"For you, my friend, they are the angels of death."
-Man against monster. Monster against self. The story is as old as time. Living above us, below us, and among us, they assimilate themselves into our culture, and us into theirs. To the common man, they are simply known as night terrors, but to the initiated, they are the Darkstalkers-
EPISODE ELEVEN: TRIAL OF THE WOLF
In moments, the trial of Jon Talbain VS The City of Pasadena would take place. The witnesses, the attorneys (both a defense and prosecuting lawyer by demand of the darkstalker community, who had insisting on defending one of their own. It seemed Talbain had become something of a civil rights hero in the last week), a jury of both darkstalker and human participants, and a judge who was known for his impartial, by the book approach had all been gathered. It seemed the only two figures missing from the case were the plaintiff, a dead man, and the defendant, a dead man walking.
Felicia stood outside the courtroom with Tasha and Aulbath. They had all volunteered themselves as character witnesses on the werewolf's behalf, but the prosecutor had objected to the movement, saying that a case this delicate required only witnesses who had been to the scene of the crime. They did not qualify.
As Felicia's head hung in despair for what she knew would be a losing verdict, a white furry hand rested on her shoulder. "It will all work out", a familiar voice said.
Felicia's eyes widened as she turned around and embraced the one man she wanted to see more than anyone, "Jon! You came! You came I knew you would!"
Talbain only nodded with a smile, that knowing look in his eyes, "At the jail, there's a tape for room 37 taken on the evening of the 12th." Felicia nodded.
He walked on past and up the stairs approaching the guards at the front, "The defendant is present."
The guards recognized him on sight and he willingly went inside, cuffed, without putting up a fight. Even in wolf form, he seemed perfectly in control of himself.
The courtroom was all brown mahogany wood with a carpeted floor, a flag of the United States as well as the state flag, a white sheetrock wall, and a lot of chairs.
The prosecutor sat in place: a man with red hair and a red suit. His nametag read "W.J. Ewing" and his cold, bitter stare was unmistakable.
The defender was Attorney Rev. Joel Santana, a masterful attorney with a long background in theology and lore. He leaned over to Talbain with a serious look behind his round spectacles, "This is going to go a lot smoother now that you've decided to show up in wolf form. That was a brilliant move on your part Mr. Talbain."
The judge stood and the bailiff called, "All rise for the honorable Judge Mugen."
The congregation rose silently, and then sat.
The bailiff handed the notes to the judge, "Defendant, who has listed himself legally as Jonathan Talbain Kreutz by law of his home plane Makai-"
The crowd let out a gasp. At this time the not-so-secret invasions from Makai had become a topic of household conversation. The judge banged his gavel down, "Order!"
The crowd grew silent and the bailiff continued, "-Is accused of the murder of Former Mayor Stevenson in the first degree."
The judge looked to the prosecutor, "Based on the delicate nature of this situation, I have deemed it appropriate for a minor switch of order. In other words, I'd like to follow the bad news with some good news. Please begin, Mr. Ewing."
Ewing stood and nodded, turning to the jury, "Ladies and gentleman of the jury, I will be attempting to give you the undeniable proof that the accused did indeed murder Former Mayor Stevenson on Election Day. This case will be based upon actual testimony of persons present as well as evidence found at the crime scene."
He looked to the judge, "Permission to proceed, Your Honor?"
Judge Mugen nodded, "You may continue, Mr. Ewing."
Ewing gazed upon the crowd, "I call my first witness to the stand: Julius Greensburg. Mr. Greensburg, please approach the stand."
As Greensburg, a fat middle-aged man, stood by the witness box, he placed his hand upon the bible and raised the other as the bailiff swore him in, then took the box.
Ewing stood in front of him, "Is it true, Mr. Greensburg, that you were indeed present on the day of the alleged murder?" Greensburg nodded, "Yes."
Ewing nodded, "Is it also true that you are a resident voter of the city of Pasadena and have been for over thirty years, Mr. Greensburg?" Greensburg nodded again, "Yes."
