July 3rd, 4:35pm
Expo3 Convention Center
Conference Room No. 13
After the talking was over, Edgeworth turned to the conference room, itching to begin his search. After his experience with the Odetnim backstage, he wasn't really expecting to find anything, but Maya was hopeful as ever.
"I won't rest until I've searched every suspicious looking nook and cranny of this room."
-Begin Investigation-
At first glance, the conference room appeared to be empty. The chairs had already been cleared away, and all that remained was the stage and the people standing around. As Edgeworth scanned the floor of the room, he happened to notice-
"Hey Mr. Edgeworth, check this out!" Maya ran over to the floor near the stage's steps. She picked up what she'd found for the prosecutor to see. "It's a laptop bag strap."
"I see." What does that have to do with the murder? "It looks like it was torn off the bag."
"Yeah, where is the rest of it?" Maya wondered. "Who does it belong to?"
Edgeworth shrugged. "Probably just some random convention attendee. You can put it back."
"But what if it belonged to someone involved in the case? And even if it doesn't, the person who lost it probably wants it back. I could return it to them!" Maya persisted. "Let me hold onto it for now."
"Very well, if you wish." Edgeworth relented. It wasn't his business what the medium carried on her person. Maybe she would throw it away later.
-"Laptop Strap" added to Organizer-
Edgeworth went back to investigating the conference room. He and Maya went up to the stage, looking at the two cover arts on display. The first seemed to be an ensemble of people standing in a courtroom, while the second was just the four main characters (so Edgeworth assumed) in profile. I guess the artists wanted something simpler this time.
"I kinda like it," Maya broke in, seeming to have read his thoughts. "It kinda looks like one of those fighter games where you choose your character, but instead of fighting, you duke it out in the courtroom."
That would have been interesting, except "I didn't get that impression from Ms. Riter's presentation. She made it sound like a visual novel of some kind."
"I guess."
Beyond the decor, the stage had already been stripped down. Edgeworth imagined the Capsul crew was in the middle of cleaning up when they'd heard the news about their boss.
All in all, another fruitless investigation. Edgeworth didn't know what he'd been expecting. Nothing related to the murder had occurred here as far as anyone knew, which would explain why there was no evidence to be found.
So I guess it's time to question witnesses again. But who should I talk to?
Maybe someone here knows where I can find more evidence. The real crime scene has to be somewhere in this convention center. But where?
"...I need to ask Ms. Riter something."
"Huh? What are you gonna ask her?" Maya questioned, curious as they went back to the erratic woman.
"I want to ask Ms. Riter to take us to the room where she was supposed to meet with Mr. Richards. I believe there's something to be discovered there. Problem is, I don't know where to find it," Edgeworth replied, hushing Maya's response as they approached.
"Ms. Riter, I have another question to ask you," Edgeworth called out. Amy Riter turned around to face them, notebook in front of her face.
"So do I, actually." Her angular eyes lit up with an undercurrent of excitement. "What is the extent of the Chief Prosecutor's power?"
"And why would you want to know?" Edgeworth wasn't sure how much of this woman he could take. "How does that relate to this case?"
"In no way at all. However..." She flipped to a page in her notebook. "I need ideas for when the trilogy is over. Can the Chief Prosecutor authorize the test of an entirely new court system with no oversight?"
And why exactly would such an event ever happen? "I doubt it. It isn't the Chief Prosecutor's job to oversee trials. He only oversees the prosecutors. He may be able to sponsor such an event, but the actual execution would have to carried out by someone else. Someone the courts as a whole have absolute trust in to be impartial." Edgeworth waited for Riter to finish writing his response down before he continued. "Can I ask my question now?"
"...I suppose. What do you need?"
"The room you were supposed to meet the victim in, where is it?"
"Close to here. You just exit this room through the staff entrance and take the hallway. It's a twisted place… easy to become lost in."
"I see. Would you perhaps be willing to take me and my assistant back there? So that we don't get lost?"
Riter straightened her back to the suggestion, thought her eyes were downcast. "Your investigation is up a ditch, isn't it? You have no leads."
"What makes you say that?" How does she know?
She went back to writing in her notebook, a bemused smile on her face. "For what other reason could you want to go back there? As far as I know, Mr. Richards did not enter that room on this day. Not even once."
