It wasn't just the trial of the decade but possibly the trial of the last century. Not long removed from claiming his place as King of Games, fate had thrust the world-renowned professor and professional Duellist straight into the clutching arms of the legal system. Surely it was impossible though. Yusei Fudo couldn't really be guilty of breaking international law, surely? He was the sturdy pillar that New Domino leant on, overcoming his early years in the lawless Satellite and defeating the corrupt Rex Goodwin before revolutionising the global energy system.
Hold on, the Satellite? Didn't they kill each other there? What about Yusei's history of stealing and assault charges? Come to that, they never did find anything of the Goodwin brothers. And how did somebody so young get into such a powerful position? Maybe it was related to Lazar suddenly upgrading from the Director's assistant to being the Mayor.
All in all, public opinion was obscure at best, polarised and downright ugly in some areas. Had it not been Trudge gently securing the cuffs about his wrists, there was little doubt that Yusei would have put up more resistance and taken refuge in the unconquerable confines of secure SRC facilities. When Akiza and his brothers had raised the alarm, it had been a rallying cry heard around the world.
As some of the most famous Duellists to have ever lived and with Akiza working at the SRC, the number of supporters quickly moved from the dozens into the low, mid and finally higher hundreds. Yet even with an uncountable horde of volunteer legal experts from around the world scouring for information, nothing could be publicly found on Yusei. It was as if he had simply vanished into the grey corridors of the government without a single trace of paperwork. Only the SRC legal department would be specifically told about the upcoming trial. Everything else was left to rumour and conjecture.
Unless – of course – a member of the legal department (such as the head) quietly passed along information to Yusei's closest friends and families. Information such as the obscure clause that he had asked them to invoke. When the trial was to be held. Information of that nature. Nothing directly about the nature of the case. Just simple and (eventually) public details.
Fully regrouped – bar their absent member – the assembled Team 5D's were clad in their best official garb at City Hall. Getting there had required they each take separate taxis and swapped cars midway more than once. A few of Trudge's favours with the ranks of drivers had freed up enough vehicles to make it impossible for any outsiders to figure out which car they were in until it was too late.
"How did Yusei pull it off?" Against his sibling and professional rivalries, Jack was relieved that the group had pulled off another miracle. No matter what it had cost him. Even if it meant having to wear a suit. At least it still remained made to be clear if Red Dragon Archfiend was going to be handed over to their anonymous source.
"He invoked the Oath in Five Articles." Blank looks came from three people. Only Crow had actually looked up the document after leaving education. It came with the territory of temporarily being part of Sector Security. And maybe it had a little to do with being someone who spent their spare time trying to keep up with a brother who held enough degrees to write an extra name. As for Akiza, she had been filled in by Kamikawa once the injunction had been filed.
The Oath in Five Articles – also known as the Charter Oath – was so far back in history that most people weren't even aware of the significance. First put into law far back in April of 1868, it is composed of five clauses that had started the movement from a feudalistic caste system into a more democratic one. Schoolchildren might touch on it for a brief few minutes in a history lesson but not since. Even Yusei only knew about it because of his many sleepless nights that had turned into studying.
Translations were getting a bit spotty between context and dialect but the first clause was glaringly clear: 'Deliberative assemblies shall be widely established and all matters decided by open discussion.' Unbelievably, it was still very much a part of the legal system on that day as it had been in 1868. Rooted so deep in the law that it was easier to disprove the moon, nobody could deny its weight when invoked. And Yusei had just called for an open trial. Every law that had come since was based on the system that it formed the basis of. There were exceptions, counter-laws, obscure precedents and dusty books detailing dull cases yet nobody had ever dared to try and tarnish the founding basis of all Japanese law.
On second thoughts, it would be easier to disprove gravity than legally revoke the Oath in Five Articles. And – even though being arrested under international law – Yusei had been arrested in the nation of Japan by Japanese citizens in the service of a Japanese police department. The Oath in Five Articles applied. People had tried to take Yusei away into the dark corridors of classified international treaties only to find themselves suddenly being dragged into the harsh light of day where everyone could see them.
