THIRD PERSON

The elevator was dead silent. As if everyone wasn't taking the situation seriously enough, this would put the previous elevator ride to shame. There was no confusion about where they were—they knew exactly what would happen.

As the platform came to a sudden halt, the group stepped out into the blindly bright trial room. Right back to where they were, every Pokemon in the room could feel the tension lining the air.

With a couple of deep breaths—some more shallow than others—the crowd easily gathered around their podiums.

"Wow~!" Sam grinned widely as she proudly plopped onto her throne. "I'm glad you all know exactly what to do!"

"I was hoping you were dead." Vanta muttered from under his breath.

"Whatever could you mean?" Sam giggled lightly and scratched the back of her head.

"You weren't the one doing the announcement." Loki tapped a claw against the surface of her podium.

"It's not always gonna be me, silly!" The Braixen pounded a proud paw against her chest. "I'm a very busy girl!"

"Whatever, let's just get into the trial. We're wasting precious time here." Vanta grunted in frustration before shooting a glare at the manic Braixen.

"He's right..." Grace heaved a small sigh.

"Well, we know she definitely didn't kill herself. I was too focused on keeping her alive to realize there were stab wounds on her back." Galant couldn't keep his stare off the ground.

"I have another point about that topic, too." Laker crossed his arms.

"Not now." Vanta quickly overruled before turning his gaze to the Gallade. "From what Hydra said, she has a shit ton of stab wounds on her back...and a clean slice on her throat."

"That's a lot." Rayne muttered lowly. "Are we sure one of us is insane enough to commit this crime?"

"We'll have to find out." Vanta scoffed and shook his head. "And I thought everyone got along."

"Whoever it is...i-is really good at doing this." Grace frowned to herself.

Vanta seemed to shoot a worried gaze at the Eevee before turning his eyes to a certain Zoroark.

"Loki...is there something you had to say?" The Umbreon questioned.

The black fox seemed to question herself before answering, her answer depending on the context.

"I don't know how relevant it is now, but...I only found that big hallway through a vent." She bit the tip of her claw anxiously.

"The one in Inu's room?" Zantai was quick to ask.

"No, there was another entrance—the main one." Loki shook her head.

"Oh, the one upstairs!" Leon, who was lost in thought at the beginning of the trial, stepped in to provide his knowledge. "Hydra had to open the door because—"

"...because I got lost, yeah, yeah. That's a completely different story, something in there scared the life out of me." She crossed her arms.

"What do you mean?" Rayne tilted her head at the Zoroark.

"I-It's nothing, really." She sighed. "I'll say it later."

"Right, anyway." Zantai cleared his throat and gripped the edge of his podium. "If Inu's murder was in a very small time frame, then we need to figure out where everyone was, right?"

"Yup. Galant can vouch for me, I was in bed." Vince raised a confident webbed hand.

"I can't say much on that." Luster exhaled. "I was definitely in my room, but I was alone."

"Yeah...Lancer isn't exactly with us anymore." Loki frowned at the Luxray's statement.

"Hm. I see." Leon crossed his arms. "Loki and I were on a search upstairs. Hydra can confirm we stayed there until the body was found."

"I for sure was not in my room." Vanta stated bluntly. "Before the body was found I was arguing with Inu. She was talking about killing herself."

"Okay, now I can't follow this point anymore." Laker crossed his arms. "Are we supposed to believe that Inu killed herself?"

"No." The Umbreon responded flatly. "But I do believe that's important to note."

"I'm a lil' lost..." Sherwood scoffed lightly. "She said she wanted to kill herself...but she didn't?"

"It's a fucked up situation, yeah." Zantai groaned and gripped his chin with a few talons. "Do you...do you think she was forced to say that?"

Even if the idea was outlandish, everyone in the room seemed to stare at the Blaziken for a few seconds, almost as if they had realized something new.

"Go on..." Rayne curiously eyed him.

"Well, if she had her throat slit then...someone must have pinned her down." Zantai uttered, ending the statement with a small sigh.

"I think you're onto something." Galant nodded and motioned to his blade. "As someone with a blade of my own, it would be impossible for me to fight someone and cut at their throat...at least not without restraining them."

"So you're just giving yourself away like that?" Laker grinned at the Gallade.

"Huh..?" Galant tilted his head before immediately realizing. "You're still on about that?"

"Until you give me a better reason." The Weavile shook his head. "There is no way you both couldn't have done that together."

"Why would we do that?" Vanta scoffed. "You do realize only one of us would benefit from that?"

"That's beside the point. I'm using your own logic, Vanta; everyone could be a suspect." Laker narrowed his eyes before chuckling lightly.

"Whatever." The Umbreon scoffed and shook his head. "Can we just go over more information first?"

ZANTAI'S POV

It really sucks not knowing what's going on. Even after entering the room fourth out of everyone, I still have no idea what the information being provided is useful for.

Laker is accusing both Galant and Vanta of the murder since there is no possible way Inu would kill herself.

However, Vanta is hinting at another theory that he's refusing to say until everyone states their alibi.

It took nearly ten minutes to pass by each Pokemon and get an idea as to where they were.