Ewing smiled, "Then please, Sir, can you give the ladies and gentlemen of the jury your most accurate testimony of the events of Election Day?"
Greensburg cleared his throat, "That morning I got up just like every other voter planning to attend, got dressed, ate my breakfast, and went out the door. It was very crowded and hard to see, but I was watching for Mayor Stevenson just like everyone else and when he arrived we all cheered. He was inches from the podium when something just blasted by and the Mayor was dead."
Ewing nodded, "Most of the parties present at Election Day likely remember something very similar to that, wouldn't you agree Mr. Greensburg?"
Greensburg blinked, "Those that saw it, yeah."
Ewing smiled to the Defense Attorney tauntingly, "No more questions."
Tasha, who was able to obtain a key on official police business, the nature of which she could not state because it would blow her cover, had taken Felicia into the jail. The other officers trusted her and simply gave her the key.
Felicia had gone back with Tasha and was looking around with her cat eyes for some means by which she could find the tape. She finally looked it up in a system of numbers that Tasha showed her, able to see it rather easily.
The reason they hadn't turned on the lights was simple. Felicia really was undercover on this mission: under cover of darkness. This way the lights in the room wouldn't allow the security cameras to pick her up, because she had learned a few tricks from her cat sisters about using her Makai-related blood to change her temperature. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the only way the infrared cameras could pick her up now.
Once the tape was acquired, Tasha hid it in a backpack and they were off.
Mr. Santana stood to cross-examine the witness, approaching him, "Mr. Greensburg, do you agree that it is well known that demonic eyes often if not always surpass the limits of human vision?"
Greensburg nodded firmly, "They can see even at night I hear sir."
Santana closed his eyes and nodded, "And I assume you agree you are a human?"
Greensburg was taken aback, "Of course I am!"
Santana, "Very well. Then I suppose that also proves that because you are a human, and not a demon, you can only see with human eyes, correct?"
Greensburg nodded slowly, "That would be correct."
Santana smiled, "Tell me, Mr. Greensburg, if you were incapable of seeing the perpetrator of the crime, is there any way to prove whom it was by human standards?"
Greensburg thought, then answered, "I suppose there isn't."
Santana looked to the Judge, "No more questions your honor."
As Santana walked back to his seat, Ewing crossed his arms, "I would like to present the evidence now if that would be possible, Your Honor."
Judge Mugen nodded, "You may proceed."
The bailiff brought forth the evidence. It consisted of two samples of fur from Jon, one being blue and the other white, a photo of the crowd taken on the day, and a set of legal documents in a small, neat stack.
Ewing approached the fur and picked it up, "Exhibit A: Twin samples of fur, one set taken from the scene of the crime and one taken from the head of the accused during his stay in the city jail. According to DNA testing done prior to this trial, the samples do match. The accused was a werewolf at the scene of the crime."
He put that down and picked up the photo, "Exhibit B: A photo taken at the scene of the crime moments prior to the actual crime. The accused can clearly be seen, not only towards the front of the crowd, but also in the exact direction to which police reports I have here," he handed the report to the judge, "State that the killer darted off in."
He sat that down and picked up the final piece of evidence, "Exhibit C: a coroner's report clearly stating that the marks on the body were made by a large animal, and also that the body, while harmless because it was dead on arrival, had been injected with lycanthrope venom from the claws. On that note, I rest my case."
Ewing sat down and the Judge looked to Santana, "You may proceed."
Santana nodded and stood, "Ladies and gentlemen of the jur-"
Just then, Felicia ran in, dressed in a dressed and wearing spectacles, and approached Defense Attorney, "Mr. Santana, your evidence."
Santana looked down at the tape and blushed, "Will this evidence be accepted as a possible Exhibit D, Your Honor?"
The judge looked to the bailiff, "I'll have to inquire the nature of this evidence as well as the nature by which it was acquired."
Felicia nodded, "The evidence was acquired from the City Jail by Officer Tasha Makabaya, and she will corroborate the story. The nature of the evidence is a tape taken by the security camera of an illegal beating of the accused by officers of the law."