"Knock knock." When the group had shown up at a time too convenient to be a coincidence, Trudge had been called. Nothing technically prevented them from being in City Hall at any time but after Akiza had simply walked up to the receptionist desk in her pant-suit and boldly asked which room Yusei Fudo's trial would be held in, they had been politely asked to move to less public areas to continue the discussion.
A group of uniformed officers had instantly arrived to whisk them to a private room on the second floor. Their attempt at subtlety had been ruined when Jack had asked if he was being detained or if he was free to go. It was a trick that had originated in America and soon spread to the rest of the planet. Unless a citizen was being charged with a crime, they usually had the right to walk free whenever they wished. Luckily, Trudge had been on-site to prevent any escalation and escort them all to quieter surroundings before stepping out for a few minutes to have the police seal off all entrances to City Hall before the reporters could arrive.
"Trudge." Standing at the front of the group, Akiza was still filling in for their imprisoned leader. "What a coincidence to run into you here." Leo had been very explicitly told not to utter a word while in the building. Even the most innocuous sentence could be vitally damaging to Yusei's legal case. That he hadn't been told anything about the case didn't occur to him.
"When I agreed to help with your ridiculous plan, it was because you promised me that you wouldn't cause trouble." All that Trudge had been told was Akiza might have found a way to talk to Yusei. The exact nature of her plan hadn't been revealed until they were already midway to the facility. Then they had asked for help getting to the trial without being caught. Now they were just causing a headache. "Walking into City Hall and asking where the trial is going to be held seems to be a funny way of not causing trouble." They were staying away from the question of how they had heard about the trial. Legally speaking, only Kamikawa and his team should know.
"How does it go?" Crow kept a polite look on his face while inside he seethed. "Something about 'Widely established and open discussion'. It's hardly an open discussion without people there to discuss it." Now that the main event was at hand, there were no longer distractions for Crow's emotions and he was working hard to keep them in check. People had sent one of his oldest friends to arrest his brother before trying to take him away forever. It was unwise to cross him right then.
"Fair enough." Looking at the five other people in the room, Trudge weighed his options. Two. A bit of shuffling and losing another few of his dwindling supply of favours could afford him maybe two. "Who wants to take a ride with me?" Moving through the list of events, he rounded off the small list of five down to the two he could afford. "Jack, Crow?" Taking Akiza back to the prison again was like asking for trouble. Leo and Luna should be spared the horror of visiting a jail. The only people he could take were Yusei's brothers.
"Just remember to bring back the same people you're leaving with." Chilly silence greeted Akiza's frosty warning. "Because it took us a week to arrange a trial for someone held under international laws. Two idiots will be a lot easier." Three wounded looks were sent her way. It might have been true that Trudge wanted to lock up the former criminal and his partner's former crush but not enough he would be so reckless as to do it without a crime to pin on them. At least, not when so many people were already watching.
The three-vehicle convoy cruised into a heavily protected garage as secure doors closed up behind them. "Nice digs." As the gates slid down and locks engaged, Crow was taking note of the heavy security. Back when Goodwin had been in control, a good sneeze could have got through the perimeter providing the guards hadn't already taken a few notes for an extra break.
It was ironic that one of the brains behind the renovations was currently on the other side of several sets of doors separating the garage from the rest of the building. Even if a crew with welding torches managed to breach the weak point, it would take five minutes to get through even the first pair. Plenty of time to get a response from the guards inside and the police outside.
"Was it really necessary for us to sit in the back?" Hunched over in the tight confines of the trunk, Jack and Crow hadn't been so close to each other since they were barely old enough to walk.
"No." Sliding himself from the comfortable front seat, Trudge walked around to the back of the car and smiled at the cramped pair. "I just thought it would look funny." Unlocking the boot latch, he half expected one – or both – of the pair to punch him in the face. "Welcome to The Facility." They had stopped in a tightly marked lane about thirty feet from a set of thick metal doors set into the unmarked concrete wall. Midway between them and the door was a thick red line painted onto the floor.
Warden Ishi was standing off to one side, carefully watching everything. As long as the prisoners were on her side of the red line, they were her responsibility. Once they stepped across it, Trudge would take the fall for whatever happened to him. She wanted to make sure that everything went smoothly. Up to a point.