"Ah, but that's where you're wrong, Miss Riter. I have every reason to believe that the victim spent time in that room just a few hours ago."
"And you can prove it?"
Edgeworth shrugged, a smirk on his face. "Naturally." He opened his Organizer, flipping to the page with Hackins's profile on it. "After a long and trying conversation with Mr. Hackins, the boy finally admitted to me he had been snooping in the Capsul staff room. He was caught by the victim while in there, and thrown back out at the entrance. Right around when you showed up, as it were."
"Ah, yes. I remember your detective friend mentioning that. Is this Hackins witness really that young?"
"He's ten," Maya confirmed. A period of silence took to the air.
Riter was facing Edgeworth again when she spoke, eyes solemn. "A sad thing, to be involved in a case so young. And a suspect, to boot. I... can see why you don't want to arrest him." She was still watching him uncomfortably, even as she turned towards the staff exit. Maya and Edgeworth took that as a sign to follow.
She knows what's going on here. No matter how she acts. For someone who writes about murders so much, Edgeworth was worried she wouldn't accept the gravity of the situation. But perhaps this behavior was just the woman's way of coping, shielding herself from the shock that losing her boss must be. He'd seen people resort to stranger things.
-Investigation Complete-
Edgeworth wanted to say more about it, but Riter's brisk pace made conversation difficult. It wasn't until they turned the fourth corner and she stopped in front of a door that he felt comfortable getting words out.
"Is this the room Capsul was assigned for staff?"
"It is, yes. But even so," the writer continued as she opened the door, "Mr. Richards was seen alive after that. And as I said, he was not there when I entered the room just a few minutes later. I don't know what you hope to find here."
Edgeworth didn't know either. But he knew he had to look, if only because he had no other ideas for where to go. "It's entirely possible that the victim returned to the room after dealing with Hackins, if only for a minute. Perhaps he came back to wait for you, only to be lured out by the true killer."
"Hm…" Neither woman looked convinced. "Perhaps." Riter stepped aside as the door swung open.
July 3rd, 4:46pm
Expo3 Convention Center
Staff Room No. 13
The room itself was windowless, basic, and looked only able to fit about four people. There were two entrances: one which the small party had entered through, and another on the other side of the room. Paper and personal belongings were strewn about everywhere, with a single desk in the far corner.
Hopefully the scarcity of the room meant he would be able to finish investigating it faster. I won't rest until I've investigated every suspicious-looking nook and cranny.
-Begin Investigation-
Edgeworth walked over to the desk, scanning its clutter for anything he could possibly use. It wasn't a large desk, and though papers and pens were strewn all about, most of the space was taken up by a single laptop, sitting atop what Edgeworth could only assume was its bag.
"Quite a nice laptop someone has here," Edgeworth commented. "Is this one of the new ones?"
"I believe so. It actually belongs to Lyra. She had to get a new one because her previous one was infected with a bombing virus."
A bombing virus? Surely she's not remembering that correctly. "How unfortunate."
"...Indeed."
After that, Edgeworth was drawn to the papers that were on the desk. He picked one up to read the contents, shaking his head as he did.
"This is the most unrealistic portrayal of the court systems I have ever read. It's a disgrace to the legal system at large." Edgeworth was about to set it back down when something occurred to him.
The writing. He'd seen that handwriting before.
"What is it, Mr. Edgeworth?" Maya asked, noticing the expression on the prosecutor's face. "Did you find something?"
Is this spot connected to any of the evidence I hold?
Edgeworth went searching through his Organizer. He spent a few seconds looking, but finally found the page titled "Richards Speech Notes". Once there, he took out the pages he'd folded within, comparing the handwriting to that which was on the desk note. His Deduction didn't take long after that. "EUREKA!"
"Woah!" Maya was taken aback. "What is it, Mr. Edgeworth?"
"This paper appears to belong to the speech Mr. Richards was going to give at the conference. Which means the papers Hackins had were incomplete."
-"Richards Speech Notes" updated in Organizer-
"Huh? But I thought Cody took the papers off Mr. Richards's person. Why would Mr. Richards walk around with only part of his speech?"
