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pyropsychiccollector · 2 months ago

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Ace Attorney: IF (... Part 8)

February rolls around. Everything's relatively quiet, with no one getting any game-changing cases like the December one. Not the attorneys, not the police, not the prosecutors…

Until one day, Ema approaches the Fey and Co. Law Offices. Naturally, Mia remembers her. She's Lana's sister… And reminds her so much of Maya that she's a little overwhelmed. But Mia keeps composed and hears Ema out when she says that she needs help, Diego curiously tuning in as well. But before Ema can get too far in explaining the case, Lana barges in and accosts her sister, coming across rather harsh and weary. Way stressed out. Ema argues back, claiming they should just ask Mia for help. That's who Lana always said to go to, and she doesn't understand why Lana is so aggro.

… Lana understands her sister's intent, but that doesn't change the fact this case is far more delicate and complicated than Ema can possibly know. They can't just… disseminate information, let alone seek out representation when it isn't their decision to make. Of course Mia doesn't let it die here; she can tell Lana isn't behaving like her usual rational self. It has her worried for her longtime friend.

Lana crumples on one of the couches and reluctantly opens up. Last week, a series of bizarre murders began popping up, and investigations were very sluggish because they couldn't pick up any definitive clues pointing to any single culprit. No fingerprints, no unexplained bloodstains, no hairs or discarded items near the bodies… So far, three people have lost their lives. And no, they don't even have proof this is the same killer for all three; it's just a theory based off the lack of evidence…

But last night, a suspect was finally brought in. He was at the scene of the third victim, lingering long before the whole department was notified. A witness phoned him in, suspecting him of the deed because he was up to his elbows in blood as he hovered over the victim, on his knees. … It was Damon Gant. The Chief of Police was suspected of these possibly connected murders. Understandably, the department was in an uproar, and the prosecutor's office seemed full of people all too eager to get "payback" because of the case in December… Chief Byrne was in a rather delicate position of delegating who should prosecute this sticky affair. Franziska was out of the country, and he wasn't so sure he should assign Wright because of Calisto working under Tyrell… Not that the grizzled detective was out for blood, but he did harbor doubts about Gant's true nature. And that could lead to a biased investigation. The police were already sending out Jake Marshall and Angel Starr as initial investigators, and Detective Goodman was assigned to the two murders from last week so there was a chance he'd get involved as well. Byrne was wavering between assigning Lana and Neil Marshall, and he didn't particularly like either option for obvious reasons. Lana because she was partners with Gant before transferring, and Neil because his brother was currently one of the detectives in charge. Byrne couldn't prosecute because that'd drive a wedge between the police and prosecutors… Not that they weren't already on brittle terms.

The whole mess was a nightmare, and Damon hadn't requested for an attorney yet. He seemed to be waiting to see how the investigation unfolded. Which…aggravated Lana. He cooperated with questioning thus far, but Damon always gave off this air like he knew more than he was letting on… He would bounce between his grandfatherly routine and his ace detective routine like it was just two sides of the same coin. He CLAIMED to be innocent, that he was just the first on the scene… And yet he didn't call for backup or anything. No one even knew he'd stepped out of his office. Then again, nights were usually more lax anyway in terms of the number of people around the office. It was so vexing.

Mia promises to give a good ol' college try, seeing how bothered her friend is with this sticky case. First Gant has to agree to representation, and that could go sourly if he's as reticent as Lana implies. Still, there's no harm in TRYING…

Damon easily enough accepts his visitors, though he gives the impression this arrest is no big deal. Damon seems to know Lana was behind Mia's arrival, and says the ol' girl should relax and take some time off with some swimming. (人◕ω◕) It's vexing to see a defendant so at peace with his circumstances. Damon isn't even a little bit peeved at his subordinates or trying to assert his innocence. Damon simply says there's no point in getting worked up; letting 'em see you sweat will only fuel the fires of suspicion even more. This isn't his first rodeo, and he's confident the investigation will inevitably reach the truth. So why should he panic or vent? (人◕ω◕)

Damon isn't that fussed about who his attorney winds up being. It's nice that Mia came out all this way for a lump of coal like him, but the Chief isn't in any rush, and there's probably worthier clients than him just waiting to pound down Mia's door. If Mia's so fussed, he can give her a letter of request to investigate the scene. Doesn't mean he accepts her defense, or that he'll tell her anything worthy of note just yet. But Damon does think it's sweet to see one of Lana's friends is such a go-getter. (人◕ω◕) He'll give Mia 'til the end of the day (or visiting hours rather) to have one last chat. He leaves it up to her to decide if his case is worth her attention.

