As they realized what Swindle was trying to say, he spoke up again. "Yeah, I guess so. The sun was definitely shining."
"Are you kidding me!? That's impossible!" Ratchet immediately stepped in and yelled down at him, causing him to gasp and immediately kept his head facedown on the stand and his head on his hand, ignoring him. "Hey, answer me!"
"Ratchet, I think you need to address him with a bit more tact. Obviously, his mental state isn't the best right now," Smokescreen recommended to him.
"Erk!" Ratchet grunted guiltily. Yeah, Swindle was nowhere near the best mental state, so he had to take care when talking to him. He can't just get grumpy at him for no reason, even if he was stressed out with all the work saddled on him and the fact that they were currently in a life or death situation. With how mentally scarred he was from all that was happening to him, he needed to treat him like a patient instead of a suspect. "Alright, let's do this carefully," he agreed before addressing Swindle and spoke in his most careful tone possible. "Swindle, could you please calm down? We need your help to understand your words."
"Understand?" he questioned, looking back up at him. "What do you need to understand? I saw them plant the bomb in the day time. What else do you need to understand?"
"It's just… hard to believe," Ratchet told him. "The bomber planting it in the daytime would be a huge risk."
"But I know what I saw. The sunshine, the bomber placing the bomb at the grate, the bomber… the bomber," he muttered, seemingly in a daze before he shook himself out of it. "That's right, I saw them… I know who it is!"
"Huh, you do?" Scavenger asked, shocked.
"Yeah, it's Wildrider!" he accused, shifting his gaze to him.
"Huh?" Wildrider asked, crossing his arm at him. "Are your circuits fried? No way I planted the bomb."
"You can't fool me, I know it's you!"
"Oh, boy," Ratchet groaned. "I doubt it's this easy, but better see if his testimony holds up."
Nonstop Debate!
Ammo Available: Crate, Archives, Dead End and Nautilator's Head Injuries, White Line, Onslaught's Nighttime Crew, Cloak and Mask
SWINDLE: I know it's you, Wildrider!
WILDRIDER: And I'm telling you…
WILDRIDER: That your processor is scrambled!
PERCEPTOR: Could you describe to us what you saw?
SWINDLE: Yeah, sure, I know what I saw.
SWINDLE: I woke up trapped in the crate.
SWINDLE: Looking out, I saw the sun shining down…
SWINDLE: …on the person planting the bomb.
SWINDLE: That person was Wildrider!
WILDRIDER: And what makes you think it was me?
SWINDLE: I saw that the person was entirely black!
SWINDLE: No one else can possibly fit that description!
WILDRIDER: I have orange on me, moron!
SWINDLE: Yeah, but not much.
SWINDLE: I could easily have missed it!
RATCHET: That's wrong!
Ammo Used: Cloak and Mask
"Swindle, have you… even been paying attention to what's been going on?" Ratchet asked him.
"Huh?" Swindle grunted. "What do you mean?"
"He means, Swindle, did you pay attention when we talked about the cloak and mask?" Onslaught asked him.
"Cloak and mask? What cloak and mask?" he asked, confused. At that, Onslaught groaned into his hand, trying to withhold his disappointment.
"Scavenger, show him," he ordered weakly.
"Yeah, sure," he said as he got the cloak and mask and hold it out for everyone to see again. Swindle looked at it bug-eyed before looking down again.
"Oh… I see," he muttered. "Can you confirm that the bomber used that?"
"We found it hidden near where the bomb was place, so I say so," Perceptor told him.
"Yeah… I thought the bomber looked weird," he muttered.
"Can we just discount his whole testimony? It's obviously unreliable if he can't tell the difference between armor and cloth," Wildrider asked, annoyed.
"Let's not be so hasty," Jazz told him. "There might be something we can use in it."
"How can we trust someone who thinks that a bomb was planted in the daytime? Knock Out and Blurr were there for the daytime the whole time. No way could someone make use of it," he countered.
"There has to be something we can use in his testimony," Jazz responded back as he addressed the merchant. "Hey, Swindle, is there any more to your story?" Swindle didn't speak for a second before responding.
"Yeah, maybe," Swindle responded. "I'll try and come up with something for you."
"Just tell us the truth," Ratchet barked at him. He didn't have much trust in his testimony since it went against the facts of the case. His memory was probably so screw up that they had to reconstruct it.