Maya was right. That didn't make sense at all. "We don't actually know how Hackins got his hands on the speech notes. He could have taken them from the room itself."
"But why would he do that? Cody isn't a Turnabout Lawyers fan!" Maya paused. "Or is he?"
Edgeworth wasn't sure, but he had a theory. "Miss Fey, do you remember how you believed an internet rumor about Capsul gaining the rights to the Steel Samurai game?"
At the mention of such a rumor, Riter snorted. "That was Lyra's idea, believe it or not. She posted it under her unofficial account to get Capsul more press at the convention. And to take the heat from the gaming community off of her company. It garnered quite a bit of attention online. Now more people than ever know our company's name."
Miss Pitch told such a lie? She hadn't seemed like the type to pull such a stunt to Edgeworth, but what did he know? She wouldn't be the first witness to surprise him. "Why would Miss Pitch do such a thing? Wouldn't she want people to go to Odetnim's conference?"
"Not sure. She didn't tell me about it until today. But it isn't like the two conferences were at the same time. If one rushed, they could get from here to there in just a few minutes… provided the traffic was moderate."
Interesting. I best make a note of this.
-"Map of Convention" updated in Organizer-
"So…" Maya looked down, slightly embarrassed. "Was there really nothing behind the idea that Capsul was going to make the Steel Samurai game?"
"...I wouldn't say nothing, no." Riter reached over towards another stack of papers on the desk, picking one up from the pile. "We were one of the companies that expressed interest, but Global Studios didn't see our working together as a viable possibility. They told us as much in this letter." She handed it to Edgeworth.
He accepted the letter, briefly looking it over. "I see. May I take this letter with me as evidence?"
She shrugged. "You have more use for it than I do. Personally, I don't like it when the Evidence pages are clogged with too many useless things. Makes it hard for players to find what they need."
We're back to thinking this is a video game, I see. Edgeworth already had a use in mind for this evidence.
-"Rejection Letter" added to Organizer-
"Beyond this, there's no real reason to believe Capsul was ever going to make a Steel Samurai title?"
"None."
Maya flinched. "Look, I'm sorry I fell for that, okay? I'm not used to searching game news. I have no idea which sites have the best sources!"
"That's not what I'm getting at, Miss Fey," Edgeworth assured her, going back to his original point. "What if you weren't the only one here who believed it?"
Maya paused, pondering what Edgeworth's line of reasoning would lead to. "You think Cody thought it was true?"
"What if he lied about getting lost, and was actually searching this room to see if Capsul really had the rights to the Steel Samurai game? Then, when he was caught by the victim, he hid the speech notes for later?" It was conjecture, but still a possible chain of events.
"If that's true, we'd have a reason for why Cody took them in the first place. We should go talk to him and confirm it!"
"That's exactly what I was thinking. We need to question him again." There. I think I've seen all there is for the time being.
-Investigation Complete-
That had been slightly better than his previous two searches. Edgeworth turned to Riter before they departed. "It seems there was something of value to be found in here after all."
The writer smiled, though it looked thin. "You are the attorney at the head of this case for a reason. Perhaps I should have been writing from the prosecution's side. Though how would that play out in court scenes, I wonder? Hm..."
Edgeworth and Maya left the woman to her own devices, finding their way back to the Capsul conference room before walking back over to Odetnim's.
July 3rd, 5:08pm
Expo3 Convention Center
Conference Room No. 2
Getting from one conference room to the next was easier than it had been before. The building was nearly deserted now. When Edgeworth and Maya returned to the room where the body was discovered, the police had already taken the corpse away, leaving a white outline in its wake. A few police officers lingered in the room, but everyone else but the two witnesses and some police officers had cleared out.
"Oh, Mr Edgeworth!" one of the officers called out, saluting as he approached. "We just got more news on the autopsy report."
"Really now? What did the mortician have to say?"
"There's… been some commotion at the hospital where the mortician is working, sir. No autopsy report is available at this time."
A commotion at the hospital? What could possibly be going on over there? Edgeworth accepted the news gracefully, bowing to the informant officer. "Thank you for the update. Please let me know when more information is available."
