"This is so cool!"
"Yeah, it must really be, Carrots. You said that five times already." Nick said, as he stood by Judy's side. The bunny girl was looking pumped up, so much that she was practically bouncing on the spot where she was standing.
"Well, it really is!" Judy said, looking at her partner. "I've always wanted to be part of a mystery murder party! Ever since I first heard about them! It has all the things I love the most! Police detective work, intelligence challenges and party! Ben, did you knew that this was going to be a murder mystery party?"
"No, I didn't." Ben said; he was standing right next to the other two, smaller cops. They all had removed their masks, and he was looking at the way that the bunny seemed like she was about to take off and blast through the ceiling and into the stratosphere.
"You really didn't knew?" Nick asked, looking at him.
"I didn't, honest!" Ben said, looking at the fox, "When I saw Mr. Blackson dropping to the ground I was as shocked as everyone else!"
"Everyone save for Charles and his dear wife." Someone said, butting in the conversation. They turned back to see a gazelle in a gasmask, its lenses looking back at them. "My guess is that they were into it ahead of time."
"Melon!" The wolf with white clothes and deer mask soon came. "Melon, you cannot go butting in conversations like that! It's not polite."
"Well, it isn't my fault that they talk so loud that anyone in the mansion can hear them." The gazelle in the gasmask said, "Especially the bunny. Seriously, for someone her size she is quite loud.
Judy looked a bit indignantly at the gazelle, but she also blushed, as she knew that he had a point. Judy realized that she was being rather loud, but she could not avoid it, she really loved the idea of a mystery murder party. She always wanted to take part in one, but there weren't many parties like that back in BunnyBurrow, and she hadn't had the chance of getting into any, as no one she knew was giving one.
Now she finally had the chance to take part in one! It was so exciting! She was able to bask in the excitement of it after having recovered from the surprise of the fake death that just happened.
She had been surprise by seeing the blackbuck fall of the ground choking and convulsing, like everyone else... or most everyone else, if the word of the gazelle in a gasmask was to be consider.
As soon as the scare passed, and that they saw that Blackson was okay, Chandler explained to them that, for the next week and a day, they were going to engage in a lot of games and activities. Which each game that they played, and won, they would receive a clue as a reward, clue that would help them solve the "murder" that they had just witnessed. The winner of the game would be the one who was able to guess correctly the identity of the murderer. As for the murderer, he or she would be the winner if the game ended without anyone figuring out it that they were the murder.
Everyone had agreed to take part on the game, as they all agreed that it seemed like fun. Euphemia and Charles didn't looked excited about the game, but they both said that they were willing to participate, although it seemed that it was mostly because Chandler was asking them to. As for Blackson, he agreed to play the victim of the game so he could be able to do his work as Gazelle's manager while everyone else got busy with the games.
"So, I hope that all of you will be playing this game without cheating." Chandler said, and he gave a look around, "In particular, I'd like to ask for the present mages not to use magecraft to try to gain an edge."
"Oh, darn." Melon said, "You are a kill joy, do you know it, Chandler?"
"Well, I just want to make sure that everyone has fun as well as a chance to win." Chandler said, looking at the gazelle, who still wore his gasmask, and had not removed it even a single moment during the entire dinner (seriously, the gazelle didn't ate a bite), "Also, you will not receive help from anyone of the house, including the servants. Now, with all of this explained, I guess that, after witnessing the murder, all of you need to go back to your rooms to calm your nerves while we move the corpse to somewhere else, ain't I right?"
This was all that Chandler said before they left the dining room, Melon was talking a lot of food with himself back to his and Legoshi's shared bedroom, when he stopped on his way to butt in the conversation that the cops were having.
"So, what about we actually go to our rooms now?" Nick said, looking at the two. "I do believe that our host must have left something for us in there."
With this, the three cops went their way back into their bedrooms, and, as Nick predicted, in each one of them, there was something: a folded piece of paper left into the bed.
Judy didn't wasted time in hopping into her bed and picking up the piece of paper. She unfolded it and started to read:
You are Judy Hopps, famous in Zootopia as the ZPD's first bunny cop. However, no one knows that you are secretly a hitmammal working for the infamous Al Clawpone. You became a cop to make the world a better place, but started acting as a hitmammal as a way of gaining your life and repaying a debt to the crime lord, who once saved your family's farm from bankruptcy.
Your mother is an ex-mage, and you, despite not being born with the gift of magecraft, was able to pick up enough tricks from her to allow you to do your job in a manner that makes even other professional assassins envious. This combination of the use of the supernatural with your own job as a cop has allowed you to act without anyone ever suspecting anything about you. Rumors exist, but there is no evidence that would ever allow your prosecution for any crime.
Your fame has allowed you to receive an invitation to a party at the house of the Manechester mansion, where you met other interesting individuals. You get surprised that, among them, is no other than the despicable Simon Blackson.
You have always resented Blackson, for the blackbuck crime lord ordered the murder of your first love. When you saw him at the mansion, you immediately contacted Al Clawpone, asking for permission to ice the blackbuck. Just moments after you receive a message giving you permission to kill him, Blackson dropped dead at the table.
