protoshepherd | Night 2 - Kristoph/Palaeno deaths

[Saying that Kristoph was sleeping is overstating it; he's always slept lightly anyway - being paranoid as fuck will do that to you - so it doesn't take him long to shake off sleep, but if anyone thinks he's opening this damn door right off...]

State your business.

[...Old habits die hard, really. He likely says that to the damn prison guards if he's not deigning to look at them when they decide they want him spirited off somewhere and show up at his cell.]

[It's Phoenix's voice that comes through the door, sounding serious and grim.]

We need to talk.

[...What...]

Shouldn't you be with your daughter right about now...?

[That said, he's aware that leaving Wright out in the hallway probably shouldn't be an option; with his luck the badger will see him and there's going to be some sort of confrontation, and then someone will inevitably make a stupid decision and bluntly put the person making the stupid decision is going to be Wright.

So let's just avoid all that, shall we...the door will open easily, following the soft click of the lock slotting open.]

Make it qu- ...oh.

[You know, sometimes when you are faced with the absolute last thing you expected, there's no legitimately human reaction you can have. It's at times like that where you just kind of go blank and very still, and there's not much of anything because absolutely nothing is processing properly.

...This is one of those moments. Just saying.]

...Keyes...?

[Keyes can't help but let out a little laugh at the look on his face, but he isn't about to let a good opportunity go to waste. There will be plenty of time for gloating once Team Gavin is dead, after all! So he swings the empty grape juice bottle he brought with him right at Kristoph's head.]

[...WELL OKAY THEN.

It's probably fortunate that Kristoph isn't able to register exactly what is being sent at his head, because that would probably make him indignant and the last thing we need is him being sleep-deprived and irrationally annoyed over something stupid; as it is, there is very definitely something being sent at his head and he's already on edge, and at the very least he's able to pull back enough to avoid getting his skull smashed in.

It's not like that basement at the restaurant, Kristoph at least has the benefit of the open room behind him; admittedly that is likely going to get Palaeno involved very quickly but he's a bit beyond giving damns about that right now - ]

I'll admit I was fortunate; there wasn't exactly anywhere for Gramarye to go when I did it.

[And it's true, between the chair setup and the tables and the cabinet so close to the game; just the same, of all fucking things to leave his mouth right now...]

[Simon advances, bottle at the ready. His grin is wild and rather manic, especially after Gavin speaks.]

Where you gonna go? Huh?

Nowhere at the moment, but I can make your life far harder than it needs to be.

I hadn't taken you for such a poor loser, you know.

[you know what let's just focus on the truly inane things so he doesn't have to worry about the fact that you are really gleefully here to kill him after he saw your dead body after clearly having been hanged

there is absolutely nothing decent or sane about this situation anymore and this is exactly what hell is going to look like, isn't it

not so much torture and demons as it is completely and utterly nonsensical bullshit like this]

I can't say it's not a little personal, but it wasn't my call. I'm "dead," after all!

[Shrugs and chuckles. He's waiting to see what kind of move Gavin is going to make.]

[Surprise, there's another guy in the room, remember? Palaeno had been sleeping (or attempting to) in a corner close to the door. In hindsight, he really should've slept in the library. He wouldn't have objected to Phoenix Wright entering the room, but what he does object to is a guy who's supposed to be dead. Dead because the choice had been between two teams last night and the Gavin team got to live. He saw this guy hanging from the ceiling, just for a split second before he promptly turned away and headed downstairs.

Oh. And now that same guy is trying to bash his partner's head in with a bottle. We can't have that. As the whole thing unfolds, Palaeno sidles towards the nightstand to find something solid to grab hold of. Something to use as a weapon.

Heads up, Simon, there's an alarm clock flying your way.]

[You can't train a monkey without developing a good sense for when there are things flying at your head. Simon ducks!]

[Oh yeah?! Well-

...Shit he's out of useful ammo. The only other thing within reach that he can throw is a pillow and that's not quite helpful. There's a vase across the room, but his legs might not get him that far.

Diplomacy time!]

I would advise you to stand down, Mr. Keyes.

