INVESTIGATION: START!

[micro-icarus.livejournal.com]

[The scene of the crime: The library. Signs of a fight scene, Not!Pheonix Wright's dead body. Time for Ed and his minions to uncover what they can!]

I won't stop until I've investigated every nook and cranny!

Okay, let's see what we've got here.

Comments

[devilsphyscian.livejournal.com]

Put your nose to his mouth.

[micro-icarus.livejournal.com]

Uh...what?

[devilsphyscian.livejournal.com]

I thought I smelt something odd, but I wanted to make sure it was not my nose playing tricks.

[micro-icarus.livejournal.com]

[EXTREMELY RELUCTANTLY and EXTREMELY QUICKLY, Ed gets a quick smell before backing off. Ew, corpse.]

[the-overseers.livejournal.com]

[It's got a heady scent, like some sort of fermented fruit that neither Ed nor Georik had encountered before]

[micro-icarus.livejournal.com]

Smells kind of...fruity.

[devilsphyscian.livejournal.com]

[He takes out the small medical kit he always carries with him, and opens it up]

A little sour though, as if it was fermented, and was stored in a bad area... my father was an avid brewer of wines.

[He removes a small bottle, and a cottonball. Georik gingerly opens the corpse's mouth, and starts swiping it against the inside of the cheek]

[micro-icarus.livejournal.com]

I just had a thought.

We sent Joshua, the lynch pin of our imposter detection system, to the hanagar. By himself. We're throwing all of CO's hope on one guy and we don't even know if he's the real deal!

[devilsphyscian.livejournal.com]

Alone? Such utter idiocy!

[He places the cotton ball in the bottle, and shuts the stopper on tight with a noticeable 'thunk']

Damn - sorry. This situation is getting to everyone.

[micro-icarus.livejournal.com]

I'm going to go stop him! We can't let him ruin everything!

[devilsphyscian.livejournal.com]

[A memory flashed in the back of his mind for a moment, and his blood froze]

Edward, wait! It was stupid to let him go alone, but we cannot automatically assume he's a fake, we will have to find a means to prove whether Joshua is being truthful or not.

And right now, it is too dangerous to go by yourself!

[micro-icarus.livejournal.com]

No time to worry about that!

[And he's off!]

[devilsphyscian.livejournal.com]

You damned idiot, come back!

[Georik tries to follow, but was too slow in responding]

[anemos-enigma.livejournal.com]

. . . Ah. Was that really wise? . . .

[Ivan stares at Edward's retreating figure in some dismay.]

Um. Georik . . . What was he talking about? What was the system?

[devilsphyscian.livejournal.com]

I do not know the exact details - just Joshua can manifest a symbol of people's relationships to spot impostors.

[Georik is quietly seething from the sheer idiocy]

[anemos-enigma.livejournal.com]

. . . What, really?! But that's . . . That's really important!

Would you mind very much if I read your mind to hear the conversation you had? . . .

[devilsphyscian.livejournal.com]

... Very well, if just for this case.

[Georik is not liking the idea at all, but he feels like he got little choice]

[anemos-enigma.livejournal.com]

Thank you . . .

[Georik will feel something very light settling on his mind. Ivan is keeping his Mind Read restricted to just the outer limits of consciousness. And he reads the memory . . .

It takes perhaps a few minutes longer than Georik would expect it to, but the presence fades soon enough.]

Thank you, sir. . . . I think I understand now. But, I mean. . . . I wonder why Ed would decide to go off alone . . . If it's dangerous for Joshua to be alone, well. Ed is now, too . . .

I hope they're both alright.

[ao-to-cats.livejournal.com]

[Zazie walks up to the pair, having spotted Ed leaving. Wtf man. What kind of leader are you?]

Hey, where's he going? I thought we weren't supposed to go off on our own.

[anemos-enigma.livejournal.com]

A-Ah! Zazie . . . Ed was concerned about something he forgot. He said it was possible that Joshua was a fake, so . . . he wanted to go make sure he was safe. I'm not exactly sure what he was thinking, but . . .

[Ivan seems to be deep in thought. Was it wrong to think that maybe . . . ?]

Um. Zazie? Do you mind if I read your mind, too? About the conversation you had with Joshua . . . I think there was something important there . . .

[devilsphyscian.livejournal.com]

Georik... why did thou agree to this?

[Mephistopheles bristles in Georik's Mind's Eye, but was immediately dismissed]

What do you mean, Ivan?

[anemos-enigma.livejournal.com]

It's just like Ed said. There's something we're forgetting . . . or I'm forgetting. Someone told me something. In combination with Joshua's solution . . .

I'd to hear what he said again. From somebody else's point of view.

[ao-to-cats.livejournal.com]

Read my mind...?

[He makes a face. Not this stuff again. But they were on a case, so...]

...Fine. If it really helps, go ahead.

[anemos-enigma.livejournal.com]

Thank you, Zazie.

[As Ivan taps into the other boy's mind, Zazie may feel a lingering presence that hovers for a while. Evidently, Ivan is viewing the memories very closely. It's a bit invasive, almost.

Ivan suddenly breaks off.]

. . . That's it! . . . That's why . . . A-Ah! I've got to go after Ed!

[ao-to-cats.livejournal.com]

[Zazie actually shut his eyes when Ivan performed mind read, trying to concentrate on thoughts related to the investigations. He had no idea if it would help, but it also distracted him from the funny feeling of getting your mind read, which was welcome enough.

But in thinking about it... wait.]

...She's the one who... and that portal...

...

I've got to go check something out!

[Without even waiting for Ivan or Georik, Zazie takes off. If he's putting things together right, they are in some seriously deep shit. Why'd he have to leave Wasiolka behind now of all times...?!]