Loki, Leon, and Hydra were upstairs.

Everyone else is vaguely downstairs, and since not many of us witnessed each other's presence, solving this crime by witnesses is going to be impossible.

We'd have to do it by possibilities and theories...I sure hope whatever Vanta's planning is worth it.

Loki still looked troubled about something, so I could only lean over and whisper to her.

"Hey...you good?" I muttered to the Zoroark, seemingly snapping her out of her trance.

"O-Oh, yeah." She flashed me a weak smile. "Sorry, I just can't help but think about this whole situation in a different light than you all."

"You have something to say, don't you?" I tilted my head at her. "Why not say it?"

What a stupid question, now that I realize it. Loki was the one trying to help Inu improve her mentality, of course, she's going to feel afraid throughout the trial.

"You're right...it's just really hard." Loki cleared her throat and huffed lightly. "But I have to, it's really important."

After a nod of agreement, Loki raised her voice and boldly interrupted the conversation.

"You all might want to hear what I have to say about this." The Zoroark placed a claw against her chest. "I feel like the murder was committed by just one person."

"Huh?" Luster narrowed his eyes at the fox. "Where did this come from?"

"I spoke with Inu before she died." Loki answered bluntly.

A wave of confusion swept the room, leaving everyone grabbing at ways to phrase their next question.

"How so? I definitely was the last to speak with Inu. Unless you're saying she told you something important." Vanta was quick to try and debunk.

Loki placed a thoughtful paw against her muzzle before shaking her head. "The timing is important. From what you said earlier, you spoke with her until Galant came over and opened the door, correct?"

"Speaking of which, how could you have opened the door?" Leon inquired.

"Bingo! There it is!" Laker cheered and pointed a claw at the Lucario. "That's why I suspect you and Galant!"

"What?" Galant immediately perked at the sound of his name.

"The door! Vanta has been saying all along that he was arguing with Inu's suicidal wording through the door. If it was really concerning, he would have opened it sooner!"

"I see..." Rayne muttered in realization. "So you think the door was broken into?"

"Sort of...that's where things get sketchy. It's either the door was never locked and they abused that...or that it was somehow tampered with." Laker exhaled in thought.

"I know you won't take my word for it, but I heard the door lock click before we entered, that's the only reason I opened the door in the first place." Galant locked eye contact with the Weavile, who was clearly unimpressed.

"Hah! Then who the fuck opened that door? Giratina?" Laker scoffed.

"Well, it was clearly someone." Vanta added.

"Yeah, right! Like I'll believe that shit." The weasel spat.

"I mean, what makes your theory right?" Vince turned to carefully eye the other dark-type next to him.

"Cause there's no other reason for Inu to be dead that easily. I slept in the same room as her, I can tell you she is not getting caught off guard unless she was jumped." Laker crossed his arms to reply.

"Jumped?" Leon innocently questioned.

"A different way to say ambushed." I was quick to answer.

"So your theory is that both Vanta and Galant managed their way into her room and murdered her together?" Rayne summarized and hummed lightly to herself. "Then who is considered the murderer?"

"That's a very good question!!" Sam called at the top of her lungs. "I was waiting for you all to ask something like that!"

"Here we go..." Grace frowned.

"In case of a two-person crime, there is a special rule that allows us to determine only one culprit!" The Braixen waved her fire stick in the air, a few weak sparks emitting from the tip. "And that is whoever dealt the killing blow!"

"Killing blow, huh..." Sherwood chuckled.

"Yup!" Sam nodded. "Let's say, one of you stabbed someone in the heart...clearly they're going to bleed out in a few seconds!"

A long, awkward pause...for some reason.

"...right?" I raised a brow.

"And then right after, someone stabbed them in the brain!" The Braixen giggled. "Even if the previous attack was going to kill, whoever did the real killing blow is considered the culprit."

It sort of made sense, honestly. If both Pokemon were killed, Sam wouldn't get as much of a satisfying result.

"You know, that only proves my theory." Laker remarked.

"We didn't know that beforehand, though." Rayne mentioned.

"Correct!" Sam called as she plopped back down on her golden throne. "Now go on!"

"Alright, well...I have to say something first." Vanta cleared his throat. "It's about what I mentioned before."

"In the elevator?" Sherwood picked at the wood on the podium. "I overheard a lil' somethin'..."

"Yeah. I'm gonna describe exactly what I found, exactly how I found it." The Umbreon took a deep breath.

-=-

THIRD PERSON

A dangerously curious Umbreon had made his way into a hallway he was recently referred to. After a good amount of investigating occurring downstairs, Vanta found himself walking past a long string of doors leading to nothing in particular. He even wondered if he was at the right place for a moment.

His worries were soothed whenever he met up with a familiar Eevee.

"So it's here?" Vanta nodded at the Eevee next to him.

"Yeah, but I'm warning you, once you enter you have to read your entry." Grace eyed the Umbreon with worry as they paced down the hall to reach the infamous set of doors.

"I'll be fine." The dark type cleared his throat and turned to rise on his hind legs and pull the handle down. After shoving through the door the Umbreon was immediately greeted by a rudely awakened Braixen.

...

