Earthcub12 Presents

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney ~ Courtroom Champions

Turnabout for a Prayer / Investigation 2-6

-September 4, 6:25 PM-
-St. Owen's Baptist Church-
-Secret Tunnel-

"Right behind you, boss." Athena said. As they all made their way down the staircase, Maria and Filch on their way. It was a lengthy walk, but they all managed to make their way down to a stone door. Phoenix and the crew investigated the door thoroughly. Phoenix eventually found a keyhole on the right side. Phoenix lit up, quickly patting his pockets and pulled out the key he found in Owen's coat.

"You think that key'll fit?" Maria asked Phoenix.

"I don't know. But it won't hurt to try." Phoenix answered. He successfully managed to insert the key into the keyhole and turned it. The door suddenly opened as Phoenix slowly pulled the heavy door.

"Well, you know what they say." Phoenix commented through his teeth, pulling the door open with all his strength. "Behind a door is…"

When Phoenix opened the door, yet another door – this one metal - of the same size stood right behind it.

"…Is another door."

This time, a small, circular shape rested on the center of the door.

(What in the world is this? I don't have a key or anything like this… do I?)

Phoenix carefully examined the circular shape, clueless.

"Well, that's great." Filch groaned. "All this way and all we got is some tin can of a door! What a waste of time!"

Phoenix continued to study the circular hole, when suddenly, he got an idea.

(The ring…! D-David's ring! Maybe…!)

Phoenix pulled out David's silver ring and brushed lint off it. Phoenix slowly inserted the ring into the circle – a perfect fit. As the hole latched onto the ring, the markings on the door began to glow, when suddenly, the door slowly opened. Dust escaped the door as it slid open. Everyone entered the bright room. They found themselves in the largest, brightest room in the entire tunnel. Puddles of mere, golden coins littered the place, which quickly caught Filch's attention.

"G-gold! Riches! It's true!" He bolted towards the gold coins and began to set them in his pockets, one coin at a time.

"This must be it…!" Maria gasped. "It's true! The secrets, the riches! It's all true! So… where is it?"

A ray of light pointed down at the center of the room. No treasure, but a small, wooden statue stood at the center. "You know…" Apollo commented. "That statue there looks kind of familiar…"

Phoenix, Apollo, Athena, and Maria made their way to the center of the room where the tiny statue laid. Phoenix leaned down and turned it around. The statue had a striking resemblance to Phineas Filch, except of female physique. The figure seemed to be packing something into a bag.

"Hey, uh, Filch!" Phoenix called. "You know what this is?"

Filch, whose pockets were dripping with coins, rushed over there and gasped at the statue. "I-it's my great grandmami! The greatest woman thief you could ever imagine! This must be her doing! That explains why this stinking place is so starving of moo-lah."

(I can't believe it… is the treasure, just… GONE!?)

'FILCH STATUE' ADDED TO COURT RECORD

ITEM DESCRIPTION: A statue of Phineas Filch's grandmother, a legendary thief. Found at the site of the supposed 'treasure'.

Apollo and Athena looked at each other, as if this all seemed familiar.

"I can't believe my eyes." Maria said, her hands to her face. "The treasure… the rumor… is gone!?"

Phoenix stood up and faced Maria. "That seems to be the case, unfortunately. Still, I don't think we wasted our time."

"Huh? Why do you say that?" Athena asked him.

"Well, for one, we found the 'secret' this church has been hiding. So it turns out all these rumors are true. Secondly, with the supposed treasure gone, it's one less thing we have to worry about, wouldn't you all agree?"

"Yeah, but… how is this going to help us out for the trial tomorrow?" Apollo asked Phoenix. "Did we learn anything?"

"Well… I don't know. But, besides, I really think we have all we need for the trial tomorrow. We have Athena back, we have a lot more evidence, and I think I'm ready to nail the real culprit: Hera Novak."

"Careful, Phoenix." Apollo warned. "Think this through. You REALLY think it's her? Think about it."

"I'm positive. She has to be the culprit. It all adds up. She was at the church the night of Owen's murder. She's the one that bribed Maria to lie to the police. She's the one that hides her arm after it's been said the murderer's hand has been cut. I'm going to do everything I can to defeat this 'rookie', once and for all!"