"I'll tell you what I saw. Please know, this is how I saw it, okay?" he asked carefully.
"Yeah, sure," Bumblebee spoke up. "We have to get something out of your claims"
"Right… right."
Nonstop Debate!
Ammo Available: Crate, Archives, Dead End and Nautilator's Head Injuries, White Line, Onslaught's Nighttime Crew, Cloak and Mask
SWINDLE: As I said, I was trapped in the crate.
SWINDLE: I looked out through a hole in the crate.
SWINDLE: I saw the figure planting the bomb.
WILDRIDER: They were wearing a cloak, right?
SWINDLE: Yeah, I'm thinking more clearly.
SWINDLE: I saw it billowing a bit.
SMOKESCREEN: See, doing better.
SWINDDLE: Yeah, I guess so.
RATCHET: That's wrong!
Ammo Used: Crate
"Swindle, I must ask once again, were you even listening?" Ratchet questioned him.
"Huh? What are you talking about?" Swindle questioned, startled.
"I'm saying, are you sure you were looking through a hole in the crate?" he specified.
"Yeah, I'm sure, otherwise I wouldn't be able to see anything," Swindle told him.
"Wait… you're right," Bumblebee agreed. "The hole was at the bottom of the crate. If Swindle was looking through the hole, then he would be staring at the ground."
"Exactly. Swindle, why does your testimony continue to not make any sense?" Ratchet questioned him.
"I… I don't know!" Swindle yelled, placing a hand on his head. "I'm just telling you what I saw."
"May I interject?" Bludgeon interrupted.
"Huh?" Ratchet questioned. "What is it?"
"I've learned a thing or two during our investigations, and I'm afraid you're in the wrong on this one," he told him.
"Didn't I already beat you in a battle of wits?" Ratchet questioned him.
"Yes, but I must question you on why you're ignoring your own evidence?" he asked him.
"What do you mean, exactly?" Ratchet questioned him.
"I'm saying, do you remember the dirt on the crate?" Bludgeon pointed out and Ratchet nodded.
"Of course. I have that in my notes," he said.
"Then may I offer this hypothesis? What if the crate was simply tilted onto its side?" he questioned and Ratchet blinked at that.
"What?" he asked flatly.
"That would explain the discrepancy of the hole. Plus, if you remember where the dirt was, it was in the direction of the finished line, so when it was stacked on its side, the hole would be in the direction of the white line, right where the bomber was. After they planted the bomb, the crate was reposition to its current position," he explained and Ratchet was shocked at exactly how much that makes sense. The logic of it was undeniable. Impressive for someone he considered as nothing more than a brute. Which meant that he stressed Swindle out again for no reason. He really needed to take it slow. Sometimes, a contradiction had a reason for existing.
"You know, that makes sense," Swindle spoke up again. "I remember now that I was on my side."
"If this was an actual court of law, you be tried for perjury," Ratchet said, annoyed.
"Huh? But didn't those earth games say you can change your testimony?" Beachcomber questioned.
"Beachcomber, please stay away from earthen video games. They're hardly realistic," Perceptor ordered.
"Look, I didn't change my testimony. Just appended information to it," Swindle responded. "This isn't the first time I've testified in court."
"Plus, my logic does hold up, correct? It would make sense for him to be on his side," Bludgeon added.
"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Ratchet murmured before thinking it through, but he couldn't help but feel that something was wrong with it. The contradiction had a reason for existing, but a better question to all of this was why did it existed.
Logic dive!
Question #1: Why was the crate on its side?
So that the hole could be hidden
Because the ground was interesting
…
So it could be hidden
…
Question #2: Who cut the hole in the crate?
Swindle
Monobear
The Bomber
…
The Bomber
…
Question #3: Why did the bomber cut the hole?
To let Swindle see him plant the bomb
To let the air out
To let the dirt in
…
To let Swindle see them plant the bomb
…
RATCHET: That's it!
"What the… why would they do that?" he asked out loud.
"Uh, are you okay?" Skywarp asked him.
"Look, just for confirmation, you didn't cut the hole in the crate, right Swindle?" Ratchet questioned him delicately.
"What? No, of course not. I just online to see out the crate and saw him planting the bomb," Swindle answered.
"That's what I thought…."
"Uh, could you fill us in on what's bugging you?" Skywarp questioned him.