Mia can see why her friend is so stressed. With a defendant like Gant, who needs prosecutors? (人◕ω◕) Is it his position as Chief that allows him to be so easygoing? Is it the lack of evidence they've been suffering that makes him think they won't be able to pronounce him Guilty? Whatever the case, he's brash, and all too smug. Mia doesn't understand why Lana respects this guy so much. (人◕ω◕)

Regardless, while Diego stays behind to watch the office, Mia heads out to the most recent crime scene with Ema and Lana... Or rather, the site where the body was discovered. Because in spite of the bloodstains around the body, investigators have their doubts about this being where the victim died. For one, it was behind a restaurant next to a dumpster area; the victim was never known to travel to this part of town, living farther north. Restaurant regulars have never seen the man before, at least as far as they've dug up so far.

There are other reasons, but sadly none that Lana are privy to. She's too close to Damon to be trusted with case information. And there's some really motivated investigators who have been suspicious of Gant for a while. Hence, Jake turns Lana away at the scene, and only through her recommendation is Mia (and Ema) allowed in. With his brother possibly on this case, Jake is determined to do this by the book and be ever watchful of the attorney.

... That said, Jake's easy to soften up because of two factors: One, his brother's alive and he's still a detective so he's not as lazy or bitter. Two, the fact that Mia is best friends with Lana means Jake puts a lot of stock in her as well. After all, he's still dating Lana. Mia and Jake have heard a lot about each other through Lana, they simply haven't had much time to properly be introduced. Conflicting schedules and all that. They have met before... Just don't know each other that well.

With Ema's forensic tools (luminol, fingerprinting powder, etc.), they determine the bloodstains around the body are rather one-sided (no stains were wiped or washed away). And Jake confirms the police have determined this as well; it's their theory these stains here are just from Gant kneeling down and...poking around the victim's body. For reasons he will not disclose. It's not a good look for him, but Mia's adamant that it's not... a noose around his neck. Not yet. Jake admires Mia for keeping it together under pressure, but he's pretty convinced of Gant's guilt. The old man's been up to something for a while, and the two of them aren't super fond of one another. Always quick to criticize one another... That's just how Jake's felt. And Angel is about the same; admired Lana and Damon as a pair of sleuthing legends, but the old man's been giving off weird vibes for the past couple years.

The investigation and subsequent trial days are... slow. They only have three days under the current system, so there's a lot of pressure to find anything that strongly implicates Gant... Double jeopardy and all that. Hence Chief Byrne's executive decision to have Phoenix and Calisto help on the investigation end of things, while Neil handles the courtroom. This turns out for the best as two more victims are found throughout those days... A total of five victims, and they can't even say the two latest discoveries were killed while Damon was in custody. The autopsies are tricky due to the people being reported as missing months ago... They seem fresh, but there's a chance they were kept in a refrigerated area.

Three days, a lot of pressure and a lot of tension... A number of witnesses are called in, investigators are questioned at length, Damon keeps getting pressed for his side of the story... Eventually, Mia homes in on Joe Darke. Not because he particularly stood out in his witness accounts, but because he didn't stand out... There was this mysterious air about him, how calm and collected he was on the stand despite the scenes he purportedly bore witness to and despite being questioned at length. Oh, he seemed caught off-guard with some of the inquiries, but it was always more of a...very casual surprise. Like if someone told you it was raining, and you looked out the window to check before returning to what you were doing. That sort of nonchalance.

Joe never went hard on Damon with his testimonies. That was why it took until the last day of the trial for Mia to home in on him. Joe's alibi for the murders was never ironclad, and he did get jumpy when they talked about the times of death being thrown off... The switchblade knife he carried with him had its tip broken off, and he had no ready answer for where it went.

... Damon does. At long last, he reveals just what he was up to with that third victim he found. The reason he inspected the body himself, without letting forensics take care of it... was that he wanted to ensure there was no foul play with the investigation. The M.O. with these murders is that not a single clue is left behind, ever - this got Damon thinking it might be an inside job, but overall he couldn't be too sure. But when he found the knife tip in the body that he very luckily came across... Damon knew he had something to blow the case wide open.

All he needed to do was lure out the perp by becoming a suspect. Joe Darke had never come forward until this trial, yet he was so intimately aware with some of the details... A broken switchblade knife was just what Damon needed to compare the knife tip with. Sure, he'll take the rap for concealing evidence, but it's a pittance compared to what Darke will receive if the tip matches the blade, and if the weapon matches with the victim's wound.