[And that's the moment Matt is wandering into the room, wobbling a bit out of drunkenness.]

[When Simon ducks the clock, it smacks into Matt's head.]

OW!!!

........FUCK.

[Just... clutching his face now.]

[For as well as he was doing hiding it, Simon's childish snickering at Matt's pain gives away the fact that yes, he too is inebriated.

But no, no. He's here to do something important. Something that has to be done. He glances over at Palaeno.]

Uh, what was that?

[Oh... Oh god, there's two of them. Two supposedly dead people in their room. Neither seems to be at their best right now. Are they drunk or psychologically unhinged? ...Or both?

Whatever nerve Palaeno still had, he's losing it now.]

... Ah. Stand down. There is no need for anyone to get hurt. [Except for Matt, who's already been clocked in the face (hahaah!). Errr.]

[Flips his hair back, revealing those deep facial scars. ...And a trickle of blood from that clock. Ouch.]

Son of a bitch. I guess we can still bleed...

[He steps fully into the room and takes a swig of brandy (because clearly he hasn't had enough already).]

Damnit, Engarde, get your game face on! Go take care of Mutton Chops!

[Shaking his bottle in Palaeno's general direction.]

[What. Mutton Chops? ...Oh no that's him. His fist instinct is to back into the corner again, but with an advancing murderer, a corner is a very bad place to be. Let's not.

He'll just stand rooted to the spot instead. Yup.]

Yeah yeah, I know just what to do with him.

[Matt will help Palaeno go somewhere. To a chair. He approaches him in a way to try to herd him backwards towards one.]

Sit down.

[And helpfully tries to shove him down to the chair with his arm.]

Edited 2015-03-06 16:53 (UTC)

[Oh no. Oh no oh no oh no. Much as he tries to keep a safe distance, there's only so far he can sidle along the wall before Matt catches up to him. He shoots that chair a very apprehensive glance.]

Ah. No. I'd rather stand, thank y- [Ah now he's being shoved into the chair. His knees buckle and he plops down in a rather undignified manner.]

[So his options here are looking pretty great, it's either let Palaeno get...Engarde'd or turn his back on the psychopath with the bottle. Either way it's going to be hideous, because once Engarde is done with Palaeno there are going to be two of them and unless something completely hilarious happens with the mirrors there's still going to be one of him so it's best to keep their focus split, isn't it.

That said, he's going to keep kind of...edging back from Keyes, there, just through instinct, because putting distance between oneself and the bottle-wielding nutjob is generally a good idea and good lord there is not really anywhere to go in here, is there, since the already-dead guys got the room with the attached bathroom because of course they did.]

You might receive more cooperation if you tell us where you've been all this time, you know.

[Because he investigated your bodies himself, you were definitely dead. And yet here you are, so it's...possible there's some other explanation, though hell if he can see any.]

[Chuckles.] You really want to know? Well fine, we were in the basement.

[Matt has a yellow mug in one of his hands. He starts to raise it to his mouth-- oh wait, brandy's in the other hand. He drinks the brandy instead.]

[And then his attention goes back to Palaeno, leaning over him.]

You look thirsty, dude. Care for a drink?

[The basement?! That basement that nobody could enter? At least their suspicions that something important was down there was correct, then. Though, how could they be in the basement while their corpses were thoroughly investigated? ...Body doubles?

This whole situation is so confusing that Palaeno's steadily losing his train of coherent thought, along with his composure. He tries to swallow, but finds his throat is too dry to really accomplish it. Right on cue, Matt is leaning over him. He eyes that brandy with a wary gaze, not even really noticing the coffee mug.]

No, thank you. I don't drink in the middle of the night. [Also that glass was just on Matt's lips. Eww.]

[...shit.]

Palaeno, don't let any of that get in your mouth if you value your survival, I don't care how little it is.

[...]

Kick him or something!

[Too late to kick him now because he moves forward again to straddle the chair and Palaeno's thighs.]

No, I insist! Drink up!

[The brandy glass is put aside, and his hand darts out to try roughly grabbing Palaeno's jaw and forcing his head back.]