Despite you not having a paw on the death of Simon Blackson, it will be game over if anyone finds out that you have been given orders to eliminate him. Your only hope is to find the true culprit before you take the fall.
Good luck.
Oh, boy.
Judy was liking it more and more. Better yet, she didn't do it! If she was to play a game as either the cop or the bandit, she would always prefer to be the cop.
With this, Judy got off her bed and was once more walking to her door. What wasn't her surprise when she found out Nick standing right by the side of her door. The fox had removed the Cy-Clops visor, and was now holding a smoking pipe to his muzzle. However, instead of smoke, soap bubbles were coming out of the pipe.
It did made Nick kind of look like a cartoon character.
"So?" He said, putting down his smoking pipe and looking at her.
"I didn't do it." Judy said, "I am innocent... -ish."
"Of course you are." He said, looking at his partner. "There is nothing more deceptive than an obvious fact."
Judy looked at him, with a raised eyebrow.
"And who are you quoting right now? Sherlock Howlmes?"
Nick looked at her with a raised eyebrow of his own.
"Miss, I don't happen to know this 'Sherlock' you speak of." The tod said, looking at her, before he bowed his head to her in respect. "I am Nicholas Wilde, the true greatest detective of this era, and I just happen to have another case in my plate. Curious how us detectives seem to attract such events to ourselves, don't you agree?"
"Oh, Nick..." Judy said, smiling at her friend's antics. She had to admit that it was quite entertaining, and it really seemed that Nick had gotten well into character.
"And, who would be you, my fair lady?" Nick asked, and Judy looked back at him.
"Judy Hopps, a cop with a dirty secret."
"Pleased to make your acquitance, Miss 'Hopps-with-a-dirty-secret'." Nick said, "Now, I believe they are waiting for us back in the dining hall. So, shall we?"
With this, the two cops moved back to the dining hall and, once more truth to Nick's words, they were all in there. Well, most of them.
Melon and Legoshi were both the last ones to arrive.
"Sorry, Melon was eating." Legoshi said; apologizing as he and Melon both took their seats. Legoshi, like the others, had removed his mask. However, the gazelle still wore that big and awkward gasmask that covered his entire face.
"Well, couldn't he have eaten at the dinner table with everyone else?" Judy asked, looking at the masked gazelle, who looked back at her. She could not see his eyes through the lenses, but she knew that he was looking right back at her.
"I don't like others staring at me while I eat." He said, and said nothing more. Judy continued to look at him with a raised eyebrow.
"Okay then." Chandler said, his voice calling out for everyone's attention. "Now, to all of you, who witnessed the sudden death of Mr. Blackson, who was... who was..."
For a moment, the horse seemed lost.
"Excuse me." He said, fishing something in a pocket, and pulling out a bunch of flashcards. He held the first one, and started to read from it.
"Mr. Blackson was a famous individual. Or rather, infamous." He said, as he read from the card that he had prepared himself. "Posing as a respectable figure in the commercial and political world of the city of Zootopia, it is no secret that Simon Blackson was a great crime lord of the city, famous for his ambition and ruthlessness. During his career as a criminal, he made himself many enemies. Some of which are currently sitting here in this room."
With this, Chandler passed to another flashcard, and continued to read from it.
"Now, each one of you in here had a reason to want him dead, and some of you even had the means. However, only one of you had the opportunity. Now, we must discover who." He said, still reading, "Luckily, we had among the guests no other than Nicholas Wilde, world-famous detective, who took the liberty to give his own opinion, after examining the corpse.
Nick, still producing bubbles from his pipe, looked at the others and made a salute.
"Through examination of the corpse, he found a lot of inconsistencies in the death." Chandler said, looking at everyone. "With the help of two of the present, Melor Horne and Legoshi Ogami, both freelancers hired by the Manechester family-"
"He is talking about us!" the gazelle on the gasmask said, as if it was important to call attention to this fact. Legoshi looked a little bashful as all eyes turned to them both. Chandler looked at them, before clearing his throat.
"As I was saying..." The horse continued, sounding just a bit annoyed, "With the help of these two present mages, Nicholas Wilde was able to confirm his theory that this death didn't occurred through mundane means." Chandler said, looking at all the guests, "In other words, Simon Blackson was killed with magecraft."
Everyone was silent as the said that, and they either looked at each other or at Chandler.
Some immediately thought that it meant that only one of the mages present at the place could be the culprit. Judy was among them; however, she ruled that out neatly immediately, as she remembered what she had read in her own description just minutes before. Her character was not a mage herself, but the daughter of an ex-mage who used the magecraft of her mother to help her own crimes. What said that she could not have arranged a curse to kill the blackbuck, had she been the one who did it? In this case, it was safe to assume that some of the non-mages among the suspects could also have found a way to use magecraft despite their lack of magical aptitude.
"Now, through the combined efforts Detective Wilde and Misters Horne and Ogami, they were able to determine that the victim was killed by a very specific curse, and they managed to narrow it down to three possible options." Chandler said, and he moved aside to reveal that there was something on the table. It seemed like there were three things in there, covered in cloths.