"Warden." Nodding to the motionless figure, Trudge received a single grunt in reply. Nothing would distract the warden from her important business. "How long will it take?" A phone call ahead should have cut down on the time they had to wait.
"Five minutes." Unfortunately, this warden was a stickler for the rules. Nothing had been set into motion until the cars had pulled into the garage. It was far too easy to fake a call and fall prey to bad orders. No, Ishi had waited until she had personally seen Trudge in the car before radioing her waiting guards to start the process.
While they waited, the unmarked police cars emptied out their passengers to stand in three distinct clumps of personnel. Four officers on the right, four to the left, three others flanking Jack, Crow and Trudge. Taking their hint from the escort about them, the two brothers stood in perfect silence. After four minutes, the sound of buzzing alarms and slamming doors came from the other side of the red line. Exactly five minutes after Trudge's entourage had entered The Facility, the outer set of doors opened to admit an advance patrol of four guards. Another set followed the prisoner with two guards still in their positions on either side of the heavily restrained wheelchair. As the guards arranged themselves opposite the police officers, Jack was the first to break the tense silence.
"You look like shit." Taking the insult in shackled stride, Yusei carefully looked his brothers up and down without saying a word. If seeing them on the other side of the line was a surprise, he was keeping it concealed.
"Better than wearing one of those monkey suits." Trudge was dressed in his regular office garb while Crow looked like a small butler wearing a tight tie which was hiding the fading line from Paris perfectly. Most impressive was Jack, sleek and resplendent in his tailored white suit that matched his form perfectly. At least he had been convinced to avoid using the hat. "Going to the ball?"
"Here for your arraignment." Noting the sheer volume of guards around his brother, Crow was begrudgingly impressed. Tighter security meant they viewed prisoners as a higher threat. Sector Security had never given him more than four. "We've been betting on what you've been caught doing."
"I say wormholes, Crow thinks that you created a parallel universe where you rule an advanced society of lizard people." Waiting patiently as he was unbound from the wheelchair, the clearly exhausted man felt the shackles on his ankles could have been done a bit looser.
"What would you say," It was probably safe enough to joke a little by that point. "If this all turned out to be a trap to lure Crow into willingly walking right into The Facility?" As in on cue, the guards turned to look at the scrawny ginger who looked unthreatening in his little suit. "The shackles are just to give you a fair fight." Raising his hands, Yusei diffused the tense situation with a reminder of just who was actually under arrest.
"Well, you've only got ten guards here." Unbelievably, it was Jack who came to the defence of his brother. "So either you need a lot more or we should be getting a move on." Aggravating an array of angry guards was hardly the smartest move. Thankfully, they would only be escorting Yusei as far as the police van and wouldn't have an extended opportunity to retaliate.
"We'll take it from here." Trudge should have realised from the moment that he asked Jack and Crow to come with him that he would regret the company. One was a barely reformed criminal, the other had the same amount of politeness as the average rock. "Guys." Stumbling to a point midway between the prison guards and the police escort, Yusei almost lost his foot before Jack and Crow scooped him up under each arm.
"Feeling a little under the weather?" Being on the road for competitions meant that neither of the travelling brothers could always keep up their workouts. Being up all night every night usually gave Yusei plenty of opportunities to keep himself in pristine shape. After a week locked up without room to move or safe enough precautions to sleep, his muscles were starting to grow lax and his eyes struggled to stay open. Even Jack was feeling sorry for him.
"None of the guards thought about trading coffee for a confession." Wordlessly waving one of his most trusting lieutenants over, Trudge had thought ahead for the most perfect gift he could bring. Unscrewing the thick cap of a chunky bottle, he poured what was closer to sludge than liquid into the cup. "Trudge." Taking the warm brew in both hands, Yusei enjoyed the second happy moment that day. "I could kiss Mina for telling you to bring this." Laughing at their commander's displeased look, police officers quickly filed into the lead and follow cars.
"Need a hand getting in?" Crow could feel the shakes needed simply to stand upright quaking through his brother's body.
