First Deduction

[modernholmes]

 [Shinichi cautiously follows the signs of disturbance in the castle's corridors.    He still didn't have enough evidence to figure out this situation with any certainty.  Obviously this was a kidnapping.  But so far he had found nothing that hinted as to the identity of the culprits or the motive.  Beyond the box he had found himself in upon waking there had been no sign of any attempts to control his movements.

He needed more information.

Eventually he enters the living area and nods to himself at the signs of inhabitance.  As expected from what he had observed in the corridors.  Someone had been using them recently to navigate this castle.  This looked to be the source.  Casting his eyes across the people in the room, he purposefully approaches a likely candidate.]

Excuse me, may I have a moment of your time?

Comments

[stillshinigami]

[Happy Birthday. Duo leaned forward against the table, a hand to his forehead. He hadn't really been able to sleep since he and his double had been attacked. Couple hours at a time, but the combination of his difficult conversation with his younger self and being pulled into what seemed like a cold dark void? The portal? He hasn't been able to get sufficient sleep.

At the voice, he looked up. A moment?]

Sure.

[He pulls a hand up to yawn, looking up at the kid.]

What's up?

[modernholmes]

[Shinichi nods politely at him and introduces himself.]

Shinichi Kudo, detective. I am wondering if you could fill me in on the situation here.

[stillshinigami]

[And they needed a detective too. He raised a brow and offered his hand.]

Duo Maxwell.

The situation? We've been kidnapped, everyone's from a different time and place and apparently magic is responsible for it.

[He let his eyes fall on the detective's face, curious to know how he'd react to that.]

[modernholmes]

[Shinichi shakes his hand firmly. Interesting calluses this person had.]

The kidnapping was a simple deduction. After all, there are very few reasons for a person to wake up in such a situation with no memory of any kind of transport. What I am most curious about right now is the means and the motive.

[His expression falls into annoyance on the last part.]

Magic is never a valid explanation for anything.

[stillshinigami]

Finally. Someone reasonable. I've been saying that this whole time.

Until I started seeing it.

Anyway, I don't know the motive. I don't even know if this isn't just some freak act of nature some how.

[modernholmes]

Holmes said it, right? There should be no occurrence that the mind of man cannot conceive of an explanation for. I have seen many cases where entire communities were convinced that a ghost or monster had been responsible for a crime. And proven it to be nothing but a hoax every time.

Has anyone here heard or seen anything to do with the culprits?

[stillshinigami]

[He looks confused with that quote for a moment, being unfamiliar with the text though he did know who Holmes was. Figures a detective would like those books. Haha. Uuuh--]

A few days ago? Me and a buddy of mine were attacked by these monsters. Looked shadows, didn't feel exactly solid. It's all I've seen so far. Haven't talked to anyone else.

[modernholmes]

Interesting. You're the second person who has mentioned these monsters. Did you notice anything else about them?

[stillshinigami]

Yeah. They're freaky as shit.

I'm not goin' anywhere near em' again, if I can help it.

[modernholmes]

I suppose I shall simply have to see them for myself.

[stillshinigami]

Wha... Whuh.. No way! Nobody in their right mind should go hunting down those things!

[modernholmes]

[He shrugs calmly.]

As a detective my instinct when someone tells me of something like that is to track it down and discover how it works.

[stillshinigami]

How about as a reasonable human being? Don't you have any self preservation?

[modernholmes]

[He was a little annoyed by that. He'd been through this conversation so many times over the last few months. It was because people were concerned, he knew that. Had been horrified by what he had taken on himself. He still maintained that he never took risks without calculating them against the possible benefit and what he knew his own skills to be.]

If we hold back from investigating the castle simply because we are afraid of what might happen nothing will ever be accomplished.

[stillshinigami]

Hey! I'm not...

[He stops right there. He was afraid. He took a deep breath, a hand going to his forehead.]

Can you fight? They can be fought back-- it's just... I don't think hand to hand is gonna cut it.

[modernholmes]

[He shakes his head.]

Not in hand-to-hand. But I can hold my own in other ways.

[stillshinigami]

It's not a good idea. Not unless you go with someone who's seen em before.

[modernholmes]

Fair enough. I'll consider it.

[stillshinigami]

Need anything else?

[modernholmes]

Unless there is anything else you've noticed?

[stillshinigami]

The place is an obstacle course. It's not easy to get around all on your own, but you must have noticed that getting here, right?

Or did I take the hard way from that room back there?

[modernholmes]

It was slightly difficult going, but I wouldn't call it an obstacle course. I merely followed the hallways that showed signs of recent use.

[stillshinigami]

How did you get around...

Man, I really have been working too hard. The way I've been using you have to climb up a chain, climb a ladder... It's a pain in the ass.

[modernholmes]

I didn't see any areas like that.

[stillshinigami]

And that's what I keep running into.