❧ Who Killed the Luministi Kid?

[luministimods]

[a musical cue begins to play suddenly on both vidscreens and CATs, and soon the picture shifts from the normal town montage to a picture of the always smiling Mayor Caligin]

Greetings, Luministi! As you can see our technicians have finally straightened out all the bugs and kinks in the system and everything should be as great as things were before the unfortunate system downtime.

It's just as well that everything is back in working order. The final leg of planning for the 701st Luministi Founder's Day Festival is underway and if anyone is looking for some last-minute volunteering, there is certainly plenty to do as various booths are slowly set up in the town square and pavilion in preparation of the big day. [Caligin's smile broadens] And there are plenty of other surprises in store. I am practically bursting at the seams to tell you all, but that would spoil all the fun!

For now, if anyone is interested in volunteering, contact--

[the sound suddenly cuts off, loud "snow" and static blaring through the vidscreens and CATs, though the Mayor's message continues for a moment longer before the transmission comes to an end. however, even though the vidscreens shut off, the static sound finally cuts out and a view of a minimalist room with expensive furniture shows up on the CATs, the picture shifting about as though the person was shaking the camera, but it continues to move gently, rhythmically, once the person stops moving.]

[the view also shows two men--one with dark hair and the other with gray hair--sitting with their backs towards the camera and the image of this transmission spread across several screens before them. neither turn to acknowledge the new person in the room with them. instead, the younger man slowly stretches his arms and stands.] So this is what she meant.

Sir?

[the younger man turns, casually slipping a hand into his trouser pocket. unfortunately, the picture is low enough that it doesn't capture the image of his face.] This double act. [his hand gestures towards the camera, though he doesn't seem aware of its presence.] I was informed she'd be doing something of the kind. [he turns his body more, facing the camera] Isn't that right, Miss Ardes?

[the older man jerks in his chair, surprised, and suddenly jumps to his feet] What?! What is she doing here?

[the voice that replies is much louder than the other two (thanks to the proximity of the camera), but it indeed sounds exactly like Audrey] Thought I'd stop by. And by the way, that video was my way of handling the situation, just as I was asked.

Sir, you purposefully allowed her into town? Even though the other one is--

Yes. [the younger man puts his hands behind his back] Yes, that's exactly what I did. Do you have a problem with that?

[the older man's arms drop to his sides, a defeated tone in his voice] ...No.

Are you sure? This isn't the first time you've questioned one of our decisions once it's been implemented. If you're unsure of anything, Proctor, you should speak up before we set things in motion. You do know what sort of schedule we're on. And just look at how well we're doing! [he taps the screen, a chart popping up one of the screens. the camera shifts to the side as Audrey moves] The moment that video started to play, the numbers nearly doubled!

Oh my! [she laughs, the camera shaking vigorously] All that because of little ol' me?

That's all well and good, but I know what we have planned next and I still have my reservations about it. The whole thing is highly dangerous!

Come now, sweetie. Isn't that the point? [a hand belonging to her, the fingernails painted a bright purple, reaches for the arm of the older man, but he swats it away]

But is this truly the way we want to fish them out? Have you spoken with--?

[the younger man cuts him off, stepping closer] Wouldn't you eventually show yourself if you had a traitor in your midst? Call them out with a bold move such as this?

[there's a shift in the older man's tone as his voice goes soft] Having never been in such a situation before, I can't say for certain.

Then shut up and watch. This is surely to get some noise going. [the young man sits back down in his seat, waving a hand at the camera] That will be all, Miss Ardes.

[the camera bobs as she bows] Sir. [then the picture blurs as she turns and starts heading out of the door. once it closes behind her with a soft click, the transmission ends]

[but in town, a scream rips through the air]


❧ Plot Details: Who Killed the Luministi Kid?

After that interesting conversation via the CATs, anyone who goes near the pub will see a number of things:


1. That everyone in town has disappeared, or disappears the moment you look away from them. The town will remain empty for the time being. The disappearing people includes the Sheriff and his deputies, Dr. Resarci and Nurse Hope--everyone.
   