"The thing is, if it wasn't Swindle, then it as to be the bomber, which raises the question; why would the bomber even cut the hole into the crate?" he questioned everyone and at that, everyone was quiet.
"You know, that has bother me as well," Skywarp answered. "If the bomber cut the hole into the crate, that would mean that he wanted Swindle to see him plant the bomb."
"Huh? But why would he do that?" Smokescreen questioned.
"Isn't it obvious?" Knock Out questioned everyone. "This has to the bomber's trap."
"Trap? What do you mean?" Hoist questioned him.
"What I mean is that Swindle was probably manipulated into giving this contradicting testimony," Knock Out told them.
"Manipulated?" Swindle questioned him angirily. "First they killed Blast Off, and now you're telling me that they are using me to end the case in their favor?"
"More than likely," he responded.
"It unfortunately starting to sound like the truth," Ratchet told him.
"What, but… but is anything I'm saying useful?" Swindle asked out loud, frustrated with his hand on his head and shaking it.
"If you can testify to anything else, do so. If we can find something unmanipulated, we can decode the lie that they're forcing on us," Mixmaster agreed.
"Swindle, just testify once again," Onslaught said dully.
"Ugh… fine, I will. Just get something that we can use," Swindle agreed.
Nonstop Debate!
Ammo Available: Blurr's Testimony, Dead End and Nautilator's Head Wound, Grate, 'Rust' Paint, Ratchet's Surgery Notes, Checkered Line
SWINDLE: Alright, what do you wanna know?
PERCEPTOR: How about after the bomb was placed.
SWINDLE: After the bomb was placed?
SWINDLE: He came over to the crate and flipped it over.
SWINDLE: He opened it, I felt a prick, and everything went away.
MIXMASTER: What about what you could hear?
SWINDLE: What I heard? Not much.
SWINDLE: I was so dazed, I could barely hear anything.
BEACHCOMBER: What about time?
SWINDLE: You know, that is one thing.
SWINDLE: It took him a long time to open it once they flipped it.
SWINDLE: And, during that time, I'm not sure what I heard.
SWINDLE: I think there were voices…
SWINDLE: …the sound of shattered glass…
SWINDLE: … and two thuds.
KNOCK OUT: Are you sure of this?
SWINDLE: Yeah, I'm sure.
SWINDLE: So, did any of it help?
RATCHET: That's right!
Ammo used: Dead End and Nautilator's Head Injuries
"Wait, hold on. Two loud thuds?" Ratchet questioned.
"Yeah, I'm pretty sure," Swindle answered. "Of that much, I'm certain of."
"So what? Is there anything important in that?" Rewind questioned. "He could've just drop some stuff."
"That or he was bashing people's head in," Ratchet answered.
"What, what?!" Rewind questioned, startled.
"Are you taking about mine and Nautilator's head injuries?" Dead End specified.
"Head injuries? What head injuries?" Bludgeon questioned, worried. Obviously, he didn't take the time to look at the back of Nautilator's head.
"I found dents on the back of Dead End and Nautilator's head today, right before the race," Ratchet answered his question.
"It is most peculiar," Dead End muttered, trying to cross his arms with only one of them awkwardly. "I didn't understand why such an injury was inflicted on the two of us."
"At this point, I think it's safe to say you got it when you visited the racetrack in a drug-filled stupor. When you saw the bomber at the scene, they must've decided to take no chances and hit you in the back of the head," he answered.
"But didn't we find them in the forest?" Skywarp questioned.
"More than likely, he carried them to the forest to draw suspicion away from the racetrack. He had to make sure that we didn't find the bomb," Bumblebee answered.
"Among other things," Ratchet muttered.
"What do you mean by that?"
"Swindle, did the bomber carried something with them on their way to you?" Ratchet questioned him.
"You know, I believe they did, one in each hand. One was a syringe of some sort, I'm sure. He had to drug me somehow. But the other was much larger, had no idea what it was," he told them.
"I believe I can wager a bet on what exactly it was," Ratchet answered. "It was…."
Monobear File #5
Betting Pool
Storage of Betting Pool
No Refunds
Wildrider's Theory
Alibis
Bludgeon's Testimony
Energon-Stained Kitchen Knife
Dead End's Severed Arm
Tourniquet
Glass Container
Anesthesia Dispenser
Ratchet's Surgery Notes
White Line
Location of Crate
Dead End and Nautilator's Head Injuries
Onslaught's Nighttime Search Crew
Archives
Blurr's Testimony
Shard of Glass
Bumblebee's Testimony
'Rusted' Stands
Checkered Line
VOF Time of Day
Gutter Entrance at the Crater
Grate
'Rust' Paint Can
Cloak and Mask
Crate
"This grate," Ratchet answered.