"These are: Heretic's Punishment..." He said, pulling the first cloth to reveal a glass that had a scarlet color and with a shape on the top that was like that of a flame. "...Herculion's Demise..." He revealed the second glass, which was of viridian coloration with a tip that looked like an upside-down teardrop, "... and Mewdea's Revenge." He finished as he revealed the last glass, azure in coloration and the tip looked like a crystal.
"So, only one of them?" Legoshi asked, "Which one?", then the wolf seemed to realize something, and he was soon apologizing, saying something on the lines that he should know, since he helped figure it out.
"Well, there is the catch." Chandler said, "You were able to narrow it down to one of these three options, but you haven't really figured out which one of the three."
"Oh... okay." Legoshi said, and Chandler continued:
"So, here is where it comes the first challenge of the game." He said, looking among his guests, "You guys will have to guess which curse was the one that took the life of Mr. Blackson. Those who guess it right will be the ones to have access to the first clue to the murder."
Everyone nodded, as they took in what he said, and the horse soon was grabbing a nearby pile of sheets of papers and was distributing then among the participants.
"Now, these are a list of the curses, their effects on the body and the ways through they can be identified." He said, handling over the papers to them one by one, along with pencils that probably served for them to make their own notes on the matter, "It also includes a description of the body and all of the peculiarities that it contained, all courtesy of the three who examined the body."
"He means us and foxy dude." Melon said to Legoshi.
"Detective Wilde also found out the schedule of Mr. Blackson before and after arriving at the mansion, including a list of his actions till the moment of his death, and he took the liberty of adding it. I recommend you not to ignore any of it."
Once all of the sheets were hand out, Chandler returned to near the table, and pulled out a chronometer from his pocket, looking around. "You have five minutes to figure out the curse that took his life. Everyone ready? The time starts... now!"
Many of them didn't wasted time, and they soon were reading the sheet of paper that the horse handed to them, seeing what was written in there:
17:00 – Fur salon appointment, went wary, apparently
18:00 – Arrival at the Manechester mansion
18:15 – Found looking around the bedrooms of one of the guests, they had a fight
18:30 – Went to the bar to have a drink. Found Gazelle in there. They had a conversation and she slapped him, leaving him alone in there.
18:45 – Was seen walking out of the bar as he rubbed his neck
19:00 – The dinner starts
19:05 – Blackson noisily complains about a feeling of pain and of an itch, he also showed shortness of breath
19:15 – Blackson drops dead. A small fire starts as a candle topples over.
POSSIBLE CURSES
Heretic's Punishment: It gradually increases the inner temperature of the victim's body. The victim dies due to the raising of temperature cooks them alive.
_Signs: bloodshot eyes, fever, sweating, symptoms of hyperthermia, reddish/pinkish skin, faint smell of burnt emanating from the corpse.
Herculion's Demise: This curse works by increasing steadily the PH of the bodily fluids of the victim, effectively turning all of their fluids into acid, causing the victim to be melt from the inside until they die.
_Signs: burning sensation all over the body (especially the eyes), bloodshot eyes, heartburn vomiting, coughing up blood (not all the cases), burns around the mouth and eyes, vinegar smell coming from the corpse, signs of hemorrhage under the skin.
Mewdea's Revenge: This terrible curse works by crystalizing the blood of the victim, causing the blood to turn slowly into crystal. The death usually happens because the lungs and heart are fill with shards of crystalized blood.
_Signs: internal pain in the form of "sharp little stabs", seizures, bloodshot eyes, great stiffness on the extremities, coughing up blood
SIGNS ON THE BODY
Pink skin. Bloodshot eyes. Faint chemical smell on the skin (only perceivable by canines or someone with an equally sensitive nose). Fresh burn injury on the wrist. Thick smooth substance on the sleeve near the burn. Dead bug found on the folds of his suit. Flatware tightly clutched on his hooves. Bruise-like marks on the left side of his body and on the right side of his neck. Swelling on the side of the face. Broken and swollen lip. Blood inside of the mouth.
Right on the bottom of the sheet, were three squares, each one with the name of one of the curses. It was obvious that they were supposed to mark the one that they thought was the correct one.
Judy read all the descriptions and she repassed it all one more time. As she finished, she had a raised eyebrow.
"I don't remember any of that on the body..." She said to herself. She did not expected a familiar voice to answer:
"It's all in the imagination, Carrots."
She immediately looked to the side, to see Nick looking at her with his usual sly smirk.
"So, any ideas on what could have been the one?" He asked, looking over her shoulder, and she looked back at him, hiding her sheet of paper like a kit hiding their paper from a class colleague during an exam.
"Nick, you have one of your own." She said to him, "Besides, I think that we are supposed to do these individually."
"Well, that is not stopping these guys." He said, gesturing around, and Judy looked.
Legoshi and Melon were on a corner, they seemed to be discussing something, pointing at each other's papers as they shared ideas. Meanwhile, Hannah was joining with Gazelle and with Tyson, as they seemed to be discussing ideas as well. On yet another corner, Josh and Marcy both seemed to be comparing their notes.
The only ones that actually seemed to be working on their own were Euphemia and Charles (who did not talked to each other or even looked at each other as they evaluated their papers). Ben was on his own too, but that changed when Marcy turned to him and gestured for him to come, and the cheetah happily rushed over to them.