2. Except, that is, for Audrey. Audrey’s body is lying face down outside the pub, but her body has no signs of any physical struggle with the exception of a days old wound to the back of the head that was already starting to heal. Those with medical knowledge or can somehow scan a body for such things will find that she died of asphyxiation, but yet her body shows no signs of that. No blue lips or fingernails. She looks as though she’s simply sleeping.
   
3. In addition to the lack of evidence that there was any foul play on the body, there isn’t any sign of that in or outside the pub or any of the surrounding area.


Your goal for this plot is to solve the murder of Audrey Ardes.

Yes, I said Audrey Ardes. Now, you might be a bit confused about that considering we just heard video with her voice but...you’ll see. This double-take will make sense soon.

Now, the residents are the only ones in town and therefore have free reign of the shops and every other building in town. This means if you want to go poking your nose into anything, you can--with the exception of the town hall. The town hall has completely locked down and no amount of explosives, attacks of any other kind, or other simple unlocking methods can get a door or window to open. Nothing can even scratch or dent the building. This isn’t the first time such a phenomenon has happened in town either, but thankfully there aren’t any statues to keep everyone at bay. Other than that, you can go anywhere that you please within town. (The Mayoral Residence is still out of limits for everyone.) A curious thing, though. Some things like the flyer from last year’s Founder’s Day Festival, and notes Sheriff Iussus made during his interviews with the residents are still around despite the collective lapse in memory of the previous season's events, but don’t think those are the only things still there...

And speaking of poking around things, if anyone wants to inspect anything else, like the body or any other location, contact me and I can tell you what else you’ll find.

Now...this is where things get a bit ugly. See, someone DID kill Audrey--but that person isn’t done. The residents have learned some pretty hefty secrets lately whether they realize it or not, and the killer isn’t thrilled about that. Thank goodness the effects from the secret business cards no longer works, huh?

But here’s where you come in--if you choose to. This next part is completely voluntary. Namely...the murderer can come and take you out as part of their spree.

With the way death is treated in town, though, the residents can come back to life. (Unfortunately, though, the culprit of the murder(s) will not be thrown into jail for a day as punishment. Such rules only exist for the residents themselves.) Now, when they die, they’ll disappear from town for a day and then wake up perfectly healthy, unwounded, and very much alive back in their townhomes.

If the murderer does kill your character, it can happen very similarly to how Audrey died. You’ll suddenly die and collapse--and after a few minutes, your body will disappear. If there are any witnesses to your death, they will not see the murderer. But you, the unlucky victim, will obtain a clue to the identity of the murderer in some capacity once you wake up in your townhome. How you’re feeling mentally, though, will be a different story:


• If your character got an A card in the last plot, they’ll wake up with memories of their worst possible death. Whether it’s something that occurs later in their canon, has already happened (depending on your character’s canon point), or will never happen but is a theoretical idea of what could possibly happen to your character, etc. The death won’t actually happen to them, but--and this is really going to get morbid--if you want your character to have died in a manner close to that, you can. Like...let’s say your worst death is being stabbed by a bunch of senators and a traitorous friend. You can die with a knife in your body, and when you wake up back in your townhome, your clothing will have a nice little hole where the knife had been but that’s it.
  
  
• If your character got a B card, though, they’ll wake up with only the memory of a painless death, like drifting off to sleep or something. And if you’re new to the game and didn’t receive a card, which way will be up to you.


Now like I said, this aspect of the plot is completely voluntary and if it’s too morbid, you can definitely opt out and focus on the physical investigations of the town to solve Audrey’s murder. If you’re game for it, you could die more than once if you wanted. I definitely won’t stop you there. But no matter which you choose, please comment and let me know what you want to do--and you can also use this entry to plot with your fellow players for things as well~

And as a short note before I wrap things up in this ridiculously long mod post, the first Activity Check is done! If you were removed from the game and wish to re-apply, you only have to send your app to the mod email again and I can re-enter your character’s data into the game.

If anyone has any questions, comments, or anything else, please don’t be afraid to ask me or contact me in some way. Especially since this plot is a bit...weird and isn’t quite your normal murder mystery.