Ewing stood, "Objection, Your Honor. The accused's time in the city jail, or the events that occurred therein, is completely irrelevant to this case."
Judge Mugen narrowed his eyes down at Ewing, "Being the judge of this courtroom, I am allowed to review the case files for all defendants, including notes for the attorneys' defense and/or prosecution. I clearly remember yours containing mention of the accused escaping from the city jail as evidence in the case. Objection overruled."
Ewing sat down, and the judge nodded to Santana, "Please proceed."
Santana walked to the evidence table, "Before I present the final exhibit to the jury, I would like to proceed by cross-examining the existing evidence."
He looked to Exhibit A, "This evidence could have come to light by several means. It is common knowledge that wolves shed their fur, especially during hotter days of the year, which Election Day was as proven by the weather report of 90 degrees Fahrenheit for the morning and afternoon. If the accused, my client Mr. Talbain, was indeed in the form of a werewolf during or before the crime, as he is now, it is apparent he is capable of behaving like a citizen and there is no legal ban on such a transformation in the city, either in public or private areas, unless specified."
His eyes fell on the photo, "Exhibit B, however, contradicts the first set of evidence entirely. This photo, as the prosecution claimed, clearly shows the defendant in his human form before the crime. According to my own police report," he handed it to the judge, "He was also in human form at the time of his arrest. Again, it is known by scholars that even werewolves capable of transforming without the aid of the full moon require more time than Mr. Talbain had to transform in the first place."
Finally, he looked at the report, "This I find most interesting indeed, because it contradicts everything I was taught in theology about the werewolf. According to this analysis, a werewolf can transmit lycanthrope venom through his claws. However, once again, it is known that werewolf venom is only transmitted through the teeth and this report contains no mentions of bite marks on the body. The report is irrelevant."
Santana looked to the judge, "Permission to present Exhibit D?"
Judge Mugen nodded, "Permission granted, Mr. Santana."
The tape was put into a courtroom VCR and played. It clearly showed exactly what Felicia had claimed it did. The crowd watched in horror, not at the beating of a darkstalker, but at the brutalities committed to another living being. It was all very clear. Talbain had not been abused as a werewolf, but as a man, and even then he had not savagely retaliated. He had only defended himself long enough to get out of there.
The tape ended and a hush fell over the crowd. The jury was sent back to make their decision, but they came out before even a minute had passed. The bailiff whispered their decision to the judge, who nodded, "Based upon the evidence provided here, the City of Pasadena finds Jon Talbain innocent of the allegations presented."
The gavel was slammed and Ewing's eyes went white, "WHAT!? This is madness! You can't let a murderer go! He almost let a child die! That child was my nephew and he's a beautiful little boy!"
"One more word and I'll have YOU thrown into the city jail!" Judge Mugen shouted at Ewing, standing up where he had formerly sat the entire trial.
Ewing was foaming at the mouth, "Oh, you can try alright, but you won't get very far once you learn the horrible truth of what a REAL darkstalker can do, not just a pansy like Talbain!" Ewing stood up and hunched over, scaled emitting from his body, which began to take on a black color as his eyes went red.
A demonic, snake-like creature hissed and leaped at the judge, but was stopped in midair by a howling light. In that light, snapped free of his 'bondages' was Talbain the wolf. The demon snake spun from the impact, crashing into a wall and harming nobody but himself.
The snake-like being retracted back into his human form: the form of Ewing, and lay unconscious. Talbain only stood there, eyes narrowed, as two police officers arrived and bound Ewing in chains, taking him away.
The bailiff looked to the judge, "Are you alright, Your Honor?"
Judge Mugen nodded, wiping sweat from his brow, "I'll be fine, but if it hadn't been for one persecuted hero and a damn good attorney, we not only would have sent the wrong man to jail, but the Mayor's real murderer would be on the streets."