Judy looked at all of them for a moment, and she thought that maybe it was okay for them to form teams for this. Chandler himself seemed not to mind.
"Okay then..." Judy said, turning back to her paper, and reading the list of symptoms of the curses one more time. She remained silent for a moment, pondering over it, before she started speaking:
"Okay, so, when you read that he had pink skin, you immediately think that this is something that came from Heretic's Punishment, because it clearly says that it is one of the symptoms." Judy said to her partner, "But, he also had blood on his mouth and in this case it would be either Herculion's Demise or Mewdea's Revenge, because these two cause the victim to cough up blood, something that the first curse does not."
"Yeah, sounds reasonable." Nick said.
"Also, it also says that during the dinner he had difficulty to breathe, and this can easily be the result of heartburn, which is a symptom of Herculion's Demise. So, I am guessing that it could be it." Judy said, and she looked at Nick, hoping that he would agree with her. However, the fox looked back at her and said:
"What about the first curse? It causes symptoms of hyperthermia, and hyperthermia sometimes makes you feel breathless."
"Yeah, but the fist curse does not causes blood to appear on the mouth." Judy said, looking at this, "The two others can cause a mammal to cough up blood, the first doesn't do that, so it cannot be it."
"Who said that the blood needs to have come from the curse?" Nick said, looking at his partner. "Do you remember that the victim had a cut on the mouth?" He asked, and all of sudden, Judy remembered what was written, and she went back to check. Indeed, it said that the victim had a laceration on the mouth.
"But, none of the curses causes lacerations to appear." She said, looking at her partner, and the fox looked back at her.
"Maybe it is not effect of one of the curses." Nick said, looking back at her. "Remember how he said that we should pay attention to the things that he did before passing?"
Judy looked at him, and then she realized what he meant.
The list of his final hours!
Right before dinner, he met up with Gazelle at the bar, and she slapped him. This should explain the laceration and the swelling on his face. However, looking over the schedule, she also saw that he had been in a fight with another of the guests when he was caught snooping at their room. Could this fight have become physical? If it had, it would explain both the laceration and the swelling, not to mention the bruises on his body.
"So, the blood on his mouth came from the fight?" Judy said, looking at him, "But, if that was the case, he would have noticed the blood on his mouth during the dinner."
"Yeah, I agree." Nick said, still looking over. "Unless the guy was so distracted that he didn't noticed the taste of blood as he was eating."
"Okay, everyone!" Chandler said, "Two minutes to go!"
The two continued to think.
"Well, it could have been Herculion's Demise, since it causes someone to cough up blood... but it says that there was a burn on his wrist, not his mouth or eyes." Judy said, still looking at the list.
"So, we can rule it out?" Nick asked, and Judy shook her head.
"Maybe not. It is one of the symptoms, but sometimes certain symptoms do not appear. Also, there is the fact that it produces vinegar smell coming from the body, and the body had some kind of chemical smell. Maybe it could have been it, and we are missing something. We cannot really rule it out yet. Just like we cannot rule out Heretic's Punishment, because it causes the skin to acquire a coloration like it was described on the corpse."
Nick nodded, and he thought about it. Then it came to him.
"Unless that did not came from the curse." He said, Judy looked at him, and he looked over the paper, just as Chandler said:
"One minute!"
Judy looked up, looking around and seeing that some of them seemed like they had already marked their option. Melon and Legoshi were sitting calmly by each other's side, while Ben's group looked like they were just finishing marking their answers.
"What else on the body?"
"Well, bloodshot eyes, but all of the three curses cause that. He also complained about itching, but none of the curses causes something like that." Judy said, looking over the things that were write in there. "Oh, it also said that he was hold the flatware tight on his hooves."
"Thirty seconds." Chandler announced, meanwhile, Nick went over his own paper, confirming what Judy had just told him, passing this fact in his mind along with the others, and that was when it hit him.
"Carrots, I know!" He said, looking back at her. "Mewdea's Revenge!"
"What, are you sure?"
"Ten. Nine. Eight."
"Pretty sure! Mark it now!" He said, and Judy looked at him for a moment, before doing as he instructed. She used the pencil to mark into the square that stood right by the side of the option "Mewdea's Revenge", just right as Chandler was saying:
"Three. Two. One. Okay, time's up!"
With this, Judy looked up, as she was sitting by Nick's side, and everyone was now looking at the horse, who looked back at his guests.
"Okay, so everyone marked their guesses? Okay then." he said, and he continued:
"So, after careful deliberation by the part of Detective Wilde, he determined that earlier today, before coming to the Manechester Mansion, Simon Blackson went to Sweet Paw Salon to make a special treatment for his fur. However, he let the treatment sit for too long, and this caused his skin to become sensible and turn a vivid pink beneath his fur, besides leaving it with a lingering chemical smell that anyone with a strong enough nose can detect." He said, and Judy and Nick looked at each other. Nick had remembered something that had totally slipped Judy. She had been so focus on the clues that she forgot about how she should consider the list of things that happened before the death, including the ones that occurred before he arrived at the mansion.