This is enough to send Joe into wild hysterics and try assaulting the defendant... But Neil steps in and restrains Joe before he can do any real harm. Once subdued and in police custody, all they have to do is wait and hear back from the lab about the evidence that Damon produced. To everyone's relief, it all checks out. It's not phony, there's little room for doubt that Joe's knife was the murder weapon for that victim... And what's more, Damon never knew the locations they found the fourth and fifth bodies in. He knew nothing about them. But Joe seemed to, and that's a lead to follow up on. With nothing incriminating Damon in any of these five serial killings, they have no choice but to declare him innocent as the day draws to a close. Joe Darke will be seized as a new suspect.

It's not, precisely, the happiest victory. Damon did perform a dirty trick to lure the culprit in... And there are those in the department who still don't trust him completely. But the fact remains, Damon didn't kill anyone, and he wasn't twisting people to do his bidding... Damon allowed them to reach this verdict on their own merits. All he did was produce the knife tip that he...preserved.

In the end, Damon liked what he saw from this new generation of lawyers and investigators. He never begrudged them suspecting him - after all, he couldn't be sure of who to trust either. It bothered him the murders were so meticulously handled... He really just wanted this culprit caught. The law seemed so... powerless. Against one anonymous man.

But in this trial, Damon saw hope. Lawyers, prosecutors, and police were working hand-in-hand. Sure, they butted heads at times... But they held out for those three days. Never gave up no matter how bleak things got... It was nowhere near like Manny or Blaise pulling their "miracles" back in the day. This was legit, and Damon only wished he didn't complicate matters with his actions.

Damon would let the prosecutors be. See where Chief Byrne steered that ship. He'd ease up the the department's stances against attorneys, at least the ones who earned their trust... Couldn't share everything prior to trials, but they didn't have to stonewall people legitimately trying to prove others' innocence.

They were entering a new age of the law. (人◕ω◕) There wasn't a need for Damon to interfere. Let the kiddos stumble and learn their way.

No one gets fired or laid off. Lana and Neil can continue prosecuting, Jake, Angel, and Goodman can all still be detectives... Damon's just here in a grandfatherly capacity now (still the Chief of Police), being tough on 'em at times but overall wishing them the best with their respective careers. (人◕ω◕)

It's gonna be different with all these new colorful faces sprinkled into the mix... But overall, it'll be great for fleshing out Mia and all the usual cast. There is more than one attorney in Japan. ... More than one detective. ... More than one prosecutor. (人◕ω◕) This is what we call fun~... \(人◕ω◕)/

#ace attorney investigations #Lana Skye #Damon Gant #Joe Darke #Mia Fey #Ema Skye #Jake Marshall #Neil Marshall

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imsosocold · 2 years ago

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Ace Attorney characters that I think are related

In addition to my “ Godot is Manfred’s other child” agenda.

Richard Wellington and Frank Sawhit:

My favorite pack of thieves. I like to think Frank was stealing in order to earn enough for him and his son to survive. And then Richard was trying to get enough money to bail his father out of prison but once learning who the defense attorney would be for Maggey decided to try to avenge his father. I want them to have a tearful reunion in prison and then escape together to rob more rich people <3.

Furio Tigre and Wocky Kitaki:

Have you seen the last names?!! In all seriousness I think them being related would make the overall crime scene more fleshed out and make its story more cohesive. The Cadaverni rage wouldn’t be over a member getting in an accident with just some thug, but a member of a mob, a rival to power in “Los Angeles”. Though I don’t think Tigre would be considered a legitimate member of the family by the Kitaki line themselves, I think Wocky would look up to Furio as an older brother figure and base his persona around him. Wocky’s aggression to Phoenix is less funny now though.

Polly Jenkins and Goldy Gerwitz:

Imagine the only person who ever cared for you took their own life and you lost everything and now all you have left to turn to is material items. But then coincidentally you come across those who indirectly lead to her suicide but you are too scared do anything and you regret for the rest of your life for your inaction. Just fun with the bois over here.

Herman Crab and Larry:

A STEM and artist duo returns, this time as brothers! It’s the most romance repulsed aromantic against the world’s strongest romanticist ( but Larry is also aro spec, I can feel it in bones). Neither of them can ever have a normal last name and Larry only took his mother’s in order to avoid people making jokes about him having crabs (* cries in the pain of bad nicknames*). In all seriousness , both Larry and Herman are incredibly talented, noble people who will ride and die for those they care about. While Herman would be annoyed by his much younger brother’s antics, he’d still genuinely care for and look out for him. And Larry naturally would be down to help his older brother with any of his schemes.