"Not a chance." Scalding his throat with the brew so thick and potent it could probably wake the recently departed, Yusei forced his legs into remaining steady. Handing the cup to his brothers, the manacles on his ankles forced Yusei to rely more heavily on his arms than his legs to lever himself up into the car. While leg exercises had been difficult, doing a few push-ups hadn't been hard and he was able to slide into the seat with relative ease.
With Crow taking the seat on his left and Jack on the right, Yusei was sandwiched directly in the middle of the car. Trudge seated himself in the front passenger seat, the best driver in the service took the wheel and a pair even seated directly behind the inmate in the sort of uncomfortable collapsing seats that only worked from an engineering point of view.
"Just one question," As the convoy pulled out of the garage in a careful manoeuvre, Yusei laid his head back and rested his eyes for the second time in eight days. "Is there any chance of me getting some proper food before the trial?" Prison nutrition was designed to keep inmates alive but not happy. A full week of food that was chemically designed to be unusable as any sort of ingredients for a weapon had left him with a craving for literally anything that had even come close to being on a farm. Plain bread, a raw egg, a bowl of rice.
In fact, Yusei would even be willing to attempt some of Jack's cooking if nothing else was available.
Until that day, Jack, Crow and Yusei had differing opinions on the word 'mob'. Jack had resolutely stuck to his egotistical idea that it meant a large gathering of (usually his) fans. Crow took every opportunity to correct his brother and would inform that a mob was when people went around breaking stuff. Yusei – being the only one who went and checked - knew that it could simply mean a crowd.
After they saw what was thronging down the street, the three brothers suddenly realised they all had equal validity. Crowding down most of the street was the third largest gathering of people they had ever seen. And – in a feat of mathematical astonishment – they were a large crowd (point for Yusei), most of them were quietly rooting for a lengthy prison sentence for stealing their hero's glory (point for Jack) and – judging by the occasional scream and shattering of glass – were already well on the way to breaking stuff (point for Crow).
"Nope." Leaning forward in the seat as far as seatbelts and both muscular police officers would allow, Yusei stretched towards the driver. "Take us back. I'll go quietly." After Akiza's pointedly public declaration that Yusei Fudo would be on trial at City Hall, word had spread like wildfire. First to colleagues, then close associates, then it became public knowledge.
"You'll go whichever way I tell you." Yet even Trudge was getting unnerved. A subtle touch of police instinct was telling him that an angry, violent crowd was trouble. An even more unusual touch of precognition told him that another would be in the near future.
"Wow. I always thought that Jack would be the first burning effigy." As horrifying as Crow's observation had been, it was also accurate. Being paraded above a more aggressive part of the crowd, a crude resemblance of Yusei was softly flaming.
"What upsets me most," Seeing several people wishing him that sort of harm on him was not unusual. Religious groups had their own department to address hate mail, scientific institutions had another and fans tended to spam the cute clock shop in Poppo Time. "Is how large they made the head."
"Told you that you needed a haircut." As the armoured truck carefully inched through the crowd, they tried not to stare at the burning head. Jack's comment aside, it was a strangely dedicated recreation. "Don't worry, the police have to cordon off a certain distance."
"Do they really?" That was certainly news to Trudge. He was more interested in the slight 'pop' coming from the bursting effigy. What really interested a cop about mob mentality was how they managed to forget that standing under a burning item means that some fire might get on them. "Why?"
"For the press." Even for Jack's callous nature, it was a low blow. Nothing irritated Yusei like having a microphone smashed in his face and questions screamed in his general direction. As they approached the narrow avenue which lead to the front doors of City Hall, he tried for a desperate deal.
"Trudge, take me to a station and I will confess to all the unsolved crimes." In the heat of the moment, it was the best bargain that he could think of. "Even Crow's." There was a long list. Even though Sector Security had witnessed Crow committing the crimes, lack of actual evidence had prevented the following Police Department from actually prosecuting him for them. Considering his services to the city and how long ago they were, nobody was investigating the thick stack of cold cases.