"After arriving, he quickly got into attrition with the rest of the guests, as it was an example when he invaded the room shared by Ogami and Horne, apparently in search for something, when Mr. Horne surprised him, prompting the two to fight. Horne came out unscathed, but Blackson walked away with bruises and a broken lip."
On his seat, the gazelle in the gasmask puffed out his chest, as if he is proud of the imaginary accomplishment. Meanwhile Chandler continued:
"On the wake of this, still with a bleeding lip, he went to the bar to drink, where he found Gazelle. He tried to engage into conversation with her, but it escalated into a discussion that ended with Gazelle slapping him right on the lacerated lip, causing it to bleed more profusely. She left, leaving him to dry out his blood as he let out a curse. Later on, he would be sitting on the table, complaining of pain on his limbs and chest, as well as on a shortness of breath and on an itch in a certain area of his body." Chandler said, "As dinner developed, his difficulty to breathe became more pronounced, before he finally had a sudden coughing fit, which caused some blood to come up from his lungs and accumulate on his mouth before he toppled from his chair. As he fell, a candle toppled, causing some hot wax to spill on his wrist, provoking a burn. Upon close examination, it was noticed that he still was holding firmly his flatware in his hooves, as his fingers were extremely stiff."
Chandler looked around.
"They were stiff, because the blood inside of his fingers had completely crystalized, freezing his fingers in that position." He said, "Which was the same reason why he died, as the shards of crystalized blood pierced his heart from the inside, inducing a heart attack. The same shards that, moments before, were piercing his lungs, causing small jabs of sharp pain and causing his breath to become labored."
He looked at his guests, and then he concluded:
"Simon Blackson died a victim of the cruel curse known as Mewdea's Revenge."
"Yatta!" Legoshi said under his breath, sounding happy, and Melon patted him in the shoulder.
"Yes!" Josh said, as his siblings looked quite happy themselves.
Euphemia kept a neutral expression, while her husband scoffed as he threw his paper and pencil away.
"Oh, darn." Hannah said, "I should have known when it said that there was no burn marks around the eyes or mouth."
"Yeah. Sorry, honey." He said, looking at his girlfriend, before turning his attention back at the rest of his guests.
"Okay, so, all the ones who guessed it wrong, I'll have to ask you to please go to another room while I share the clue with the winners."
With this, Hannah, Tyson, Gazelle and Charles all got up and left. It seemed that most of the guests had actually guessed it right. As they stood around Chandler, he looked at all of them smiling.
"So, congratulations for having won the first challenge." Chandler said, "It took me certain effort to prepare it."
"Yeah, it was a nice brain teaser." Marcy said, looking at him, "Also, nice curses that you came up with, really creative. I know some mages who would love to have ideas like that for curses."
"Why, thank you." Chandler said, "Now, for the clue." He said, and reached out inside of his pocket, as he did, someone asked:
"So, these clues are only for us?" Ben asked, and Chandler looked at him. "We can't tell the other ones about it?"
"Well, the clue is meant for the winners, but you can share the clue with the ones who didn't won, if you want to." The cheetah seemed to like hearing that. Judy and Nick had the impression that he wanted to share the clue with Gazelle.
"Now, for the clue." He said, pulling something out of his pocket. "Here it is."
He then held it for everyone to see.
It was a bug.
It was a weird-looking bug, of a red coloration, long wings; it really was a strange-looking insect. It was obviously dead, and contained inside of a small glass box.
Everyone looked at it, as the insect was presented to them. Eventually, Euphemia was the one to speak:
"A bug is the clue?" She asked, looking at her brother, who only smiled back at her. "How so?"
"That, my dear sister, is for you to figure out." He said, and his sister looked back at him.
"How is a...weird-looking dragonfly a clue to a murder?" Nick said, looking at the strange creature, which kind of looked like something from a nightmare he had when he was a kit.
"Wasp." Legoshi said, causing everyone to look at him.
"Excuse me?" Nick asked, looking at the wolf.
"It is a wasp." Legoshi said, looking at the fox, "More precisely, it is a fire-tail wasp. They are a type of paper wasp."
"I never seen a wasp like that." Ben said, as she looked at the strange bug. It had a long section that connected the abdomen to the tail, and its red coloration was definitely stronger than the one of the wasps he had seen before.
"That's because they are not native to Animerica." Legoshi said, "They are native to sub-Saharan Afurika and south-west Asia."
Suddenly, the wolf was aware that everyone was now looking at him, and this made him a bit shy.
"I-I really like bugs." He said, almost in an apologetic tune. Meanwhile, Judy looked at the bug once more, and that was when something occurred to her.
"Wait." The bunny said, causing the attention to turn to her, and she then looked up to Chandler.
"The description of the corpse said that a bug was found on it." She said, looking at him, "Is that the bug, by any chance?"
The horse looked back at her, with the same smile, and he said:
"You are saying it, not me." He said, "The bug is a clue. That is all that I can tell you." He said, and placed the small box with the dead bug back inside his pocket, and looking at them. "Now, this concludes this challenge. It is time to move on for the next one."
With this, they were soon reuniting with the four mammals who didn't got the answer right. Soon, Chandler was guiding them across the hallways of the mansion until they arrived into a prepared room.