Simon Blackquill and Daryan:

My favorite black and white animal themed mysterious, dramatic men. I think them being related would tie the Apollo Justice series' events and characters more closely together and give much needed characterization to Daryan ( yet one of many aspects of wasted potential in the Apollo Justice series). Daryan becoming a detective because he doesn't believe Simon could do such heinous acts in a mirror to Klavier and Athena, him trying to gain whatever influence and power and wealth he can which could potentially aid his family. Daryan agreeing to smuggle the cocoons both because he genuinely wants to save people like Simon did, laws be damned, but because being in the good graces of such a high ranking official, in addition to the large sums of money he'd gain in return, could be what saves his relative. The reveal of this plan would hold so much more immediate consequences and affect a wider reach of characters. And Simon, trying so hard to help and protect all those he cares about all on his own, with Daryan being a reminder how damaging that mentality can be and that no matter how hard the both of them try they can't save everyone!!!!

Also yes, Daryan keeps the hair for Simon's sake, who styled it that way as a prank.

Tyrell Badd and Luke Atmey:

Luke wanting nothing else than to be just like his cool, smart, popular father but feeling like he can't properly emulate him on his own, so he lies and cheats to attempt to do so in turn becoming everything his father is against and hates.

Also Luke feeling like his father prefers Kay over him BYE-

Payne and Geiru:

Imagine following in your ancestors' footsteps to join the law system in order to bring ‘pain’ upon evil doers but one of your family members decides to fuck that and runs off to become a rakugo artist of all things. And then you find out years later that they had a child who committed murder in their name and you didn't even get to come across her in court. Poor Payne can't ever catch a break.

Ron and Joe Darke:

The worst father and son duo who commit crimes and escalate situations because they have terrible problem solving skills yet despite that cannot be convicted for the life of them, the former only happening with false evidence. But the main reason I like this idea is because it means Ron took his wife's last name "DeLite" since she is the light of his life and now he isn't in the 'dark' anymore.

Boo all you want.

Jinxie Tenma and Uendo Toneido:

Two of the best ( and underrated) Ace Attorney characters in addition to being great mental health representation! I think they'd have great chemistry and interactions as siblings. Also Uendo deserves a wrestler father who can beat shit out of ableist fucks and law enforcement. <3

Gumshoe and Dogen:

Such a slut for the idea of Gumshoe wanting to tear himself away from the family name and to do good by saving lives instead of ending them yet working in an incredibly deadly, corrupt system that goes against his ideals and desires.

Also Dick's still definitely hurt that Dogen seems to care more about Simon Keyes than him >:)

Constance Courte and Sebastian:

" Uh, if Constance Courte was Sebastian's mom, wouldn't Blaise had make her disappear-"

Bitch, he tried. That loser husband had to back down.

Unfortunately, Constance wasn't able to take her son with her and decided to throw herself even more into her teaching of law, her indirect way of fighting her husband and preventing people from becoming like him. I like to think she got to reunite with her son again after Blaise was finally arrested and Sebastian continued his prosecuting career in her honor.

Anyway Constance Courte is cool and deserved more screentime ( and to be written into a better case lmao).

Cody Hackins and the Fey clan:

I just want more perspective on the Fey family from those AMAB, I can't believe the main AA trilogy went into Kurain Village and the Fey Clan and didn't expand on this. Anyway, Cody's lack of spiritual power, supposedly due to his sex, in addition to losing his mother led to him and his father being discarded from the main clan and looked down upon. Refusing to accept the position of a branch family given to him, Cody's father took the two of them away from the village. While initially having trouble adjusting to such a drastic change in lifestyle and environment, the two of them were overall happier. Cody still faintly remembers Mia and Maya as some of the few people in the village that were kind to him and is unable to accept Mia's death, believing she and Maya "fused powers" and simply cohabit a body now. On a happier note, Steel Samurai is both Cody and his father's comfort show and they and the Fey Sisters ( and eventually Pearl) watch it together.

The Von Karma and the Justice family:

Okay, with names like those, centered around concepts considered essential to the judicial system, they have be to be connected somehow in this series. Whether they're distantly related or rival families or what, both family lines and their influences absolutely permeate the series.

Also 100% the reason Kristoph took Apollo in as his mentee was to spite the Von Karmas.

Lauren Paups and Matt Engarde:

Polar opposite (half) siblings: Lauren is shy while Matt is outgoing, Lauren has low self esteem while Matt thinks highly of himself, Lauren’s a dreamer and romanticist while Matt’s cruelly aware of how the world works, Lauren’s wishy washy and easily swayed while Matt’s is rooted in his ideas and beliefs, Lauren can’t hide feelings or thoughts while Matt constantly wears a mask, yet their most prominent trait, the one that they share, is that they’ll do anything for who or what they believe in. Also they both share self destructive tendencies when seemingly stressed (Matt scratching and Lauren cutting up pieces of their hair) in addition to being heavily dramatic. Unfortunately, I don’t think they ever got the chance to properly know each other but nonetheless the duo would be close ( as much as they’re allowed to be anyway).