[Palaeno is a little slow on the uptake and doesn't quite make the connection to poison. Why should he? Nobody bothered to inform him just what it was that Kristoph did to earn the title of convicted criminal. Even so, he hears that warning loud and clear.

Kicking seems like a valid possibility, as does getting up, but both those options are snatched away the moment Matt descends on him. He can only think to clench his mouth shut- jaws, lips, all of it- so his assailant can't pull a fast one on him.

Both his arms are still free. That's good. It means he can try to claw at Matt's face. He'll have to do it blindly with the way his head is being forced back, but it's not really hard to miss a guy who's basically sitting in your lap.]

[Well, Palaeno's self-defense act succeeds in holding off Matt's attempt to pour poisoned coffee down his throat, but maybe not for the right reason. He even loosens his grip on the man's jaw.]

[The scratching just makes him laugh. He doesn't even turn his face away. If anything, he leans in closer so Palaeno can scratch harder.]

So you can put up a struggle! I almost thought you'd just quit.

[...Oh, that's just unholy.

As little as he likes turning away from the oft-mentioned bottle-wielding nutjob, it seems the forced poisoning over there is getting the benefit of a visceral reaction; at worst he'll be hit, it's not like that's going to prove immediately fatal if he's fortunate, whereas that...he suspects that's goddamn atroquinine in there and if that's the case then they're both probably really fucked anyway.

Kristoph also can't fight for shit but he can certainly put a good faith effort toward bracing his arm against someone's throat from behind and trying to use that toward getting the masochistic moron off of his...uh, Palaeno. Whatever that can be considered. Business...partner? Unwilling acquaintance. Meatshield.

...Who cares. For all he knows and what with the way things are going, Engarde is also into asphyxiation because life is just shitty like that, but with any luck pressuring his throat like that will at least be a solid enough reminder of how he died in here to get him to back off.]

[Loosened grip or not, there's no way Palaeno's going to open his mouth for anything. He'd very much like to live, thank you, and why is that maniac laughing?! That wasn't the point of Palaeno's mad scrabbling. Add the scratches to the wound that the clock left and Matt's face is going to look like someone ran a lawnmower over it before long.

This situation's turning more terrifying by the second. Terrifying and somewhat uncomfortable. Thank god for Kristoph stepping in. Palaeno honestly hadn't expected him to, so it works as a very good redeeming factor. Kristoph, bro, if you help him out he'll take back every bad thing he ever thought about you.]

[Keyes has been waiting for Kristoph to show a lapse in judgment, and now that wait has paid off. The second his attention is diverted, Keyes comes in swinging that bottle, once again going straight for the head.]

[WHAT THE HELL, KEYES

At the very least that's going to stagger him and get him to abruptly let go of Matt, because oh god wow...]

What...

[god that was not his idea of a good time in the least]

Palaeno, don't drink any of that, do you hear me -

[ow

you know, keyes, if he were feeling like a smartass he might be tempted to ask if you want to try again but somehow he has no doubt you will gleefully do exactly that anyway]

[NO being strangled is more of JUAN'S thing.]

[He coughs and rubs his throat, having lost some of the good mood he just had.]

Hurry the hell up, Keyes! [Cough.] That guy almost choked me.

[And he moves towards Palaeno again to get back his position over him.]

[It's very hard for Palaeno to see what's going on with Matt forcing his head back like that, but he can spot part of the scuffle from the corner of his eye and he definitely saw that bottle swing by. That knowledge and Kristoph's words serve to make Palaeno feel a little guilty. Someone just got clobbered over the head because he was trying to save him. Maybe Kristoph should've just left him behind and made for the door instead, then at least one of them would've still gotten away.

Now his only salvation is gone and a bloodied, washed-up action hero is back to trying to force coffee down his throat. Maybe he can try to blind Matt by going straight for his eyes.]

[Keyes brings down his bottle again, because unlike certain Nickel Samurais he has his priorities in line, damnit.]

I'm not the one taking his sweet time with this! You want me to leave you two alone or what?

[How about he just punches Palaeno in the stomach to stun him for the moment.]

Shut up, Keyes! I don't even like getting my hands dirty. ...But right now, this really feels right, you know?