"No deal." What Yusei hadn't realised was how much paperwork it would entail. And failed justice. Definitely failed justice. That was what Trudge was focussing on as the car slowly pulled to a halt outside the mercifully open steps leading towards City Hall. "Any last words?" Waving the guards to remain seated for another few seconds, he tried to give his friend some precious extra time.
"What are my odds of a last-minute jailbreak?" Jack laughed, Crow laughed, Trudge laughed, the guards laughed. Yusei laughed in a sort of 'can we be serious now' way. Nobody wanted to face an uncertain trial with charges they hadn't even been told. "Okay then." Tugging his overalls into a more respectable position, Yusei twisted the manacles around so that they were less restricting. "Only because I had nothing better planned."
Trudge radioed the other cars to establish a beachhead and police officers piled out to form a protective barrier around the main vehicle. Both officers in the rear of the car were let out first, followed by the two in the front before finally opening the door to let Jack, then Crow out. Shuffling across the seat, Yusei gracelessly slid out into a flurry of shouted words and camera flashes. Supported once again by his brothers – under the deception they were simply providing another layer of protection from the unruly crowd – they made swift progress towards the main doors of City Hall as questions were shouted their way.
"Yusei, what do you have to say to your fans?" "Yusei, will you be giving up your titles?" "Can you tell us what's going on, Yusei?" "Is it true that you broke international law, Yusei?" All these questions and many others went unanswered.
It wasn't that Yusei was unfriendly. Some might call him guarded but nobody who really knew him would call him unfriendly. He just objected to random people trying to forge an instant connection and drag out personal information. For now, patience was the best option.
Once the waves of eager reporters had been ignored and bloggers with access had been turned away, out came the most deadly enemy of the public figure. Journalists. The difference between mere reporters and proper journalists was that reporters simply repeated what people already knew. Journalists found out the reasons.
"Dr Fudo, why are you only accompanied by your brothers and not members of your staff?" Although technically overstepping by calling them 'his' staff, this question was an easy opening salvo.
"Because I don't mind throwing my brothers out as a distraction for the crowd." Nobody in the entourage so much as blinked. Depending on the situation, Jack and Crow would either be fodder for the mob or physically carrying Yusei away at a dead sprint.
"Why are you wearing chains, Dr Fudo?" Besides jangling, drastically limiting the range of movement and starting to chaff quite badly, the chains had little practical application.
"Well, I was arrested without cause, held without trial and denied contact with the outside world." Deadpanning for any cameras present, he fixed a direct stare towards the journalist. "Call it protest."
"What are the charges being brought against you, Director Fudo?" Fixing his most serious face, Yusei turned to the waving microphone. Although he disliked that particular title – because it never failed to dredge up memories of the corrupt Goodwin regime – whoever even knew it applied was almost certain to explore all the facts.
"Good question. Nobody's told me yet so let's find out together." More photos were snapped and dozens of questions overlapped as the media unravelled the implications of his answer.
For the most important trial of the century, the largest room in City Hall had been cleared, checked, double-checked and triple-checked for anything from additional fittings to suspicious packages planted by angry members of the mob outside. With an information blackout making rumour the best source of facts available, anyone could be carrying out drastic measures.
A two-tiered row of benches had been added for the special occasion. Fifty people could sit on the rows with enough to move through their notes. It wouldn't be comfortable but every one of those seats would be used before the day was out. Regular public seats remained at the same amount they started at. Nobody was going to be undertaking extensive renovations just so that a few extra citizens could sit on chairs for hours on end.
Kamikawa and most of his department were lined up along a table down in the arena before the tribunal itself. When faced with the entire legal department of the SRC turning up for the proceedings, the city had refused to let in anyone who couldn't fit around a single table. They hadn't counted on the unyielding commitment most everyone at the SRC felt towards their leader. Only one table was allowed so the highest trained lawyers simply sought out the smallest possible seats and crammed in on every side.
When a guard had taciturnly asked about their client, the lawyers just as taciturnly replied the table was for them and not their client. Yusei only needed a chair to sit in while he was asked questions or asked questions in return. As for his support staff... Well, the lawyers were sitting on a lengthy table down in the pit.