"The grate that I found?" Hoist questioned. "How sure are you?"
"Two reasons. One, as Swindle can attest, he was at the grates, so he have to remove one to get inside the gutter. Two, the gutter we found had blue and red paint flakes on it," he answered.
"Blue and red paint flakes?" Dead End questioned. "They must've transferred onto the grate when he used it to crack our heads open."
"Correct. After smacking the two of you with it, he must've gotten worried about it, so he took it to the Repair Bay and hid it in there to keep it from being found if we should find the head wound," Ratchet responded.
NOT SO FAST!
"Oh frag…," Ratchet groaned as he heard Smokescreen yelled. "What is it?"
"Oh, nothing much," he responded with a shrug and Ratchet glared at him coldly.
"Are you just screwing with me?"
"Maybe a little bit, but I just want to make sure, okay? It's not like I doubt you, but we can't afford to get anything wrong."
"Hmph, fine. I suppose a bit of a discussion couldn't hurt."
"That's the spirit. Let's see if we can find anything."
Cross Swords Battle!
Swords Available: Checkered Line, Monobear File #5, Blurr's Testimony, Crate, Cloak and Mask, Ratchet's Surgery Notes
SMOKESCREEN: Alright, so you got paint flakes on the grate?
SMOKESCREEN: So what?
SMOKESCREEN: It doesn't really prove anything.
SMOKESCREEN: Especially since I haven't heard you say anything about matching the wounds.
SMOKESCREEN: Heck, how do you even know it comes from the racetrack?
…
DEVELOPMENT
…
RATCHET: That's true, I didn't match it…
RATCHET: …but I can confirm that it came from the racetrack!
SMOKESCREEN: Wait, really?
SMOKESCREEN: How heck do you know that?
SMOKESCREEN: No one looked under the white line…
SMOKESCREEN: …and everyone drove just fine.
SMOKESCREEN: So how do you know it came from there?
RATCHET: That's wrong!
Sword used: Blurr's Testimony
"Everyone drove fine? Not according to Blurr," he responded.
"Oh, really?" Smokescreen asked.
"Yeah," Blurr agreed with Smokescreen before speaking again, "wait, what do you mean?" Ratchet facepalmed at Blurr's idiocy before speaking.
"Blurr, you told me yourself that you felt weightless when driving over the far-left side, correct?" Ratchet questioned him.
"Well, yeah…, but I'm pretty sure it was nothing," he answered, which earned a disapproving look from Smokescreen.
"Okay, Blurr? I was objecting Ratchet to test him. I didn't mean it seriously," he told him, annoyed.
"Wait, really?" Blurr asked.
"Yes, you moron," Smokescreen muttered, facepalming as well. "Frag, how are you still this stupid?"
"Hey, I'm just going with my gut here."
"There's this thing call the processor. Use that. It's pretty wonderful," he remarked sardonically.
"Uh, are you two done arguing?" Ratchet questioned.
"If Blurr is done playing the fool, sure," Smokescreen shrugged and Blurr glared at the gambler before nodding. "Great."
"So, is my testimony finally reliable?" Swindle asked.
"It's certainly got some positives," Jazz agreed.
"Great, good to hear."
"Yes, we now know for sure that your testimony took place two nights ago when it was dark," Ratchet responded.
"Huh? When it was dark out? But, I saw the sun shining," Swindle said, confused.
"Swindle, just ignore it. It's-"
"No! Of all the things I'm certain of, I'm most certain of that. No way did it take place at night!"
"Swindle-"
"Shut it! I'm right!" he continued to badger him. Ratchet continued to glare at him as he realized what was wrong with him. He's been out of the loop since the last trial and he needed to be filled in on a certain fact.
Machine Gun Talk Battle!
Ammunition Available
SHIELD X7
SWINDLE: I'm sure of what I saw!
SHIELD X6
SWINDLE: Why can't you trust my testimony!
SHIELD X5
SWINDLE: I'm trustworthy for once!
SHIELD X4
SWINDLE: You're time doesn't match.