Without another word, he and the spirit medium went over to Cody Hackins, who had calmed down considerably since their last meeting. Perhaps the gravity of the situation had finally caught up to him. The boy was still edgy, but no longer looked like he was about to flee the building. Edgeworth prayed that mood would persist when he questioned the boy again.
No such luck. The mere sight of the prosecutor seemed to be enough to make the boy's face go red.
Edgeworth pretended he didn't notice. "Hello again. I'm afraid I have to ask you a few more-"
"You still think I did it?" He was practically fuming. "Why can't I go home, huh? Does my momma know I'm here?"
That caught Maya off guard. "Did she not know you were coming here?"
"No! I… I didn't tell her. She thinks I'm at summer camp. She's supposed to pick me up at five thirty."
It was with that Edgeworth remembered: the boy had previously confessed that he'd snuck into the convention. He supposed it was getting late. "I'll have an officer call your mother in a moment. If all goes well, she can take you home as soon as she gets here."
The ten year old looked up from under his cap, eyes gleaming. "Really? I'm not going to jail?"
Edgeworth shook his head. "Not if I can help it. But you need to tell me the truth, or I won't be able to find the person who really did it. Do you understand?"
Hackins nodded, not trusting himself to speak.
Satisfied, Edgeworth pulled the page he'd found in the staff room out from his Organizer. "My investigation has led me to believe you stole Mr. Richards's speech notes from the Capsul staff room. Would you care to explain what happened in there?"
"It's like I said earlier. I got lost, and the mean dead guy found me."
"That's not going to be enough, I'm afraid." Edgeworth fixed Hackins with a stern glare. "I need you to testify about everything you did in that staff room. If you leave something out, I'll know."
The boy's gulp was extremely noticeable. He's hiding something even still. But what could it be?
"Cody, please," Maya pleaded, bending down to look in his eyes. "This is really important. And we both know you didn't kill Mr. Richards. You can trust Mr. Edgeworth."
"..." Hackins didn't respond. But he did begin to testify.
-Witness Testimony-
"Wandering Around"
"I was wandering around the convention when, before I knew it, I was in a hallway I didn't recognize.
"I was trying to find my way back to the main area. But no one I talked to wanted to help me.
"So I started trying random rooms. No one told me I was in a staff-only section!
"When I went into the Capsul room, the old grump came in right after. He scared me so much, I dropped my stuff.
"I was just trying to get it all off the floor when he yanked me up by the arm. I must have grabbed his speech by accident."
Edgeworth noticed the fishiness of the testimony right away, but he didn't call attention to the fact. "Thank you for that, Mr. Hackins. I just need to run over a few things."
"Huh? What do you mean 'run over'? You asked for my testimony and I gave it." He paused, facial features hardening. "You lied to me! You don't think I'm innocent at all! You don't think I remember you from the last time we met? I know what kind of prosecutor you were."
It was a bold move, to accuse Edgeworth of lying after the testimony Hackins just gave. But Edgeworth refused to be provoked, and hoped remaining calm would encourage the boy to do the same. "That isn't it at all. There are just a few things that still aren't clear to me. The sooner we get through this cross examination, the sooner we can call your mother."
Hackins face suggested that was a mixed blessing, so Edgeworth changed strategy. "Whatever you're afraid of, I promise it's better than having the suspicion of murder hanging over your head. The sooner we can clear the latter up, the faster the former will be dealt with."
"You don't have to be afraid of us, Cody. We've never suspected you, and we never will," Maya added, making it a point to use words she knew the boy would understand. Edgeworth realized his fault too late to amend it.
He didn't fully agree, but the prosecutor nodded anyway. "Please."
The boy looked small and scared. But he drew a breath nonetheless, and did as he was asked.
-Cross-Examination-
"Wandering Around"
"I was wandering around the convention when, before I knew it, I was in a hallway I didn't recognize."
"HOLD IT! You wandered into the staff hallway by accident?" Edgeworth found that hard to believe. "They should have all been marked with signs. How did you miss them?"
"I-it was really crowded, okay? I kinda got shoved around a little." He crossed his arms, sulking. "I wish I was taller. I wish people noticed I was there."
I still think that's odd, but I'm not sure this line of questioning will get me anywhere. Not when there's a more solid contradiction I can go after. I shouldn't press my luck, lest I harm the investigation.