"Please, wait in here a little bit." He said, and left the room for a while. As he did, the mammals on the room started talking to each other. Ben went to talk to Gazelle and Tyson, probably sharing with them the clue that Chandler had gave to them. Euphemia reunited with her husband, and they were chatting, maybe about the clue as well?
"We're off to a great start." Nick said as he sat right by Judy's side, and the bunny looked back at him.
"We sure are. This first challenge was fun." She said, "I hope the other ones are as well. This is going to be so good." She sounded excited, and Nick chuckled as he looked at his bunny friend. He was glad that Judy was enjoying herself.
"Of course, we cannot forget that the goal of the challenges is to get the clues that will allow us to solve the mystery and find the culprit." She said, and she then put herself to think, "What brings us back to the first clue. Now, how does that bug fits into this?"
"What bug?" Someone said, and they looked over to see Hannah, who they failed to notice that was sitting right next to them. She immediately was apologizing.
"Sorry, I didn't meant to eavesdrop."
Nick and Judy immediately told her that it was okay. So, they both shared with her the information about the first clue. After all, since Ben was sharing it with Gazelle and Tyson, and Euphemia was probably sharing it with her husband, it would not be fair for Hannah to be the only one not to know.
"A bug from Afurika?" Hannah said, and she then thought about it. "Wait, is it the same bug that the paper sheet said was found on the body?"
"I am most sure that it was." Judy said, "But, Ogami said that the bug comes from Afurica, so what was it doing on the corpse?"
"Maybe it was planted in there?" She said, and she continued, "Was it planted on the body? Did it came from somewhere?"
"Well, it certainly came from Afurika." Nick said, matter-of-factly.
"Maybe it could have come from some kind of insectarium. You know; the kind that has bugs from all over the world?" Judy offered, "But, the paper with what he did before coming to the mansion does not mentions him passing by any."
"Well, if it came from an insectarium, maybe I could help you. I work in an insect house." She said, and the two cops looked at her.
"Really?" Judy asked, and the mare looked back at her.
"Well, actually, I work on decoration. But, according to my character description, I also work part-time in an insectarium for a recluse and rich mammal." She said, and added, "What would hardly happen in real life, bugs really freak me out."
"Oh, right." Judy said, "I guess that Chandler took some liberties on it, didn't he?"
"Yeah, he certainly did." She said, "He does know that I am creeped out by bugs. Still, I am really liking what he did with the characters." She looked around as she said that, "For example, he made his sister's husband a published poet. That would also never happen, according to what Chandler told me, he said that Charles once spent half-an-hour trying to come up with a word that rhymed with 'orange'."
Nick chuckled at this, and Judy gave him a glare as he did, before she looked back at Hannah.
"So, he took these kinds of liberties with the characters of all the others?" Judy asked, and the mare shrugged.
"Maybe he did, but not with all of them." Hannah said, "Gazelle is still the same famous popstar that she always was, and his sister is also still herself, the heir of the Manechester business." She gestured to the popstar, "Also, Mr. Tigereye is still Gazelle's bodyguard. And these two." She gestured at the wolf and male gazelle talking to each other in a corner, "By what I could understand, they are still mages hired by the Manechester family, but Chandler did added something to their backgrounds."
"Kind of like he did to me?" Judy asked, "I am still Zootopia's first police officer."
"I, on the other paw, am a cunning fox who became a detective after being denied entry on the police." He said, "They didn't let me have a badge, so I decided to use my intelligence and skills in service of truth and justice on my own. I wonder if that could have happened in real life."
"Well, that's really good for you Detective Wilde." Hannah said, and Nick nodded back at her. It was safe to say that all of them were definitely having a good time with this whole game and the thing of the characters.
That was when Chandler came back to the room.
"Okay, everyone get ready, because the second challenge is about to start." He said as he walked inside, and he was follow by a group of servants, each one of them wheeling in a safe.
"Now, for this challenge, you will be forming teams." He said to them, "Each one of you will be part of a four member team and each team will receive one safe." He said, gesturing to the safes that the servants had just wheeled to the room.
"Thanks guys." He said to the servants, who bowed at him and got out of the room as he turned to his guests again. "So, the first team to open their safe will be the winner."
"Okay then." Melon said, getting up, "So, we will be using sledgehammers? Blowtorches? Chainsaws?"
"You will be using your intelligence." Chandler said, looking at the gazelle with the gasmask. "To figure out the right three-digit combination to open your respective safe. By the way, all of the safes are identical and have the very same combination, so I don't want anyone complaining that they got a bad safe or something."
"Seems fair." Legoshi said, and Chandler looked at the wolf.
"Thank you, Mr. Ogami. Now, since this is settled, start forming your teams, will yah?" He said, and soon the guests were doing what he said.
Charles and his wife remained together, and so did Ogami and Horne. Ben was on his way to join someone, but he hesitated when he was going to choose his team. On one paw, he could join the team that had Gazelle, but on the other, the wanted to be on the same team as his siblings. However, that would be a problem because Gazelle would probably want to remain on the same team as her bodyguard, which meant that one of his siblings would not be on his team. This put the chubby cheetah in a dilemma.