DARKSTALKERS: THE SERIES WRITTEN BY REGIS A WELCH DARKSTALKERS © 2004 CAPCOM
-Man against monster. Monster against self. The story is as old as time. Living above us, below us, and among us, they assimilate themselves into our culture, and us into theirs. To the common man, they are simply known as night terrors, but to the initiated, they are the Darkstalkers-
EPISODE ELEVEN: TRIAL OF THE WOLF
In moments, the trial of Jon Talbain VS The City of Pasadena would take place. The witnesses, the attorneys (both a defense and prosecuting lawyer by demand of the darkstalker community, who had insisting on defending one of their own. It seemed Talbain had become something of a civil rights hero in the last week), a jury of both darkstalker and human participants, and a judge who was known for his impartial, by the book approach had all been gathered. It seemed the only two figures missing from the case were the plaintiff, a dead man, and the defendant, a dead man walking.
Felicia stood outside the courtroom with Tasha and Aulbath. They had all volunteered themselves as character witnesses on the werewolf's behalf, but the prosecutor had objected to the movement, saying that a case this delicate required only witnesses who had been to the scene of the crime. They did not qualify.
As Felicia's head hung in despair for what she knew would be a losing verdict, a white furry hand rested on her shoulder. "It will all work out", a familiar voice said.
Felicia's eyes widened as she turned around and embraced the one man she wanted to see more than anyone, "Jon! You came! You came I knew you would!"
Talbain only nodded with a smile, that knowing look in his eyes, "At the jail, there's a tape for room 37 taken on the evening of the 12th." Felicia nodded.
He walked on past and up the stairs approaching the guards at the front, "The defendant is present."
The guards recognized him on sight and he willingly went inside, cuffed, without putting up a fight. Even in wolf form, he seemed perfectly in control of himself.
The courtroom was all brown mahogany wood with a carpeted floor, a flag of the United States as well as the state flag, a white sheetrock wall, and a lot of chairs.
The prosecutor sat in place: a man with red hair and a red suit. His nametag read "W.J. Ewing" and his cold, bitter stare was unmistakable.
The defender was Attorney Rev. Joel Santana, a masterful attorney with a long background in theology and lore. He leaned over to Talbain with a serious look behind his round spectacles, "This is going to go a lot smoother now that you've decided to show up in wolf form. That was a brilliant move on your part Mr. Talbain."
The judge stood and the bailiff called, "All rise for the honorable Judge Mugen."
The congregation rose silently, and then sat.
The bailiff handed the notes to the judge, "Defendant, who has listed himself legally as Jonathan Talbain Kreutz by law of his home plane Makai-"
The crowd let out a gasp. At this time the not-so-secret invasions from Makai had become a topic of household conversation. The judge banged his gavel down, "Order!"
The crowd grew silent and the bailiff continued, "-Is accused of the murder of Former Mayor Stevenson in the first degree."
The judge looked to the prosecutor, "Based on the delicate nature of this situation, I have deemed it appropriate for a minor switch of order. In other words, I'd like to follow the bad news with some good news. Please begin, Mr. Ewing."
Ewing stood and nodded, turning to the jury, "Ladies and gentleman of the jury, I will be attempting to give you the undeniable proof that the accused did indeed murder Former Mayor Stevenson on Election Day. This case will be based upon actual testimony of persons present as well as evidence found at the crime scene."
He looked to the judge, "Permission to proceed, Your Honor?"
Judge Mugen nodded, "You may continue, Mr. Ewing."
Ewing gazed upon the crowd, "I call my first witness to the stand: Julius Greensburg. Mr. Greensburg, please approach the stand."
As Greensburg, a fat middle-aged man, stood by the witness box, he placed his hand upon the bible and raised the other as the bailiff swore him in, then took the box.
Ewing stood in front of him, "Is it true, Mr. Greensburg, that you were indeed present on the day of the alleged murder?" Greensburg nodded, "Yes."
Ewing nodded, "Is it also true that you are a resident voter of the city of Pasadena and have been for over thirty years, Mr. Greensburg?" Greensburg nodded again, "Yes."