"...Very well, then. Would you continue your testimony, please?"
"I was trying to find my way back to the main area. But no one I talked to wanted to help me.
"So I started trying random rooms. No one told me I was in a staff-only section!"
Edgeworth felt the urge to press the boy, but resisted it. Again, pretty sure all the exits are marked. But if I press him on this, he'll just close up even more. I have to save my strikes for where it matters.
"When I went into the Capsul room, the old grump came in right after. He scared me so much, I dropped my stuff."
"HOLD IT! You say the victim walked into the room right after you entered?"
Hackins nodded. "Seconds after, even."
"That's odd. You have thought he would have seen you in the hall, and perhaps said something. Are you sure you didn't notice each other before you entered the room?"
"Yes! I am!" His hackles were up now. "You grown ups have to question me on everything I say, don't you? Well, I'm sick of it!" The boy even started to sniffle. "I don't care how much trouble I'm in with Mom anymore. I wanna go home. Let me go home!"
Nghoooh! Edgeworth flinched, feeling as though the investigation's lifebar were draining away.
Maya did her best to sooth Hackins, then turned to Edgeworth. "Maybe you shouldn't press him so much, Mr. Edgeworth. I… see the same thing you do, but there's gotta be a better way to do this. A way that doesn't involve so much pressing."
"I'll see what I can do, Miss Fey. Let me… try again." This time, Edgeworth left Hackins's shady statements alone.
All but the last one, that is.
"I was just trying to get it all off the floor when he yanked me up by the arm. I must have grabbed his speech by accident."
"OBJECTION!" Edgeworth interjected, swift and true. "All my warnings, and you still feel the need to lie. I can't help but to be curious as to why." He pulled the speech page from the staff room out from his Organizer, under the page labeled "Richards Speech Notes". "You claim you picked the victim's speech notes up from the floor of the staff room, but we found the remainders of it on the desk in there. We don't have reason to believe the victim returned to that room as of yet, ergo-"
"What? Of course the mean old grown up went back to his staff room. He just did something else first, is all! He probably just… just picked the rest up off the ground!" Hackins smiled, oblivious to (or perhaps misinterpreting) Edgeworth and Maya's shocked expressions.
Maya regained her composure first. "Cody… how do you know the victim returned to his staff room?"
His face fell. He flinched, looking as if he wanted to cave into himself. The boy was already small, but shrinking up just made him look even smaller, almost as if it really were three years ago all over again.
"Good question, Miss Fey. As far as we've heard until now, your encounter with the victim at the convention entrance was the last time anyone saw him alive. It's why Mr. Cachè suspects you so much in the first place. Are you saying that isn't the case?"
"If you are, that would be great!" Maya beamed. "We may be able to find the real killer if that's the case! Even Cachè would have to accept he was wrong."
Hackins didn't look convinced. "Really?"
Edgeworth nodded. "It all depends on you, and if you're willing to tell me the truth. The Steel Samurai can't save the day without the help of his trusted friends. And I can't find the truth unless those I question tell it."
When the boy didn't budge, Edgeworth plowed on, opening his Organizer once again. "Of course, you don't have to start from the beginning. I think I may know what you'd been looking for all along." He turned to the page he'd labeled "Rejection Letter". "TAKE THAT!"
Hackins looked at the paper, vaguely curious as to what it said. "This is about the Steel Samurai game, isn't it?"
"It is. You see, when Miss Fey and I first arrived, she recommended we attend Capsul's conference, even though we'd never heard of Turnabout Lawyers before. Do you know why?"
"It's because I saw a rumor online that Capsul was granted the rights to the Steel Samurai game," Maya answered for him. "You saw it too, didn't you?"
"Well, yeah." He still wasn't owning up to it. "Like I told ya, kids my age live on the Internet. But Odetnim got the game instead, so who cares?"
"Well, I think you may have believed it at first," Edgeworth asserted. "Or at least, enough to look into things yourself. When we first found you, you had been lurking backstage at Odetnim for evidence they had the Steel Samurai game. Is it so unbelievable that you might have searched other places?"
And with that, the boy broke. "Okay! I'll tell you everything. Just… promise there's no more questions for today. My momma's probably looking for me right now."