Apollo was silent at first, but then clenched his fists. "Okay, boss! I'm with you all the way! If you're sure, I'm sure!"

Apollo held up her hand and gave them the peace sign with her hand and said, "Same here, boss! You need something, I'm here for you! Now why don't we go and call it a night, huh?"

Phoenix shook his head. "Not yet, I'm afraid. I still have some unfinished business to take care of."

"Huh?" Apollo placed his finger on his head and then said, "Wait… do you mean…?"

"There's still one more person I need to question. Once we get done with him, I think we'll be all set for tonight." Phoenix looked over to Maria. "Maria, I think it's time to go."

Maria looked at Filch, who was continuing pocketing piles of coins. She looked over to Phoenix and said, "In a minute, Mr. Wright. I'll be right up."

"It's not safe down here." Apollo advised. "I think it's best that-."

"I'll watch them, guys!" Athena told them. "I'll take care of this, don't worry."

"You sure, Athena?" Phoenix asked her.

"Yeah, I'm sure. Somebody has to help these guys out of here. You and Apollo go do your thing. I'll be right up and I'll see you back at the agency!"

Phoenix nodded. "Okay, Athena. We'll see you around!" Phoenix turned back over to Maria, then nodded at her as well. "Maria… I'll see you tomorrow."

Maria held her fist in front of her chest. "Th… thank you, Mr. Wright. For everything. I'll see you tomorrow. I pray that you won't hold back."

Phoenix turned to Apollo, and gestured to the exit, as they both grabbed a lit torch and made their way out to take care of some unfinished business.

-September 4, 7:01 PM-
-Junkyard-

It was late and dark, but Phoenix and Apollo knew they had to get some answers from De Bum before the morning's trial. When Phoenix and Apollo entered the junkyard, it was just as foul as last time. They went to the center of the junkyard, where they found De Bum sleeping under a blanket of trash. Phoenix kicked some of the trash to try to wake him up.

"Mr. De Bum!" Phoenix yelled. "Wake up! It's Phoenix and Apollo. We still have some questions for you."

Out of nowhere, Zachariah the Rat peeked out of De Bum's beard and looked up at Phoenix. The rodent instantly leaped up in a perfectly vertical line, nipped Phoenix's chin, and then landed back inside De Bum's chin. Phoenix yelled in pain as he jumped back, holding onto his chin. The scream woke De Bum up as he climbed back up, the trash over him falling to the ground.

"Hey! What did I tell ya kids!? Stay out of my home!" De Bum shouted, but then noticed it was the lawyers from before. "Oh. It's just you two. What's the big idea sneaking into my home at this time of night?"

"Will you get ahold of your pet rat?" Phoenix yelled. "I swear, if I get rabies, or the Black Plague, or something, you're going to get it!"

"Zacharias did nothing wrong!" De Bum defended, stroking Zachariah's head that sticking out of his beard. "He was just giving ya a lil' kiss."

Phoenix growled, then gained control of himself. "Mr. De Bum, we have some more questions for you."

"What's with you two!? Can't a working man get a lil' sleep here and there? Can't it wait until tomorrow?"

"No. No, it can't."

"Bah!" De Bum snapped. "I told you, I know nothing, let alone anything that has to do about the church that night!" Just as he finished saying that, everything but De Bum went black as chains raced past De Bum, revealing four Psyche-Locks.

(Yup, still there. Time to put an end to this, now!)

"Take that!"

Phoenix presented his Magatama to De Bum, where the chains and the Psyche-Locks re-appeared. Once everything was all set, Phoenix stood straight up.

"Mr. De Bum, I feel like you're hiding something about the church that night. What do you know that we don't know?"

"How the heck am I supposed to know what you don't know?" De Bum argued. "Just leave me alone! I don't know nothing about that place. They don't talk to me for nothing, I don't talk to them! Fair game."

"Are you sure? I think you and the church have a pretty decent relationship. This is what proves you and the church know each other!"

"Take that!" Phoenix cried, showing De Bum the white David statue. "There's a priest at the church that willingly loaned you this white statue a while back ago. If the church didn't know you existed, then why go through the trouble of giving you this expensive-looking statue? Because I think it's not just a donation. I have a feeling it's a gift of some sorts. Is that about right?"