Ten minutes had passed, and in that time, Vanta had managed to read his own second motive. He felt the memories all flood back into his brain, the feeling of permanence lingering in his guilty conscience.

But he had no time to spare.

By the time Vanta snapped back into reality, Sam was gone. The Umbreon was alone in the room with nothing left but his thoughts.

"Hydra was..." The canine muttered to himself. Somehow, the feared doctor was involved in his past. Exactly how he was involved is a completely different question.

Disregarding that, Vanta had realized that the rule of the library was followed. His first move was to leap away from his book and begin shuffling through the rest of them lining the walls.

Even though they were censored for the public, Vanta figured any extra information he could gather would be infinitely more useful than being left in the dark.

If anything, it could save his life.

And to him, it just did.

Flipping open an out-of-place book, he found himself staring in awe at most of the censored motives.

"...no one was found after that incident. Investigators believe the two were murdered by the __ killer. The __ killer is known to be a female, and is a dangerous serial killer known by the markings she leaves after a crime. The reason for her name is due to each victim having a—"

"This is someone's motive?" He scoffed to himself. "Someone here is a fuckin' serial killer!?"

The idea was nearly inconceivable, the thought that someone in this mansion could be the one written on the page was enough to send a small shiver down the Umbreon's spine.

"Is everything okay?" A monotone feminine voice sounded from the entrance.

The Umbreon turned to drop the book and shoot a glare at the Manectric. "Reading. You're going to have to read one too."

"What do you mean?" She tilted her head. "I already have."

"Huh? You've been in this room before?" Vanta's ruby eyes narrowed in suspicion. "When?"

"After Loki found the vent." Rayne motioned to a storage closet further down the hall—one that Vanta could not see from his position. "I still haven't found which one connected to the one she entered...but this door looked different so I entered."

"Who gave you the briefing?" The dark-type questioned as he slid the book back into its place.

"Sammy did. She said Sam was too busy with something...I wonder what's happening." She heaved a short sigh before turning back and taking her leave.

-=-

...

...

THIRD PERSON

"...so that would mean that the room would have been accessible for quite some time now." Vanta concluded, his paws pressing against the podium.

"That room...I somehow didn't come across it." Loki hummed in thought.

"Speakin' of which." Sherwood started with a small turn to gaze at the Zoroark. "Where did that vent lead to, again?"

"O-Oh..! It led to that hallway Vanta was talking about." The fox turned to nod at the Umbreon.

"I see." Leon uttered calmly. "Is that what you were hiding?"

"Not really." Loki crossed her arms. "Before Laker interrupted me, I was going to say that I spoke with Inu in a different way than you all."

"How so?" Laker narrowed his eyes.

"This might seem a bit weird, but I spoke with her through the vent we found in the room." She finally answered, her arm uncomfortably folding under her chest.

"You mean when I lifted you into that vent?" Leon tilted his head, seemingly trying to gauge the timeline.

"Yeah, I got a little distracted by the number of doors in the hallway, so I just opened the first one I saw and noticed a faint light coming through it." The Zoroark mindlessly stroked a claw through her hair.

"So does this mean that you or Vanta spoke with Inu last?" Galant frowned in realization.

The situation ahead seemed to be the most complicated of all. The timing would have to be very strict, and worse, perfectly foretold. A small misstep and their lives would be at immediate risk.

"We already said that this crime won't be solved with alibis or timing." Vanta paused his statement to glare at Rayne. "I have a question for you, specifically."

"What is it?" She narrowed her eyes in return.

"What was it you read in your book?" The Umbreon inquired.

"Why would I ever tell you that? Let alone in front of a crowd?" The Manectric scoffed.

"Because I suspect it might be you." Vanta shook his head in disappointment. "I don't believe you visited the library after Inu was dead. I think you might have visited it before."

"You genuinely have no proof to back that statement." Rayne could only scoff and snarl at the dark-type. "What makes you so confident, anyway?"

"Everyone who reads their motive has a portion of their worst attributes returned to them." Vanta eyed Grace, almost as if he was asking for permission to continue. The Eevee flashed him a small nod, leading him to carry on. "I was reminded that I'm an experiment that feels no pain...and Grace was reminded that she has a mental illness."

The anger in the room came to a halt as a few pairs of eyes turned sadly at the Eevee. Expecting this would happen, Grace kept eye contact with the Umbreon.

"So you think I remembered something crucial?" Rayne leaned away to gaze at the ground.

"I believe so, yes." Vanta exhaled.

The Manectric could only begin thinking. Her eyes were practically glued to the ground in thought as she shook her head.

"I don't think so...I assure you I read it after." Rayne frowned.

"How about we fix this right now!" Laker grinned and tapped his claws against the podium. "With a little ol' trick of mine..."

"Here we go..." Vince groaned.

"Rayne, if you'd like to prove your innocence, give me your first motive card!" The Weavile pointed a claw at the Manectric. "If what's written inside is unrelated...then you are not the culprit."

Much to everyone's surprise, Rayne actually seemed like she was considering the offer, her eye contact never leaving Laker's.

"So, what about it?" The Weavile chuckled. "Wanna prove your innocence?"