Edgeworth checked the time. That she (likely) was. I suppose we can always question him tomorrow, if necessary. Though it may be more difficult with a parent present.
"Tell us the truth, and we're done for the day. That, I promise."
Would he actually do it this time, after all the chances the boy had wasted? Edgeworth wasn't sure, but he had to try. Whatever it was, this kid knew something the investigation was lacking. Something there would be no progress without.
It was with bated breath that Edgeworth listened to Hackins's final testimony, searching desperately for what he hadn't found backstage: a way forward.
-Witness Testimony-
"What Really Happened"
"The prosecutor guy is right. I was looking for evidence of who got the Steel Samurai game.
"I spent the morning searching all the company staff rooms for clues, but I wasn't caught until I reached Capsul.
"I hadn't had time to search the room before I was kicked out, so after I was chewed out… I went back.
"But I wasn't there for long. I had just snuck back in when I heard somebody coming. I thought it was the guy who caught me the first time!
"So I stole the papers I'd been reading, and ran away before they could catch me. That's why I had the notes I did.
"As I was walking away, I heard the other door open again. I don't know who it was, but the way the door slammed… it startled me. I heard people yelling.
"I knew it was a bad idea to keep hanging around there. So I decided to search Odetnim instead. And that's all I did."
Both Maya and Edgeworth were silent as Hackins finished his final testimony. It was a lot for them to think about. At least they didn't notice any contradictions this time.
But what he was suggesting… could it be? Had the victim really returned to the staff room alive? Or was Hackins mistaken about who he'd heard enter? He hadn't actually seen Richards, only heard a door open. According to Riter's testimony, it could have just as well been her.
Yet even if that were true, who was the second person? Why had they been angry?
Whatever it was, one thing was for certain: Edgeworth had to investigate the staff room a second time.
-"Hackins's Testimony" added to Organizer-
"Thank you, Mr. Hackins, for your testimony. I have many questions left, but none for you." Edgeworth nodded to a police officer. "Help this boy get his mother on the phone."
"Yessir!"
Edgeworth couldn't stay here. Not while a killer remained on the loose.
To be continued…
Organizer:
Profiles:
Miles Edgeworth
Age: 27
Gender: Male
Description: Me. What else can I say? Currently High Prosecutor for my local district.
Maya Fey
Age: 20
Gender: Female
Description: Once a legal assistant, Miss Fey is a spirit medium set
to become the village leader of Kurain. Called me out of the blue for the sake of attending the Expo3 Convention together.
Amy Riter
Age: 29
Gender: Female
Description: Sole writer of the Turnabout Lawyers games at Capsul. Richards was her boss, and very involved in the creation of the game.
Noland Richards
Age: 35
Gender: Male
Description: Owner of Capsul gaming company. Was meant to give a speech at the convention, but never showed up. His body was found strangled in the Odetnim conference room.
Joseph Caché
Age: 46
Gender: Male
Description: A former prosecutor, now works as a PI. Insists on investigating the case for himself, and harbors an almost personal distrust of the legal system.
Allen Lite
Age: 28
Gender: Male
Description: A moderately popular online gamer. Was in the audience at the Odetnim conference when the body was discovered.
Cody Hackins
Age: 10
Gender: Male
Description: A convention attendee. Was seen arguing with the victim before the man died, and was caught snooping backstage at Odetnim's conference.
Lyra Pitch
Age: 31
Gender: Female
Description: A music producer for various games. Mostly works with Odetnim, but helps Capsul with their Turnabout Lawyer games. Went to look for Richards after he didn't show for the conference.
Evidence:
Prosecutor's Badge
Type: Other
Description: My badge. It allows me to do my job, and is to be kept in my pocket at all times.
Map of Convention
Type: Other
Description: Shows all areas available to the public at the convention. Capsul was in room number 13, while Odetnim occupied number 2.
Update: Each company is also provided a staff room in the employee only section. It's possible to get from Capsul's staff room to Odetnim's conference room in only a few minutes.
Knot Details
Type: Evidence
Description: The knot tied at the back of the victim's neck. Cannot be adjusted after tying, and very difficult for the victim to have done himself.