Filtering into the room on a basis of 'first-come, get dragged back out by the bigger crowds and replaced before they even saw the courtroom' members of the public were filtering in. While the crowd outside could be loosely grouped into teams either for or against Yusei, neither camp was exactly close-knit. So it was the single largest collective coming to monopolise the seats. Erratically dressed scientists were clustering in to fill every possible corner while a few nervous members of the public found themselves in enemy territory. It would have been ordinary territory except that two of Akiza's favourite crowd of misfits had joined together into a single line of tight faces and making it clear that anyone going for a guilty verdict was most definitely not a friend. Something about personalities pooling together meant that seeing Luna sitting on one extreme made it possible to sense the polarising figure at the far end making an astute observation in his usual way as the panel of judges and experts filtered in down below.
"That whore." At some point over his years of working at the SRC, Din had been extorted into getting a suit that fit. With the sturdy work of several tailors, three therapists and the threat of being permanently kept from the library, a unique outfit had been carefully stitched together for him. It had been worn exactly three times, including the final fitting, use at a polite function where he had insulated the entire senior staff in a single insult (earning both admiration and hostility from all departments) and that day. Other than the slight layers of dust from years of being neglected on a shelf, it looked fairly impressive. There was even a new pocket square for the occasion, freshly stolen from someone in the crowd who had tried to force him aside. City Hall had good medics on hand to whisk the offending party away.
"Who is she?" Carefully walking across the open area of the floor the SRC table was on, a willowy blonde was measuring out the space. Dramatic turns require careful preparation. They didn't just happen.
"Anita Cassidy. Best prosecutor in the city." Wearing the suit like a second skin, she had all the warm approachability of a porcupine. "That's not who I'm talking about." As the cameras and photographers set themselves up in the lowest row of public seats, there was little time left for comments before events really got started as figures began to fill the two benches.
"He is." Raising one arm like a massive pointer, Koharu indicated the ageing man taking the seat in the centre of the lower row. "Takashi Hiraguchi. Minister of Justice." With everyone on the two curved tiers arranged about and behind him, Hiarguchi was the obvious leader of the pack. Senator Izinski had mentioned him to Akiza a few times. In simple terms, he was to law what Yusei was to science.
"Probably just here for the cameras." As the daughter of a political expert, Akiza knew that some people did whatever they could to gain even the smallest modicum of press coverage. She was also aware that a high ranking minister was unlikely to be that needy.
"Yeah. Probably." As functioning human beings with the ability to realise a bad turn of events, they all knew just how likely the Minister of Justice showing up to a routine trial was. "About as probable as that bastard turning up by accident." Din was already pointing out the second largest threat. One of the faces just a few seats down from Hiraguchi seemed less neutral than the others. A scowl was set onto it as the owner glared towards Yusei.
"Oh no." Set out along her left, the reassuring presence of her friends from work offset the stupidity of her friends from outside work. At least, they had been reassuring. Right up until Koharu had let slip that alarming little bit which neither the city's best prosecutor or Minister of Justice had been unable to invoke.
"What?" Everyone to Akiza's left was suddenly leaning forward in an attempt to peer around her.
"How can I put this diplomatically?" Scratching her head with the robotic hand was a backwards approach for Koharu. Instead of risking moving the hand too hard and crush her skull, she kept it frozen in place as her head moved back and forth.
"Imagine Yusei was an arrogant streak of piss who spoke French." Din's mental image wasn't that far off the mark. Crude yet accurate, just like many of his analogies.
"Dr Undercliff is a high ranking scientist at CERN who keeps in regular contact with Yusei and some others." Every time that Din broke the ice with even colder statements, it gave Koharu the opportunity to compose her thoughts. "They keep each other apprised of dangerous science, sort of unofficial watchdogs." Her tone indicated a problem and she hurried on before Din could fill the break with expletives. "Certain parties have expressed the motion that Yusei wouldn't have risen to his position so quickly had it not been for his work on the Fortune Mainframe. Since Undercliff is about the same age, he is frequently used as an example."
"Like I said." Glaring at the tan face seated on the lower row, Din risked unleashing his wrath. "An arrogant streak of piss who speaks French." Seated beside him, Koharu laid a gentle grip on his shoulder and locked it into place. Unless Din could lift and throw the prosthetic form, he wasn't going anywhere.
