Welcome to the ARMS murder mystery fic! Can you figure out whodunit?
Here's some quick pointers about this fic:
- This fic follows my previous fic, Dawn of the Championship of the Ribonissa, and while I do suggest you have a read through that one too, it's not mandatory to understand and enjoy this fic.
- This is being written as of ARMS Version 3.2, so any characters and content added after 3.2 will be absent.
- Max Brass is also absent from this fic, since he was the antagonist of sorts in the previous fic and would also likely have brought some authority to this murder situation, which I'd like to avoid to make things more chaotic. -
- No, there's no twist where it was Brass all along. The culprit is definitely one of the ten other fighters: not Brass, not Biff, not BYTE himself (nor BARQ!), and not any of the non-fighter characters featured.
Characters may differ heavily from their official portrayals as this is being written before much official characterization has been supplied by Nintendo.
Strong elements of RibMin (Ribbon Girl/Min Min), but it isn't the immediate focus of the story (hell, even less so than my last fic). Also some SpringJara (Spring Man/Ninjara), but much less present than RibMin.
No sexual content. Violence is mostly only present in the same way violence is present in ARMS itself.
Enjoy!
Chapter One: Expect Extravagance
Ribbon Girl stared out the car window, mesmerized by the lush green forest around them. "Mmmm!~ I wish we had this kinda scenery back home. It's all so pretty here."
Min Min, at the wheel, yawned quietly. "Nah. There's nothin' around for ages. It'd take, like, an hour to get anywhere."
"That's good, though!" Ribbon Girl smiled back. "It'd be so serene and peaceful, and you wouldn't have to worry about noisy neighbours or busy streets or airplanes flying low overhead…"
"Yeah butcha'd haveta drive forty minutes to get to any stores. That's just annoying." Min Min turned to face Ribbon Girl as the length of road ahead became straight and clear. "I think you just need a holiday, hun. You gotta relax a lil."
She sighed. "Mmm, I know. I thought I'd take a break after the championship but I've been working more than ever. Who knew the champ had to go to so many signings?" She lay her head against the window, feeling the warm sun shine against her skin. "Even this doesn't really count as a holiday. It's still for the league."
"Yeahhhh, but at least ya aren't fighting. And the journey there will be nothin' but rest and relaxation!" She softly smiled to Ribbon Girl. "I mean, the train itself is named Extravagant Express . So I'm kinda bankin' on it being some real fancy cruise ship type deal. But with a train."
The forest around them began to disperse as they continued their countryside drive. A beautiful horizon view replaced the trees, with gorgeous fields of summertime crop stretching for miles on end and a bright blue sky shining down from above. And there, in the distance, stretched an exquisite marvel of locomotive engineering - the Extravagant Express.
Ribbon Girl let out a tiny, happy gasp as the train came into view. "Oh my gosh, it's gorgeous! "
Min Min put her arm up to block the sun from her eyes. "Ha, guess I was right on the money. That's one hell of a fancy train."
"Mmmmmmmmmm, I'm sooooo ready to just lie down and relax! I bet the food is incredible, and the view of the sea in the sunlight - gosh! " She wiggled in her seat a bit as she thought about it. "This is perfect. This is exactly what I needed."
Min Min smiled brightly. "You've earned it, Ms. Champion. "
From the looks of it, the Extravagant Express certainly lived up to its name - it was a beautifully designed state-of-the-art steam engine, pulling along five luxury carriages fitted for a smooth and enjoyable journey.
To the front of the train was, naturally, the engine room. The staff had their quarters here, tucked away out of sight from the passengers. The day-to-day supplies were also kept here, in easy reach of the train's staff.
Behind the engine room was the dining cart - a large dining room with beautiful decor and a well stocked kitchen to the back. Fresh ingredients were always stocked aboard shortly before departure, ensuring quality meals could be prepared without issue.
Three sleeper carts followed the dining cart, holding three decently spacious bedrooms each, though the last held only two: a standard room and a room twice the size of the others known as the Champion's Suite . The walls separating rooms had been made decently thick to ensure optimal privacy, and each room was lockable from both the inside and the out.
At the back of the train came the cargo storage, where personal belongings could be set aside for the trip. Things here were typically stored within heavy metal boxes, which were then tied down to the train's floor for better safety.
The journey made by the Extravagant Express brought passengers from the countryside to a small town in the middle of the Arctic, passing over vast expanses of ocean along the way. The trip, in total, took just under two days. Departure came some time after noon the first day, and arrival followed on the morning of the third.