[And now he's roughly grabbing at Palaeno's jaw again, pinching his fingers into his cheeks to force his mouth open.]

[OW. The stomach punch is enough to wind Palaeno and his arms reflexively pull away from Matt's face. That hurt. It's not as bad as what Kristoph must be feeling, he realizes with another pang of guilt, but it's still painful.

The next second Matt's fingers are digging into his cheeks and that's awful in its own way. He can't quite stop his lips from parting, even if his jaws are still clenched shut. He can't pull away, either.

He's in so much trouble. He's going to die and there's nobody left to save him now. The panic that begins to overwhelm him is almost blinding.]

[Pushes the coffee cup up to his mouth... and tips it, splashing coffee onto his teeth, into his cheeks, dribbling down his chin and neck. Then he puts the cup on the table and clamps his hand over Palaeno's nose and mouth, keeping him from spitting and blocking his breathing. Palaeno's going to have to suck in some poison or just suffocate, but Matt will let him go as soon as he feels him swallow. And he's physically leaning into him, pinning him to the chair.]

Damn, you must really hate coffee!

[There's a slight noise of alarm just before the coffee's tipped into his mouth. Kristoph's warning echoes in the back of his head even as he feels the liquid flow towards his throat and he realizes it's room temperature. It doesn't taste especially like good coffee either. Maybe it's already too late now. Maybe even the slightest ingested drop will be lethal. His fingers find their way to Matt's wrist to try and pry the hand off his face, but it's no good. The hysteria alone is enough to have his stomach roil and to have tears spring up in his eyes.

Matt had the right idea with covering his mouth, because if it weren't for that hand, he would've spit the coffee into the man's face.

About ten seconds pass before he makes the mistake of producing a panicked "Mmhm!" sound in hopes of getting Kristoph's attention. If the man is even still alive at this point, anyway. That's what dooms his fate. The moment the sound ends, his throat reflexively opens up and the coffee flows on towards his stomach.]

Good boy. [Patronizingly pats his cheek and climbs off of him, leaving him to die on his own.]

[Maybe he wipes his hand off on Palaeno's vest while he's at it.]

Hey Keyes, do you need me to hold that guy down or what?

[Rather than actively offering, he retrieves his brandy glass and goes to sit down on the edge of Kristoph's bed to watch.]

Do I—

[SMACK]

—look like I—

[THWACK]

—need anybody's help!?

[POW]

[Die on his own? Oh please. The poison may be fast-acting, but it's still going to take a few minutes for Palaeno to stop breathing. It's not over yet!

Better watch your own target, Matt, because he's trying to stick his fingers down his throat. And if he needs any more incentive to throw up, he can always look at what's happening to Kristoph. That's nauseating in its own way. He has no idea if this will work- it might already be too late- but he won't know unless he tries.]

[Matt leaves him to it. He can always make him drink more if somehow Palaeno manages to throw up EVERY bit of the poison.]

[Simon drops the bottle and backs up to the bed where Matt is sitting, plopping down in something of a daze. Was that awesome or awful, just now? He can't quite tell. At the very least he'd have thought he would've been a little better at it.]

[DON'T TEMPT HIM, MATT. HE'LL DO IT! He'll throw up every last bit of poison or die trying!

His vision is turning blurry. That's not a good sign. Excuse him as he gasps and wheezes, then tries to make his way towards the door on all fours. Must... get... help...!]

Dude, sit back down. You're overreacting, there wasn't even any poison in there! I was making you drink plain coffee!

........Just kidding, there was totally poison in it.

[Nudges Simon.]

What a mess, right? Who knew killing people took so much work.

[Wipes the back of his hand across his face, smearing blood that welled up from some of the scratches.]

We'll need to practice this act if we ever want to take it on the road.

...By the way, you're leaking forensic evidence.

[Don't mind Palaeno's quiet death rattles as he collapses to the floor. Carry on.]

About time.

[Licks a bit of blood that had gotten on his lips. Matt you're gross.]

Yeah, he clawed me up good.

[Somehow, he doesn't seem upset about it.]

Night 2 - Kristoph/Palaeno deaths

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