SHIELD X3
SWINDLE: Are you retarded?
SHIELD X2
SWINDLE: Are you trying to humiliate me!
SHIELD X1
SWINDLE: Do you want Blast Off to die in vain?!
Shield destroyed
SWINDLE: It was daytime when I was up.
RATCHET: This proves it was night!
Ammo Used: VOF Time of Day
"Swindle, you've been out of the loop for a long time now. Want me to inform you about something?" Ratchet questioned him.
"Out of the loop? About what?" Swindle questioned him.
"The place where your testimony takes place? It's called a Virtual Outdoor Facility, otherwise known as a VOF. Among the things it can do is change the time of the area is in," he told him.
"Yeah, Swindle. Just move the knob around and you're set. That's the only thing about it," Smokescreen told him.
"Correct. And it just so happen that the time was off today by ten minutes," Ratchet responded.
"Wait, what are you talking about?" Swindle questioned confused.
"The bomber obviously set the time several hours before or after the time you were up, which was nighttime. When he was done, he used the dial to move it back to the original time, but failed to make sure it was completely accurate," Ratchet told him.
"More than likely, after the bomber attacked Dead End and Nautilator, he took Swindle back to the archives, as that was why the archives were still being used yesterday night," Scavenger said.
"Then he placed the bomb components back in the crate to make them look nonsuspicious," Beachcomber explained.
"Then, yesterday night, he moved Swindle backed to the racetrack and stuffed him in the box while planting the bomb that night," Wildrider muttered.
"Anything else?" Ratchet questioned and everyone stayed quiet as the facts of the case came to light. It all made sense, so it was pretty likely it was the correct turn of events.
"Uh, can I make a small correction?" Blurr asked out loud and Ratchet inwardly groaned. Blurr, Blurr, Blurr, always with something to say. "Uh, you know, I'm kind of an idiot." Oh no. Just what was it? "I think I forgot to mention, but you know that blue container?"
"Uh, yes," Ratchet responded nervously. He had a feeling this was going to end with him wanting to wring Blurr's neck in frustration. This happened in every trial.
"Well, I may have forgot to mention that it was broken," he responded and if Ratchet could cut through steel with his glare, Blurr would've been bifurcated.
"What?!"
"Yeah, odd thing. It was all clustered together, so it still looked a bit like a container, but it was definitely broken," he responded and Ratchet desperately wanted to smack some sense into the ditsy racer. Thankfully, Bludgeon voiced his concerned.
"Blurr, next time, mention everything, or you'll face the full force of my wrath," he threaten as he slammed both his fist on his stand, sending the point across.
"Right, sorry!" he responded.
Ammo Updated: Blurr's Testimony
Open the crate Swindle was in yesterday to find wires, a counter, and a shattered blue container.
Whenever he drove over the far left side of the white line, he always had this feeling that he was floating.
"Anyone got anything else to mention?" Ratchet questioned and at that, Swindle spoked, hugging himself now.
"How long have I've been out of the loop? I have no idea what's been going on since Monobear let me stayed in my toom when he asked everyone to come to the motive," Swindle told him.
"Stay in your room? Now why would he do that?" Ratchet questioned.
"I'm not completely sparkles, you know?" Monobear told them from atop his throne. "I realized that Onslaught and Blast Off's actions last trial made him really upset, so I let him stayed in his room," he told them. Ratchet knew what he really meant. He let Swindle stayed in his room so that the paranoia over Onslaught and Blast Off would grow instead of letting it settle.
"Aright, look, Swindle? Seriously, talk to Onslaught after the trial. You two are the only ones you two have got, so I would cherish each other's company," he told him simply and Swindle nodded along to him.
"Fine. I'll talk to Onslaught after the trial," Swindle agreed, turning to his CO. "If that's alright with you."
"I… guess a failure like me needs some moral support," he agreed.
"Alright, good to hear," Ratchet nodded. "Now, anything else?"
"Yes, one thing," Mixmaster invited himself into the conversation, his arms crossed and his posture displaying confidence.
"What do you want to say?" Ratchet questioned him.
"I just wanted to say thanks for taking care of all the loose ends, because now I can definitely say who the bomber is," the chemist told him.
"Huh?!" Ratchet asked, shocked. "You know who the bomber is?"
"Yes, which is why I claim Smokescreen is the one who planted the bomb!"