Due to the rather heavy price tag of the room tickets, the typical passenger to ride the Extravagant Express could easily be compared to a caricature of wealth - exquisite tastes, a smug attitude, and more than enough money to splash around on fanciful train journeys. But today was different. There were no fur coats or monicals to be seen, as the passengers aboard the Extravagant Express today were all ARMS Fighters .
The ARMS league had spent the last two or three years building a brand new stadium in the arctic, bringing the world of ARMS fighting to a whole new scene. The stadium itself was due for a grand opening and they saw no better way to start with a bang than by bringing over the biggest and toughest ARMS fighting had to offer for an incredible tournament.
Ribbon Girl and Min Min were not the first to arrive. As they pulled into the car park they noticed several cars already set aside - a sleek car with a snake-skin paint job (obviously Kid Cobra's), a fanciful freshly waxed convertible (no doubt belonging to Twintelle), an old second-hand sedan (recognisably Spring Man's), and a large and horribly dusty SUV (Master Mummy's).
They exited the car and removed some luggage from the trunk, taking two big suitcases with them as well as two carefully secured carry cases that held their ARMS. They headed up the stairs of the station and were immediately greeted by some uniformed staff members, who checked their tickets and took their luggage in politely.
"It's gorgeous up-close!" Ribbon Girl beamed happily, looking over the exterior of the train. "I hope it's good at keeping the cold out."
"Of course!" Smiled the attendant beside the train door. "I can assure you it's well primed for arctic weather. The cabins are well insulated and the wheels are built to withstand icy rails. No need to worry! Please enjoy your stay."
Ribbon Girl smiled back and went to head inside, but was suddenly stopped by Min Min tugging at her arm. "Ey…" She pointed down to the car park they had just came from. "Look who's here."
Beside a rusty pickup truck stood Mechanica, practically being hugged to death by her father as he saw her off. A crew member had gone down to greet them, and was struggling to carry her mech from out of the pickup truck's back.
"You wanna wait for her or what?"
"Hmmmm…" Ribbon Girl thought for a moment. "We'll get settled and meet her in the dining room. She'll probably take a while to say goodbye to her dad anyway." Ribbon Girl turned back to the attendant beside them. "She has a paid ticket: not one from the league. They told me that'd be fine but if there's any issues send someone to get me! I don't want her sent away."
"Of course, ma'am. No worries." The attendant smiled back.
The two boarded the train, entering at the third sleeper cart. The interior was stunningly gorgeous - a fine wood paneling lead up each wall about waist-high to meet with a beautiful red wallpaper sporting a fancy design of golden swirls which reached the rest of the way to the ceiling.
Another attendant stood waiting for them, and greeted them with another smile. "Welcome! You must be Ribbon Girl and Min Min. Congratulations on your championship!" She motioned to the carriage door behind her. "The two of you will be staying in the Champion's Suite, over in the first sleeper cart." She flicked through her stack of keycards for a moment, a little confused, before quickly remembering the key in her pocket. "Ah! Yes, the key to the Champion's Suite is actually a proper key…"
The attendant passed a small bronze key to Ribbon Girl. It seemed rather classical - it had a large loop to one end and a long shaft with rectangular teeth.
"I apologize if it feels a little finnkey. We were used to transporting the previous champion, Max Brass, on his world tours. He quite liked physical keys over the keycards. 'Brass wants brass!', as he'd say."
Though strange at first, the two shrugged it off and headed down to the first sleeper cart. From the hallway this carriage seemed much like the other two, but rather than three room doors this one had just two - one alike the others they had passed, and one far more stylized with a deep wax wooden finish, long golden trails, a great big brass door lock, and a gold-plated sign baring the words Champion's Suite .
Ribbon Girl slipped the key into the lock, but paused before turning it. The door to the room beside theirs had opened, and out came two familiar faces.
"... starts until around seven, I think? At least not until the train is in motion." The tall, blue-haired man mumbled.
"Well I dunno, I just don't wanna stay cramped up in our room all day. Might at least have their menus available, it's worth a look." The other, similarly tall man replied.
"Hey Spring!" Ribbon Girl called out.
The two stopped and turned to them. Spring Man smiled. "Heyyy, you've arrived!"
"Ribbon Girl." Ninjara nodded. "Min Min." Another nod.
"Sup." Min Min replied casually, resting her shoulder against the wall.