Stage Rope
Type: Evidence
Description: The rope used to hang the victim's body from the ceiling. Mostly likely tied by someone other than the victim, and unlikely to be the true murder weapon. Other ropes of this type held promotional posters.
Steel Samurai Banners
Type: Evidence
Description: Hanging from various places around the crime scene. Odetnim was given the rights to the Steel Samurai video game, it seems.
Lite's Testimony
Type: Evidence
Description: The victim's body was found during the Odetnim conference. The body and banners were lowered on cue by Odetnim employees.
Caché's Claims
Type: Evidence
Description: A summary of assertions made in Joseph Caché's testimony, with the claim that Richards and Hackins were seen arguing shortly before the Capsul conference among them. Check
Picture of Richards
Type: Evidence
Description: A picture taken of the victim as his body was lowered towards the crowd. It bears a message that is addressed to me. Check
Richards Speech Notes
Type: Evidence
Description: What the victim was going to say at the Capsul conference he never showed up to. Were found on Hackins person, though it isn't clear why.
Update: Part of the speech was left behind in the Capsul staff room on the desk.
Laptop Strap
Type: Other
Description: A strap that was broken off of a laptop bag. Found near the edge of the stairs in the Capsul conference room, and appears to have no relevance to the case.
Rejection Letter
Type: Evidence
Description: A letter that Global Studios sent to Capsul rejecting their request to be the makers of a Steel Samurai video game.
Hackins's Testimony
Type: Evidence
Description: After being kicked out by the victim, Hackins returned to the Capsul staff room. He heard two people enter, one right after the other. Check
A/N's: The cowriters PTV and RJ were responsible for the writing of this chapter. Both authors and Ajani would like to leave notes.
Ajani: So, for all the observant ones amongst you the readers, you've probably realized that I'm kinda breaking formation, as PTV normally says their piece first. The reason for me starting is because I have an announcement to make.
I'm taking a leave of absence.
While this chapter was being written, I was put into a situation that made me have to re-evaluate a lot about myself. While I am thankfully fine physically, mentally and emotionally I've been under a decent amount of stress. Adjustments to my life have to be made and thankfully, I'm beginning to recognize certain problems going on and am beginning to take the proper steps to fix them. However, this means I need to devote my time towards that process, and must put my work,here on hold. While I will be stopping in to check everything now and again, I will probably be gone throughout the rest of the summer. However, I promise I will be back; I'm pretty sure PTV would hunt me down if I abandoned this story entirely.
PTV: I would be upset, certainly, but I don't have the money or the intel to track you down in real life. Thanks for coming out here to leave a note, Ajani. While you will be missed, it's my hope that your time off is healing for you, and that we can do great work together on the finale. Or Case Four, whenever it is you return exactly.
Ajani: You're welcome and I look forward to when I can be back. It's been a blast working with everyone, and I don't plan on losing that.
PTV: You won't. RJ and I will both welcome you back with open arms, I'm sure of it. We'll try and get as much of this story written as we can in the meantime.
Ajani: Thank you, it means a lot to hear that.
PTV: But speaking of RJ and I, we have the first 2K of the next chapter written out. It's a rough draft, but one I plan to work on just as soon as I get this posted. We're nearing the end of this case, and I fully intend to start the next one. It might be hard with just the two of us, but I know we can make it work. Isn't that right, RJ?
RJ: It has been awesome working with you, Ajani. Also hope this will be a time of healing for you and we will be looking forward to working with you again in the future. Yes we can make it work, and have a pretty good start on the next chapter. Speaking of posting this chapter, since this case takes place at a gaming convention, it's so awesome that we are going to be able to post this on the final night of E3! Was hoping for AA7 or an AAI3 game, oh well, maybe next year. As always it was a pleasure working on this chapter with PTV, and Ajani. They put so many great moments in this chapter! We are nearing the end of this case, so you all are probably playing the guessing game, on who you all think killed Noland Richards now. Everything is really starting to come together, and you all are going to have a lot of fun reading more about that in the next chapter! I'm going to pass the writing back to Ajani or PTV, now.
PTV: Thanks, RJ. We'll have the next chapter out ASAP, thank you to both Ajani and The Scollard (our wonderful beta), don't forget to review, and I'll see you on the far side!