De Bum stared at Phoenix for a short while, then gasped, causing Zachariah to be sucked into De Bum's mouth. De Bum coughed the rat back out, whereupon it scurries back into his beard. He coughed, then said, "Okay, okay… you got me!" When he said that, one of the four locks broke off. Three remained.

"Look, the truth is, I know the church all too well." De Bum confessed. "Or, at least the location."

"What do you mean?" Phoenix asked.

De Bum rubbed his nose. "You know what I mean! I know a lot of things."

"Hmm… I think I know what you mean, Mr. De Bum." Phoenix said to him. "Here's what I think you mean by that…"

YOU OWN THE BUILDING

YOU WERE/ARE A PRIEST

YOU'RE A SECRET SPY

"Mr. De Bum," Phoenix said to him, "would I be wrong in assuming that the building… is in fact yours?"

"What!?" De Bum gasped. "What makes you think that?"

"Owen bought out the building to transform it into a church. Underneath the church, there are loads of crates and antiques down there. They must have been there for a few years now. Not to mention, the church seems awfully devoted to you. Because of these facts, I think you, Mr. De Bum, is the former owner of that building!"

De Bum groaned. "Fine! Fine, you got me!" With that, another lock shattered. Two left.

"So, now that that's taken care of, let's talk about the murder in question." Phoenix said to him. "Do you or do you not know about the murder?"

De Bum coughed. "Okay, okay. It's hard to not hear about this murder in my building, I admit. But I may or may not have gone up to the church that night, anyway."

Phoenix paused. "…Well?"

"Well what?"

"Did you go to the church that night, or not? This is very important!"

De Bum scratched his head. "Who cares? It's not like you want me to tell you what I saw, do you?"

"Actually, that's exactly what I expect." Phoenix told him. "So you admit it. You were there at the church that night, huh? What did you see?"

"…My lips are sealed! Tell him, Zachariah!" De Bum looked down at the rat in his beard. Zachariah could only squeak back. "That's right! I saw nothing, you hear me!? The most I saw was a little circle-thing in the dumpster a few hours after it all went down!"

"A… circle… thing…?"

"I go through the trash every night and see what I can store back here." De Bum argued. "I'm a collector, you have a problem with that?"

"De Bum, could this 'circle thing' be this?"

"Take that!" Phoenix presented the CD they found in De Bum's junkyard earlier that day.

"Yeah, that's it, I think." De Bum said, scratching his chin. "I went back to the church just yesterday and went through their trash and found the circle thing. Still pretty clean, too. I took it and used it as a Frisbee for all my friends, isn't that right, Zachariah?"

(This must be DJ's CD that she says went missing. Dang, with everything going on, I forgot to mention it to her. But why would somebody throw away a perfectly good CD? Maybe I could find some usefulness in it tomorrow.)

With that, the third lock broke. One remaining.

"Is there anyone you saw that night? Anyone at all?"

"No way! My lips are sealed! I'm not talking no more! I'm not even going to tell you about the woman I saw in the church, and that's that!"

(Woman, huh…? If my hunch is right, it has to be HER.)

"I think I know who you're talking about, De Bum. The woman you saw has to be none other than…!"

"Take that!" Phoenix yelled, presenting Hera Novak's profile. "Is this the woman you saw, De Bum?"

De Bum scanned the profile, then said, "Yup. That's her. I could recognize that pretty little face anywhere."

(I'm right… Hera was at the church that night! Now we got our man… or woman, whatever.)

The fourth and final lock broke apart. With the unlocking successful, the chains scattered and disappeared. De Bum was now taken care of.

"So," Phoenix continued, "let me get this straight: you own the building, you like to, uh, take trash from the church, and most importantly… you saw this woman at the church. Is that about right?"

De Bum nodded. "Yeah, that's all I know. Wanna fight about it?"

"Thank you, De Bum you have been surprisingly helpful. You have a great night." Phoenix turned around as he and Apollo made their way out of the junkyard.

"I… I can't believe it." Apollo said. "Hera Novak was at the church that night…" He growled and said, "You're right, Phoenix! I knew we couldn't trust her."