"We've already got a couple of those." Ignoring Jack's jab at his expense, Crow leaned back and looked down at the carefully bland face in the ranks of other unnoticeable people. It had a pointedly unpleasant expression. Like professional smugness. If it hadn't been for the suit and bench putting an official slant on appearances, Crow might have thought that it was vindictive.
"Any word from the little voice in your phone?" Whoever was on the other end of the line seemed willing to help. Maybe there was something that could be used to their advantage.
"Nothing yet." Against all probability, she was holding out hope that it was somehow Yusei on the other end of the line. That sending them help and support from inside a prison was not beyond the scope of his skills. Except that he had clearly been surprised to see her when she had visited The Facility. Even Yusei wasn't that good of an actor. With all the legal might they could muster sitting down on the battlefield, part of her hoped that she wouldn't have to rely on another surreptitious conversation with their mystery contact as Hiraguchi tapped against a microphone and a call for quiet silenced the public stands.
"This tribunal has been convened to assess the suitability of Yusei Fudo in regards to his position as the Director of the New Domino Scientific Research Centre." Hiraguchi had the sort of dusty voice which sounded more suited for a history teacher. "Due to the sensitive nature of his position, it was deemed too high a risk for him to be alerted in advance. As the facility also deals with international projects, the utmost discretion was used when taking Mr Fudo into protective custody while the members of this panel could assemble." It was a decent enough explanation for everything that had gone on. Even Yusei was impressed at how believable it was. For all he knew, it might actually be the truth.
"Excuse me." Already putting himself on the social back foot, Yusei dared risk the displeasure of his tribunal by rising to his feet and cutting across the team of prosecutors. Even the short walk to the courtroom had managed to get his legs back into good enough order to stand upright for a few seconds.
"Sit down." One of the faces on the bench hissed the words across in Yusei's direction, garnering some assenting murmurs from the group.
"Unless you plan on violating rights of speech, I am still entitled to an opening statement." Bright orange jumpsuit aside, Yusei suddenly seemed like the much more seasoned practitioner of law. "Look, if this is about those parking tickets I'm contesting; there was no sign, the car is exempt from tickets due to being a restored antique on loan from a museum and it had also decided to embarrass me by literally shaking half the wires out and made me push it for the last two miles." Laughter came. Everyone loved a humiliating story they could relate to. Especially when a celebrity was involved. Yusei even joined in as the world laughed at how even the King of Games could endure the mundane activity of getting a ticket. Akiza remembered Yusei picking her up in that sleek car when she first returned home. It had been returned to the museum shortly after. His payment had been using the relic for a short time. Just to make sure that everything was in working order.
"If it's not about the tickets," And all smiles dropped away. "I protest my lack of preparation to these proceedings. Until today, I was given no exact charges to prepare against, limited contact with any and all persons and neither assigned or visited by legal counsel." Troubled mutterings grew about the public onlookers as the list of underhand tactics continued to grow. If found guilty, nobody would care but right then, they were disgusted. "It's going to make it incredibly embarrassing when I win." Rampant applause was almost worth the angry verdict to disregard the opening statement.
Cassidy took the floor as Yusei gently swivelled from one side to the other in his chair. Looked like errant laziness, worked like exercise to put his legs all the way right again. "We'll be starting with a few standard questions to establish some key facts." That was certainly fair. "Answer truthfully and with either 'yes' or 'no'. Do you understand?" That sounded fair. But only sounded.
"I will answer all questions truthfully and to whatever extent is necessary." Nobody on his lengthy table of legal experts was speaking up to correct him. That was a rare sign from a lawyer that their clients were making the correct legal choice. "Or is there a reason you only want broad answers?"
Disgruntled looks appeared up and down the rows. Of course they had reasons. Asking 'Have you ever taken SRC property away from the premises' would encompass everything from pens to classified files. Answers in the affirmative would make him seem untrustworthy. Denying it would establish him as a liar once they pushed for specifics.
