette. "I've never looked this good, even in my prime! And only side-effects were albinism and a case of near-sightedness... which, given the fact that you wear glasses, isn't too surprising."
At this point, the judge finally regained his senses, banging his gavel. "Order! Order! Order in the court!" The gallery's murmuring slowly subsided.
"...I will confess to being slightly jealous," Rei grunted, her own cheeks colored.
"But how did the witness acquire Share Energy, anyway?" Jared spoke up again. "After all, Dr. Pear, you've been pretty much under the radar until now..."
"I can explain that," Rei stated, recovering composure as she grabbed what appeared to be a calendar from her bench. "Does this look familiar to you, Doctor?"
"Ah, yes," Alisa chuckled. "As a matter of fact, I do remember posing for the pictures in this calendar... But where did you find this one?"
"In His Honor's trashcan," the lawyer deadpanned, drawing shocked gasps from the crowd as the judge blushed red.
"F-for your information," the robed man protested, "I confiscated that calendar from my perverted grandson! He has no right to poison his mind with such filth!"
"Oh, come now, Your Honor," Alisa taunted, "It's not like I posed nude in any of those pictures..."
"Y-you seriously skirt the line!" the judge grunted, still red in the face.
"OBJECTION! Your Honor, as enlightening as all this is," Jared proclaimed, "it still doesn't prove that Dr. Pear was the one who murdered Dirk Lotson!"
"Y-yes, you're quite right!" the judge said quickly, banging his gavel several times to quiet the gallery, before taking a breath to calm himself.
"But she's the one that the victim was looking for in the first place, and she was clearly trying to keep her new powers a secret! That gives her motive!" Rei argued. "And might I remind everyone, that Lotson's body was found only a few blocks from her apartment! That gives us opportunity! And her being a CPU would also explains why no other footprints were found at the scene!"
"How's that?" McCoy challenged.
"Simple, Dr. Pear was in HDD form! Which, as everyone knows, gives the goddess the ability to hover and fly, which means no footprints!" the lawyer explained. "And I'm almost certain you heard my client scream and run away from the scene, which gave you the idea to frame her by dropping a lighter and spray can at the scene, to take suspicion off yourself!"
Alisa frowned as she crossed her arms in annoyance. "That's a nice theory, Miss Ryghts, but you have no proof that it was I who killed that private investigator and planted the lighter and can of Beautiful Hold at the scene..."
Rei's eyes widened the slightest bit, bowing her head... then a sinister chuckle was heard, before progressing into outright diabolical laughter...
"Order! Order!" The judge banged his gavel. "Miss Ryghts, would you care to tell us what is so funny?!"
"Heh heh heh... Dr. Pear for being a supposed professor of chemistry, you really are an idiot." Pointing dramatically at the albino, she declared, "I never said that the spray can was Beautiful Hold! That detail was never released to the public!" At this, Alisa gasped as her hands went over her mouth. "The only way you could have known that detail... is if YOU were the one who planted it at the scene to begin with! Game Over, maggot! You lose!"
The professor briefly recoiled at this, before placing a hand to her forehead, cackling madly. "I don't believe it... to think that I, of all people, fell for the 'I Never Said It Was Poison' trope! Ha ha ha ha... One little slip of the tongue... AHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!"
"So it WAS you!" Jared stood up. "You killed Dirk Lotson in cold blood, and set up The Lynx to take the fall!"
"Ha ha ha... Well, to be fair," Alisa muttered, "I never realized the witness was that very same clone who was rejected and tossed on her rear by Daidouji and the others! Oh bitter irony... Still, those Leanbox Army mooks are such fools! They honestly believed I'd been forced to undergo that procedure, when I fact subjected myself to it willingly! It never even crossed their minds!"
"It seems my power and nearsightedness wasn't the only thing you inherited from my DNA," Rei observed. "You've also inherited my madness, my desire to crush all inferior lifeforms beneath my heel, from back when I was a final boss..."
"Heh heh... you're right about one thing, all lifeforms ARE inferior to me!" Dr. Pear cackled. "But I was still testing the limits of my power when that stupid investigator closed in on me! At first I thought he was just some bum walking the streets, but then he pulled out a gun and identified himself! I escaped that time without him seeing me, but he soon tracked me down again, with that infernal magic detector! So I decided to show him what happens when you cross a goddess!"
"And the arson at his office? And the burnt laptop at his apartment?" Jared pressed.
"Yes, that was my doing as well," Dr. Pear admitted. "But it seems my attempts to remain hidden were in vain. Well, no matter. This courtroom is hardly the place I wanted to make my grand debut, but it'll serve!" She then spread her arms as red energy surrounded her... "Now look closely, peons, at your new lord and master!" With that, she was engulfed in a pillar of light, momentarily blinding everyone...
When the light faded, Alisa C. Pear's glasses were gone, her eyes now sporting danger-symbols similar to Rei's HDD. Her attire had changed as well, now wearing a single strip of white cloth which barely protected her modesty, white arm gloves, tall boots, and an off-white cape with pointed shoulder guards and a purple underside. Four large Share Crystals, colored red, blue, yellow and green, now orbited around her body, as the gallery cried out in terror.
"AAAHHHHH!" Tenten screamed as she stumbled away, colliding with the nearby bailiff, who supported her. "It's you! You're the one I saw that night! You killed that poor man without mercy!"
"Yes, that's right!" Alisa laughed. "Tremble in terror! Bow to your goddess!"
"I think not!" a refined female voice called out. The trench-coated blonde from before stepped into the alley, removing her hat and sunglasses before being engulfed in a pillar of light herself, revealing the form of HDD Green Heart. "There is only one true goddess of Leanbox, and that is I!" Her presence immediately had the effect of calming the crowd somewhat.
If Alisa was surprised, she didn't show it, simply laughing in response. "Well, if it isn't Lady Green Heart herself! I must thank you for saving me the trouble of looking for you. Tell you what... how about we take this outside, so I can show you what I'm truly capable of!" With that proclamation, she vanished with a *brr-zhing!*, briefly leaving a circular rune in her wake...
"Sh-she's gone!" the judge gasped.
"She didn't go far!" said Green Heart, "I can still sense her Share Energy! All of you, get to a secure place! That's an order!" She then spread her wings, flying out through the nearest window, shattering it in the process.
(Well, better going out of a window than through the ceiling...) Rei thought to herself. "Your Honor, at this time..."
"Say no more," the judge shook his head. "The murder charge against Tenten Ryghts is hereby dismissed with prejudice. This court is adjourned!" He banged his gavel for emphasis, prompting the gallery to break into cheers and applause, even as some of them moved to do as their CPU had ordered...
"Bailiff, stay with Tenten!" Rei ordered, as she turned to leave.
"Wait! Where are you going, sister?" the clone asked.
"Isn't it obvious? To finish this once and for all!" Rei then turned and ran out of the courtroom, hoping that she could get to Vert in time to assist her...
*To be continued...*