Ewing smiled, "Then please, Sir, can you give the ladies and gentlemen of the jury your most accurate testimony of the events of Election Day?"
Greensburg cleared his throat, "That morning I got up just like every other voter planning to attend, got dressed, ate my breakfast, and went out the door. It was very crowded and hard to see, but I was watching for Mayor Stevenson just like everyone else and when he arrived we all cheered. He was inches from the podium when something just blasted by and the Mayor was dead."
Ewing nodded, "Most of the parties present at Election Day likely remember something very similar to that, wouldn't you agree Mr. Greensburg?"
Greensburg blinked, "Those that saw it, yeah."
Ewing smiled to the Defense Attorney tauntingly, "No more questions."
Tasha, who was able to obtain a key on official police business, the nature of which she could not state because it would blow her cover, had taken Felicia into the jail. The other officers trusted her and simply gave her the key.
Felicia had gone back with Tasha and was looking around with her cat eyes for some means by which she could find the tape. She finally looked it up in a system of numbers that Tasha showed her, able to see it rather easily.
The reason they hadn't turned on the lights was simple. Felicia really was undercover on this mission: under cover of darkness. This way the lights in the room wouldn't allow the security cameras to pick her up, because she had learned a few tricks from her cat sisters about using her Makai-related blood to change her temperature. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the only way the infrared cameras could pick her up now.
Once the tape was acquired, Tasha hid it in a backpack and they were off.
Mr. Santana stood to cross-examine the witness, approaching him, "Mr. Greensburg, do you agree that it is well known that demonic eyes often if not always surpass the limits of human vision?"
Greensburg nodded firmly, "They can see even at night I hear sir."
Santana closed his eyes and nodded, "And I assume you agree you are a human?"
Greensburg was taken aback, "Of course I am!"
Santana, "Very well. Then I suppose that also proves that because you are a human, and not a demon, you can only see with human eyes, correct?"
Greensburg nodded slowly, "That would be correct."
Santana smiled, "Tell me, Mr. Greensburg, if you were incapable of seeing the perpetrator of the crime, is there any way to prove whom it was by human standards?"
Greensburg thought, then answered, "I suppose there isn't."
Santana looked to the Judge, "No more questions your honor."
As Santana walked back to his seat, Ewing crossed his arms, "I would like to present the evidence now if that would be possible, Your Honor."
Judge Mugen nodded, "You may proceed."
The bailiff brought forth the evidence. It consisted of two samples of fur from Jon, one being blue and the other white, a photo of the crowd taken on the day, and a set of legal documents in a small, neat stack.
Ewing approached the fur and picked it up, "Exhibit A: Twin samples of fur, one set taken from the scene of the crime and one taken from the head of the accused during his stay in the city jail. According to DNA testing done prior to this trial, the samples do match. The accused was a werewolf at the scene of the crime."
He put that down and picked up the photo, "Exhibit B: A photo taken at the scene of the crime moments prior to the actual crime. The accused can clearly be seen, not only towards the front of the crowd, but also in the exact direction to which police reports I have here," he handed the report to the judge, "State that the killer darted off in."
He sat that down and picked up the final piece of evidence, "Exhibit C: a coroner's report clearly stating that the marks on the body were made by a large animal, and also that the body, while harmless because it was dead on arrival, had been injected with lycanthrope venom from the claws. On that note, I rest my case."
Ewing sat down and the Judge looked to Santana, "You may proceed."
Santana nodded and stood, "Ladies and gentlemen of the jur-"
Just then, Felicia ran in, dressed in a dressed and wearing spectacles, and approached Defense Attorney, "Mr. Santana, your evidence."
Santana looked down at the tape and blushed, "Will this evidence be accepted as a possible Exhibit D, Your Honor?"
The judge looked to the bailiff, "I'll have to inquire the nature of this evidence as well as the nature by which it was acquired."
Felicia nodded, "The evidence was acquired from the City Jail by Officer Tasha Makabaya, and she will corroborate the story. The nature of the evidence is a tape taken by the security camera of an illegal beating of the accused by officers of the law."