"Old habit. Think nothing of it." Right. Old habit from the archaic polygraph test. Yusei had tried having it replaced with far easier and more reliable devices from the SRC only to have the government repeatedly shoot him down. Ironic that they could have used those same techniques to prove if he was lying.
"Is your name Yusei Fudo?" At least that was an easy start.
"Yes." Resisting the urge to push for his titles, Yusei kept to the point. Listing them all would take too long anyway. He wouldn't want to sound snobby.
"Are you the Director of the New Domino Scientific Research Centre?" At least they had thought one title was important enough to be on the record.
"Yes. We call it the SRC for short." It was unusual to hear the full name aloud. Just about everyone used the acronym.
"Have you ever been physically, verbally or otherwise abusive towards any member of your staff?" Images of Din flashed through assembled minds. Images of stupid people flashed through Din's mind.
"Some members of staff have unique... eccentricities." Eyes were starting to turn to where Din was still sat quite calmly. "One, in particular, suffers from aggressive outbursts. The SRC attempts to provide a safe and stable environment for everyone. Even if that does mean splitting up the occasional squabble." People were actually straining to see Din in calm refusal to look back. "But no, never abusive." Finally looking around at the faces staring his way, Din slowly started to smile. People had nightmares about that smile. They stopped looking.
"Have you ever been nude, semi-clothed or inappropriately dressed around other members of staff?" Coughed mutters and reddening ears gave away hints of Yusei's embarrassment. Notes were instantly made regarding the question.
"Only with good reason. Emergency decontamination, certain charity events. A minor fire." Which had conveniently burned only his shirt and lab coat until he was practically topless. Pointed words had been exchanged with the people involved. Almost pointed enough to risk the previous question again.
"Have you ever intentionally or knowingly broken the law with research conducted at the New Domino Scientific Research Centre or 'SRC', as you call it?" Cassidy was being a bit more tricky now. Government projects were always a bit shady. Free from some laws, bound by extreme secrecy everywhere else.
"Not without first being granted permission." It was a risky move. Stuff like testing pursuit drones was nearly impossible unless first given leave to break the speed limits. Such an excuse also let him slip by without mention of more sensitive projects.
"Are you aware that the SRC operates under both national, international and foreign laws?" Ha. Cassidy was now openly using the acronym. A small win for their side. Oddly dressed scientists up and down the rows smiled and nodded to each other. Progress, no matter how small, was still progress. Even getting just an inch closer to winning was still an inch closer.
"Of course. I'm the one who arranged for it to work that way. It allows scientists from all over the world to come and share knowledge." And skirt certain laws from either category by claiming to operate in another camp. It was a legal nightmare and a practical dream.
"Have you ever attempted to use SRC technology, facilities, property or finances for your own gain?" Minor alarms started going off in Yusei's brain.
"That's a rather broad question." Huddling together with his legal team, they spent several seconds in conference before he turned back to Cassidy. "As the SRC rents out use of its facilities and I have previously rented them own for personal projects, technically yes. All legal and above board." Weighing the odds, he decided to mar his image slightly. "Including one time when my request was denied."
"Your own staff turned down an application from you?" Cassidy tried to stop herself but she couldn't pass up the potential opportunity. Maybe there had been an ethical concern.
"Apparently, I lacked the qualifications to research self-cooking noodles. Too little bio-chem, not enough molecular gastronomy." Which was the field of fancy cooking. A lot of people didn't even consider it a proper science. World-class chefs were known for having violent arguments over the subject.
"Can you explain the basis of your reasoning for the first twelve sets of amendments you recommended to the fire evacuation plans?" As Cassidy delivered the question, she jotted down a note on her pad before scratching out the line above.
Whatever the final goal was, this tribunal would clearly be so thorough that they – and the world – would end up privy to every aspect of his life. With mounting horror, Yusei realised that he could very easily be lawyered to death from hour after hour of tedious questions. He almost wished he was back in his inescapable cell. Pouring another cup of that thick sludge-like coffee that Mina had sent him via Trudge, he sat back and prepared himself to endure the monotonous tedium which would last the next ten hours.
Disclaimer: The law is nowhere near as effective as it is about to be made out to be.
Lawyers: ye be warned. Everyone else: review?