However, it seemed that the others didn't had such dilemma.
While Ben was deciding, Gazelle and Tyson formed a team with Euphemia and Charles, while Josh and Marcy formed a team with the wolf and the masked gazelle.
"Sorry, Benji." Marcy said to her sibling, as she and her other brother gathered with the gazelle and the wolf; while Gazelle and her bodyguard were already joined with Euphemia and Charles. Ben looked at them for a few moments, and then he looked back at the three mammals in the corner.
"Well, looks like you are with us, Spots." Nick said as he, Judy and Hannah all looked at Ben. "Hope you are not too disappointed."
With this, the teams were determined and each one assigned to a safe, and then, Melon asked:
"So, how are we supposed to figure out the combinations of the safes?" the gazelle asked, looking at the horse through the lenses of his gasmask. "We just go trying them until one of them works, or you will give us stethoscopes like in the movies?"
"Well, you can try something like that if you want." Chandler said to him, and he moved back. "But, in case you want some clues, you might wanna take a look at this." With this, he pulled a cord, and this caused the curtain behind him to reveal what was behind it.
It was a poster, printed and glued to the wall, and it had something in it:
342 – None right
273 – None right
165 – Two right, one in the wrong
853 – Two right, one in the wrong
865 – Two right, both in the wrong
"So, this is your clue, my friends." He said, looking at his guests, "Alright, first team to open their safe win. Everyone ready? The second game starts... now!"
With this, the teams took a moment to get themselves together and start discussing possibilities. Well, most of them, once Charles simply went right to his safe and started to fiddle with the lock of the safe. It looked like he had decided to go trying numbers at random until one of the combinations worked, while his wife actually tried to figure it out with Gazelle and Tyson.
"Okay then, figuring out the combination. Shouldn't be that hard, should it?" Hannah said, and Judy was still looking at the poster that Chandler had revealed, full of three digit numbers.
"Trying to crack the code, Carrots?"
"The numbers sure have something to do with that." The bunny said, absent-mindedly, as she looked at the poster that had the numbers in it.
"Until now you have only spoke the obvious." Hannah said, and Judy continued to look.
"Each one is a three digit number, like the combination." Judy said, looking at them, "The first two have the saying by their side that says that none of them is right." Judy said, "So, this might mean that none of these numbers is on the combination."
"Sounds reasonable." Nick said, "The following two say 'two right, one on the wrong', ain't that right?"
"Well, this might mean that two of the numbers are correct while the other one is wrong." Hannah said, looking at the poster and at what was being describe in it. "But... what about the last number?"
"Yeah, that's where it gets strange." Judy said, looking at it. "It says that two are right, but also says that two are wrong. But the number only has three digits... how can that be possible?" Judy said, as she continued to look into the number, after a few moments, Ben was the one who spoke:
"Wait." He said, and the others looked at him. "It does not says that the numbers are wrong." He said, looking at the others. "It says that they are in the wrong." The three mammals of the team looked at him. "As in... in the wrong place."
Everyone blinked, and Judy said:
"THAT'S IT!"
Everyone perked their heads to look at the bunny, who had made a surprisingly loud sound for someone her size. Judy's ears dropped, and she looked around.
"Sorry..." She said to everyone, before she was whispering to the three mammals around her.
"Of course! How I didn't realized it before?" She said, looking at the numbers as if seeing them through a new light. "This is what the instructions mean. On the first two, there are no right numbers at all. On the two following ones, there are two right numbers, but one of these numbers is wrongly placed. On the last one, there are two right numbers, but both of them are on the wrong place."
"Yeah." Hannah said, getting it as well. "So, on the first ones there are no correct numbers."
"Which means that neither of these numbers is in the combination." Judy said, looking at the "So, there is no 3, 2, 4 or 7 in the combination."
"Yeah, but what about the other numbers?" Ben asked, and Judy looked over.
"The third number says that there are two right numbers, but one of them is in the wrong place. It can be any of these three numbers." She said, looking as she pondered on the options."
"Yeah, but we cannot forget about the fourth number." Nick said, "It also says that two numbers are right, but one of them is in the wrong place. The last number is a 3, and we already knew that there is no 3 in the combination. This means that the right numbers are 8 and 5."
"The also appear in the last number." Ben said, looking over, "Where it says that two are right and both are on the wrong place."
"So, it means that 8 and 5 are the right numbers." Hannah whispered. "This means that 6 is not one of the numbers of the combination."
"And this solves the third number." Judy said, "So, the numbers of the combination are 1, 8 and 5."
"Yeah, but in what order?" Hannah asked, and Nick answered:
"There are clues for this as well." The fox said, looking at the numbers as he was able to make the connections. "1 only appears on the third number, while 8 appears both the fourth and fifth numbers, and 5 appears in all of the three. In the fourth number, it says that two of the numbers are right, but only one in the right place, and in this, five is the second number while eight is the first. On the fifth, eight is in the same position while five is the last one, and it says that both of them are in the wrong place."
"So, this means that the right place 5 is in the second." Ben concluded, "And if that is the case, then 5 is the one that is in the third number, making 1 be in the right position on the first place."
