The Gardeners (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
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peachgarden2017-04-22 08:04 pm
thegardeners) wrote in peachgarden2017-04-22 08:04 pm
THE TRIAL ROUND... TRIAL... YEAH I SHOULD'VE CHOSEN ANOTHER NAME.
[On Saturday morning, the gates of the courthouse fly open.
All character will be ushered-- or forcibly dragged, if it comes to that-- the the Courthouse by the various gardeners. The interior of the courthouse is spacious enough for any amount of vigorous discussion, whatever that may be. Who knows what's on the second floor and beyond.
Meng Po sits above the chairs, overseeing everyone below.]
Today, you have all been brought here to find the one who murdered Cagliostro. Once you have come to a decision over who is guilty, you will cast votes on who you believe is the murderer. If the majority votes correctly, the murderer is condemned to Hell, and you will all be one step closer to reincarnation. If they are not found, they will be reincarnated instead, and whoever else is voted in their place as the murderer will be scapegoated. The murderer's sins will be falsely imprinted on them, condemning the scapegoat to Hell.
Should you correctly identify the murderer, there will be a second round of voting: the mercy vote, or the exoneration vote. If you believe the murderer deserves to be reincarnated or the victim deserved to die for any reason, you can vote for exoneration, and the murderer will be reincarnated if the majority votes for it. However, I am not responsible for what happens afterwards to the rest of you.
[...That's... okay, sure.]
Without further ado: the court is in session.
[Do your worst.]
All character will be ushered-- or forcibly dragged, if it comes to that-- the the Courthouse by the various gardeners. The interior of the courthouse is spacious enough for any amount of vigorous discussion, whatever that may be. Who knows what's on the second floor and beyond.
Meng Po sits above the chairs, overseeing everyone below.]
Today, you have all been brought here to find the one who murdered Cagliostro. Once you have come to a decision over who is guilty, you will cast votes on who you believe is the murderer. If the majority votes correctly, the murderer is condemned to Hell, and you will all be one step closer to reincarnation. If they are not found, they will be reincarnated instead, and whoever else is voted in their place as the murderer will be scapegoated. The murderer's sins will be falsely imprinted on them, condemning the scapegoat to Hell.
Should you correctly identify the murderer, there will be a second round of voting: the mercy vote, or the exoneration vote. If you believe the murderer deserves to be reincarnated or the victim deserved to die for any reason, you can vote for exoneration, and the murderer will be reincarnated if the majority votes for it. However, I am not responsible for what happens afterwards to the rest of you.
[...That's... okay, sure.]
Without further ado: the court is in session.
[Do your worst.]
EXONERATION IN PROGRESS.
[Meng Po doesn't sound very happy about this.
Still, the people have spoken. Though it's a close vote, it's a majority-vote for EXONERATION all the same. Xiao Bai's probably exasperated at this result too, not because she's harmed by this, but because it's going to mean more work. And that's due to...]
Well, I suppose the dead should live without regrets. [Okay, now she just sounds bitter.] Neku Sakuraba, you will be exonerated. The weight of your sins shall be lifted off your shoulders. By the graciousness of this court, you have been granted permission to pass onto the next life.
[You can't just remove the sin of murder, you see. You remove it all at once. Meng Po sits still as the gigantic hand suddenly puts Neku down gently on the floor in front of her, and retreats into the abyss below. Only then does the hole slam shut with a bang, and Meng Po reaches out to grab the top of Neku's head.
Deal with it, boy, even if she yanks at your hair a little. You're being reincarnated.]
The Peach Tree shall bear your lifetime of sins.
[And with that, Neku starts glowing. It's fitting, for someone being purified. But to clean something, you have to dirty something else; and that's why Meng Po's face twists into an expression that looks close to that of pain, but more of disappointment. Since she's standing on the podium above everyone else, they can see Meng Po's transformation clearly-- the way the skin on her hand wrinkles, her back hunches, and she seems to shrink in size quickly, in the span of just a minute...
Congratulations! You've just made Meng Po age 50 years. Where there was once a foreboding young lady now stands... okay, she's still relatively foreboding and pretty fit for someone who looks to be in their seventies, but the idea is there.]
Don't say a word.
[Her voice comes out in a croak, as if she's gotten unused to being this old. Actually, this is a lot closer to her usual state of being. Still, she's... not happy with this, but what can you do when you're just the moderator, right?
Her raises her arm, still with as much force as a person half her physical age would, the instead of opening up the ground, the back of the courthouse (!?) begins to to crackle and shake. It then flies open, as if they were just two sets of giant doors, and a blinding light fills the room.
You can't get more stereotypical than this.]
Once you walk through those doors, your spirit will be brought back into the mortal realm in a new body. I cannot say where... however, without sins, it can't be too bad.
[Basically, you're going to win the jackpot, son.
She finally lets go of Neku's head, and-- yes, he's still glowing. He won't stop. She turns around, and the gardeners rush to her, carrying a bowl of soup. She turns back.]
When you are ready, you just drink this soup to lose all memories of your previous life... and of this place. You will not be allowed to pass through those doors without taking in every last drop.
Try not to waste too much time.
[Say your last good-byes. You'll probably never see them again.]
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...good luck.
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[ Tsurumaru, pls. ]
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...it's not happening? meng po's hand moves, sets him down on the floor, and neku can only sit. stunned. they're all idiots.
why would they excuse him for something that wasn't his fault when their own lives were at stake? why would they do such a thing? do they not value their lives enough--or perhaps they wouldn't be able to live with themselves otherwise--whatever the case may be, he's alive.
he's grateful.
everything happens at once. once you walk through those doors, your spirit will be brought back into the mortal realm... life.
something neku hasn't experienced in a long, long time.
he looks over to josh first, then to the others. his memories will be erased. something about that is unsettling--he'll forget shiki. beat. rhyme. josh. it sucks and it hurts, but he'll be born again...isn't that enough? it is, considering what could have been. ]
...Thank you. All of you.
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[ He'll act very flippant and all after he stops being a nuisance for a bit once Neku starts thanking people, and he'll even place his hands behind his head. ]
Let's just hope you don't come back here again.
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[Except for the part where they saw the changes on Meng Po. How ominous.]
Just finish talking with everyone and go through the doors already. [Don't make him feel even more complicated feelings over this.]
Re: EXONERATION IN PROGRESS.
... Are you okay, Lady Meng Po?