"We were gonna head out to the dining cart and see what it's like! Nin thinks dinner might be on already, but I doubt it."
"Pffft." Min Min smirked. "It's barely past noon, dude."
Ninjara rolled his eyes. "I just want to to somewhere with a little more breathing room. We don't have the luxury of a champion's room."
"Oh, congratulations on your championship!" Spring Man smiled to Ribbon Girl. "That was quite some fight! Never thought I'd see the day Brass got taken down. Speaking of which, is he coming too? I didn't see his name on the tourney listing…"
"No, he's sitting this one out. He's got signings to go to, fan meet-ups, TV appearances…" Ribbon Girl shrugged. It was weird thinking back to how she used to feel about Brass, and how his name alone would make her heart sink. But in the months since the championship battle, things had really smoothed out between them. In some ways she was actually pretty disappointed he wouldn't be coming on this trip too.
"Ninjara and I, the two of you, Mummy, Twintelle, Cobra, BYTE & BARQ, Lola…" Springman glared off into the corner, counting on his fingertips. "Aaand Helix. I think that's everyone?"
"Mechanica is coming too."
"Wait, really?" Ninjara looked taken aback. "I know I didn't see her name on the tourney listing..."
"Oh, well, with Brass not coming I bought the extra room so she could come alone!" Ribbon Girl smiled. "She's a big fan of the league, and I kinda owed her a favour."
Ninjara sighed. "You're just gettin' her hopes up. The ARMS league is for ARMS fighters. Y'know… Fighters with ARMS. Actual ARMS."
"Be nice." Min Min glared.
He sighed again, louder. "Well we'll see ya around. Enjoy your room, champ."
The two men began heading out. Springman turned back quickly to wave at them before leaving, and Ribbon Girl waved back.
The interior of the Champion's Suite was a good deal larger than the other rooms, and overflowing with fancy dressings all over the walls, furniture, and bedding. The bed itself was massive - easily enough for the two of them - and adorned with velvet curtains hanging from the ceiling, which were currently tied neatly to the poles that stemmed from the bed's corners.
"Damnnnnn. I think this place is bigger than my bedroom." Min Min remarked looking around.
"Don't be silly." Ribbon Girl replied, rolling her eyes with a smile. She knelt beside the bed and slid her glove case beneath it.
Min Min did the same, slipping it beside Ribbon Girl's, before jumping onto the bed and lying down. "Ohhhh yes. This thing is comfy."
Ribbon Girl sat herself down beside Min Min. "It'll be nice to finally relax a bit. I'd-"
Suddenly a chime cut her off. The intercom in the carriage played a small welcoming tune, before the voice of an attendant took over. "Goooooooood afternoon passengers! I will be your conductor for this trip, and I do hope you all enjoy yourselves immensely. We will be departing shortly and expect to arrive in the early morning of our third day. The trip will be feature no stops until we reach our destination, which is just as well as the majority of our trip will be over the ocean!"
Ribbon Girl lay down against the bedding, and Min Min put an arm behind her. The bed, as Min Min had pointed out a moment before, was extremely comfy.
"Since we are transporting ARMS passengers…" The intercom continued. "I do ask that everyone with the ARMS ability keeps their masks off and in their respective travelling cases. There is to be no ARM fighting on the trip!"
Min Min sighed, pressing her head against Ribbon Girl's. "Getttt onnnn withhhh ittttt…"
"And finally, I do want to point out that the furthest carriage on the train will be out-of-bounds for the duration of the trip. With all that, I do hope you have a lovely stay, and we will be departing shortly!" The intercom cut off with a slight buzz.
Min Min cocked an eyebrow. "What's the last cart off limits for?"
Ribbon Girl sighed. "It's probably just all ugly metal in there. Doesn't fit with the whole luxury image."
Min Min didn't shrug it off easily. She had a weird feeling in her gut that there was something they hadn't been told about this trip, and that feeling was hard to shake.
The train jolted briefly and then slowly began to chug along at a slow pace, building up speed quietly. Ribbon Girl jumped to her knees and crawled over Min Min to the far-end of the bed, staring out of the beautifully clear window at the passing scenery. "Ohhhh, woah! Look at all the fields! It's soooo pretty here!"
Min Min stayed with her head to the pillow. "Enjoy it while it lasts, hun." She yawned. "It'll all be ocean tomorrow."
With the Extravagant Express finally on its way, all that was left to do for the next few days was relax . And the two planned to do just that.
It's just a shame someone else had other plans…