Ewing stood, "Objection, Your Honor. The accused's time in the city jail, or the events that occurred therein, is completely irrelevant to this case."
Judge Mugen narrowed his eyes down at Ewing, "Being the judge of this courtroom, I am allowed to review the case files for all defendants, including notes for the attorneys' defense and/or prosecution. I clearly remember yours containing mention of the accused escaping from the city jail as evidence in the case. Objection overruled."
Ewing sat down, and the judge nodded to Santana, "Please proceed."
Santana walked to the evidence table, "Before I present the final exhibit to the jury, I would like to proceed by cross-examining the existing evidence."
He looked to Exhibit A, "This evidence could have come to light by several means. It is common knowledge that wolves shed their fur, especially during hotter days of the year, which Election Day was as proven by the weather report of 90 degrees Fahrenheit for the morning and afternoon. If the accused, my client Mr. Talbain, was indeed in the form of a werewolf during or before the crime, as he is now, it is apparent he is capable of behaving like a citizen and there is no legal ban on such a transformation in the city, either in public or private areas, unless specified."
His eyes fell on the photo, "Exhibit B, however, contradicts the first set of evidence entirely. This photo, as the prosecution claimed, clearly shows the defendant in his human form before the crime. According to my own police report," he handed it to the judge, "He was also in human form at the time of his arrest. Again, it is known by scholars that even werewolves capable of transforming without the aid of the full moon require more time than Mr. Talbain had to transform in the first place."
Finally, he looked at the report, "This I find most interesting indeed, because it contradicts everything I was taught in theology about the werewolf. According to this analysis, a werewolf can transmit lycanthrope venom through his claws. However, once again, it is known that werewolf venom is only transmitted through the teeth and this report contains no mentions of bite marks on the body. The report is irrelevant."
Santana looked to the judge, "Permission to present Exhibit D?"
Judge Mugen nodded, "Permission granted, Mr. Santana."
The tape was put into a courtroom VCR and played. It clearly showed exactly what Felicia had claimed it did. The crowd watched in horror, not at the beating of a darkstalker, but at the brutalities committed to another living being. It was all very clear. Talbain had not been abused as a werewolf, but as a man, and even then he had not savagely retaliated. He had only defended himself long enough to get out of there.
The tape ended and a hush fell over the crowd. The jury was sent back to make their decision, but they came out before even a minute had passed. The bailiff whispered their decision to the judge, who nodded, "Based upon the evidence provided here, the City of Pasadena finds Jon Talbain innocent of the allegations presented."
The gavel was slammed and Ewing's eyes went white, "WHAT!? This is madness! You can't let a murderer go! He almost let a child die! That child was my nephew and he's a beautiful little boy!"
"One more word and I'll have YOU thrown into the city jail!" Judge Mugen shouted at Ewing, standing up where he had formerly sat the entire trial.
Ewing was foaming at the mouth, "Oh, you can try alright, but you won't get very far once you learn the horrible truth of what a REAL darkstalker can do, not just a pansy like Talbain!" Ewing stood up and hunched over, scaled emitting from his body, which began to take on a black color as his eyes went red.
A demonic, snake-like creature hissed and leaped at the judge, but was stopped in midair by a howling light. In that light, snapped free of his 'bondages' was Talbain the wolf. The demon snake spun from the impact, crashing into a wall and harming nobody but himself.
The snake-like being retracted back into his human form: the form of Ewing, and lay unconscious. Talbain only stood there, eyes narrowed, as two police officers arrived and bound Ewing in chains, taking him away.
The bailiff looked to the judge, "Are you alright, Your Honor?"
Judge Mugen nodded, wiping sweat from his brow, "I'll be fine, but if it hadn't been for one persecuted hero and a damn good attorney, we not only would have sent the wrong man to jail, but the Mayor's real murderer would be on the streets."
DARKSTALKERS: THE SERIES WRITTEN BY REGIS A WELCH DARKSTALKERS © 2004 CAPCOM