"And the only place left for 8 is in the last digit." Hannah concluded, "The combination is 158."
Upon hearing that, Judy immediately sprint into action, running to the safe and looking up at the locking mechanism. Not letting the size difference get in her way, she hopped there and held into the handle of the safe, now using her feet to move the mechanical circular lock to enter the right numbers. First, it was 1, then it was 5, and finally it was 8.
Judy's heart leapt as she heard a click within the safe, and she used her weight to cause the handle to turn, causing the door of the safe to open.
"Time!" Chandler said, causing everyone to stop. Charles stopped fiddling with the lock of the safe, and so did Legoshi. The wolf had just entered the 1 and 5 when the horse's voice made him stop.
"Team 3 have opened their safe first." Chandler said, "They are the winners."
"Yes!" Judy said, celebrating, while the other guests applauded. Even Charles gave some reserved clapping for the bunny and her friends, despite the sour look that he had on his face. Legoshi clapped too, and he seemed more enthusiastic than Charles, despite being a little upset about not having won.
He was never good when it came to numbers.
"This means that they are the ones who will be getting the clue. Now, everyone else, please wait in the other room." He said, gesturing to the door, and soon, the other guests moved to the door, leaving only Ben, Judy, Nick, Hannah and Chandler in the room.
"Well, congratulation, guys." Chandler said to the other four, looking at them with a smile, "You have won the second challenge."
"Yeah, we are making well so far." Nick said, and Judy nodded, agreeing with her partner.
"Indeed" Chandler said, looking at them, "You all have got the right to find out the second clue." He reached for his pocket and pulled out something for them to see. This time, it was not a dead insect inside of a glass box. No, this time it was a ring.
"Wow." Nick said, looking at it, "That is an expensive looking ring. Is that a real ruby?"
"No." Chandler said, looking at the fox, who was looking at the golden ring with the sizable gemstone incrusted in it, "It is a red diamond. Real one. Very rare and expensive."
"It is beautiful." Hannah said, looking at the jewel that her boyfriend was holding on his hoof. "Where did you got it? Did your mother borrowed it to you?"
"Actually, darling, this ring is mine." Chandler said, looking at his girlfriend, as well as to the other guests. "This ring is very old. I can't tell how old it actually is, but it was one of the few possessions that the family kept after they lost everything in the 1920's, before Grandpa was born."
"So, it is a family heirloom, ain't it?" Nick asked, and Chandler nodded.
"Yeah, it sure is. Grandpa owned it for a long time, and he passed it to Dad when he was around my age, and Dad has passed it to me just last week. It is my part of the family's inheritance, and this ring alone is worth ten million zollars."
"Wait, really?" Judy said, and Nick whistled as he looked at the ring.
"Did I said that red diamonds are really rare?" Chandler said, "And this diamond in here has a lot of carats. It is a true relic. There was a whole ceremony around me receiving the ring, Dad reunited everyone of the family and announced that the ring was mine, and all of that stuff."
Everyone looked in amazement at the ring, taking in how valuable it was, and wondering how that fit in the murder of the blackbuck.
"This is your clue, how it fits in the mystery, are for you to figure out." Chandler said, looking at them, and then saying:
"Now, what about we go to see the other guys, huh?" he said, and soon, they were going to the room where the other guests were waiting.
What wasn't their surprise when they found Adrian Manechester in there, talking to Ogami and Horne about something in a corner, away from the other guests.
"Oh, Dad." Chandler said, and his father looked at him.
"Chandler." He said, walking to the younger horse. "So, how is this game of yours going? Well, I hope."
"Oh, it is." Chandler said, looking at his father. "We just played the first two games, now we will be going outside to play the next one."
Judy, Nick and Ben shared a look.
They were going outside?
Adrian looked at the younger horse. "So, you still intend to go outside for this little game of yours? You really don't prefer to do it inside of the house, where is far more comfortable?"
"Nah, I already had the servants get everything ready outside." Chandler said, shrugging a bit. "Besides, these games really are best when played outside. The night is clear, there is no clouds in the sky, and it is not as cold as you would expect for the middle of autumn. I guess it will be good for all of us to go outside and play some games, fresh air is good, after all."
Adrian looked at his son for a few moments, and he nodded.
"Yes, assume you are right." He said, he turned around and was leaving the room as he spoke:
"Well, have fun. Hope all of you have fun. And try to stay safe, it is getting late, and you don't know who could be roaming around."
"We'll be fine." Chandler said to his dad, "Vole Gardens are very safe. I mean, there are gates around the place and they don't let even delivery guys come inside without them showing their credentials, and there are guard patrols every half an hour. What could happen?"
Adrian stopped for a moment, and he seemed that he was considering something.
"Yes, I assume that you are right." The horse said, "Still, be careful, just in case."
With this, the adult left the room, and everyone looked at him as he departed, before they turned their gaze to Chandler, who laughed a bit.
"Yeah, sometimes Dad worries too much." Chandler said, "I mean; it is not like there are axe-wielding maniacs waiting for us just outside of the mansion."
Neither Chandler, neither any one of the other guests seemed to notice the way that the three cops shared looks among themselves.
"So." Chandler said, looking at all of his guests. "Let's get going?"