"Tomorrow's going to be a long day, Apollo." Phoenix told him. "Be prepared. We need to take our time with exposing her, catch her with our trap card. Then, we got this in the bag. Steven goes home tomorrow."

Tired, stressed, and starving, Phoenix and Apollo finally made their way to the agency to grab a hot meal and prep for tomorrow's overwhelming trial. It was now war.

COURT RECORD

-Attorney Badge: My personal badge proving my profession. I never leave home without it.

-Owen's Autopsy Report: Cause of death was an instant kill by a David statue to the victim's head. Time of Death: About 8:00-8:30 PM. Victim is covered in bruises.

-Body Outline: The aftermath of the crime. Blood is splattered around the head and facial area. The statue sits to its left.

-David Statue: Depiction of Michelangelo's David statue. The murder weapon.

-Shattered Coffee Mug: A cup that was likely to have been shattered during the fight between Owen and the killer. Owen probably used this cup against said killer in defense. Was made by Maria Cupp for an ill Owen.

-Jar of Blood: A jar of Owen's blood found in his very office. I have several questions…

-Child's Drawing: A drawing showing Owen, David, and an unknown woman. A bloody smear is on the side because of me.

-Bloody Print: Some kind of bloody print from a shoe on top of the dumpster. Could it be involved with the murder?

-Glass: Shards of glass littering the floor. Must have come from the broken window next to it. A shard has blood on it.

-Black Cloth: A black strip of cloth. Origin unknown.

-Crime Scene Photo: A photo taken of the crime scene. Drops of David's blood left a trail between Owen's desk in the background to the shattered window.

-Church Diagram: A detailed diagram of St. Owen's Baptist Church. The crime scene on the left side is highlighted.

-Bloody Priest Coat: David Vaughan's official priest coat. It is completely coated in Owen Mile's blood. There is also a small tear in fabric over the blood.

-Raya's Statement: "David Vaughan was covered in the victim's blood and his right hand was bleeding profusely. We had doctors patch his right hand up on the way to the Detention Center."

-What it's Like To Be an Average Jack; By Jack Anchor: "Memoir written by Jack Anchor. Includes original, award-winning chapters like, "How to Be Me" and "How to Tackle the Game of Life, Today".

-Jack Anchor's Crime Scene Photo: A photo taken by Jack Anchor; contains a man that fits David's description in the crime scene just after Owen Mile's murder.

-Bag of Coffee Beans: Bag of coffee beans made by Maria Cupp. Gave this bag to Athena before she suddenly disappeared. Found in the crime scene.

-Wall Markings: Odd markings on the wall above the body outline. Could have been a shelf or bookcase.

-White David Statue: A white David statue found in the Junkyard. Mr. Hope donated it to the bum in the Junkyard.

-CD: A disc that has faced some hardship in the junkyard. Could be DJ's lost disc.

-Silver Ring: A silver ring given to the priests. Belongs to David. Rumors are these rings could lead to amazing things.

-Owen's Coat: Owen's coat that was worn the night he was murdered. A white coat with golden fleece and some blood around the collar.

-Bloody Rug: Owen's rug that was found in the secret tunnel under the church. Bloodstains are on it.

PROFILES

-Apollo Justice: A strong, but loud and persistent, attorney who works with me at the agency. Is friends with the defendant.

-Athena Cykes: A gifted attorney that can read people's emotions though their hearts.

-David Vaughan: The suspect of the crime. A priest at the church where the murder took place.

-Owen Miles: A revered priest that owned the church. The murder victim.

-Jack Anchor: A prestigious news anchor who prides himself a bit too much. Witnessed the murderer.

-Raya Novak: A no-nonsense detective in charge of the investigation. Only been working for a few short months.

-Phineas Filch: A tricky thief that was a witness to a crime a long time ago and is now a janitor at the church.

-Damien Hope: A happy-go-lucky priest that was Owen's apprentice. An overall loving, trusting guy.

-Maria Cupp: The kind, eccentric coffee-lady that works at the church. Called the police.

-Hera Novak: The prosecutor of the case and sister to the detective. This is her very first trial, but showcases great skill.

-Desiree Johnson (AKA DJ): A teenage girl in charge of sound and light. Operates in the church's control room.

-Dennis de Bum: A bum that lives in the junkyard across the church.