[Cult Leader's Trial] Stand accused of cold seduction

[thepull_npc]

Who: A Judge and 12 Jurors, an OPEN gallery of onlookers.
The Defense: (Poor DAs), The Defendant (The Cult Leader known as "The Prophet", Miss Sylvia C. Alcázar)
The Prosecution: Franziska Von Karma (backed by an AGI Legal Team)
Testifying Witnesses: Ciel, Alois, Liquid Snake, Allen Walker, Magneto, Fratley and Veser.
When: Monday, April 4th -

Comments

Magneto

[dancing_pierrot]

Now they would be examining the trial from a different perspective; that of the ones who had been involved in the rescue missions. This man was a cautious one; he had demanded written assurance of his right to avoid self-incrimination. Ha, as though Franziska would violate such a basic value of the law during one of her trials! Well, to let it be known that she could be very accommodating when it meant getting what she wanted, she had provided him with the letter he had asked for, and now he would be brought here to the trial today to testify.

"The prosecution calls the witness to the stand."

Re: Magneto

[makes_asteroids]

Erik stood. For once in a long while, he looked well rested, and no one would have been able to guess the older gentleman was wearing a suit of body armour rather than what appeared as a fine Armani-ish suit. More to the point, Erik looked completely calm. As he stood, he inclined his head slightly in von Karma's direction.

[dancing_pierrot]

It was nice to see at least one witness who didn't appear nervous and out of place in the courtroom; there was something about him that seemed very detached, professional and calculating -- perhaps she got that impression from his distrust of the law; the undertones of criminal and vigilante activity.

"The witness will state his name and occupation for the court." There was a brief pause, in which Franziska recalled the complications with one of the previous witnesses. "Whatever name you go by most frequently in the community is fine."

[makes_asteroids]

Erik had been nervous at his own trail. This? Wasn't the first time he'd testified against someone. He knew what he was doing, knew how to shade his words to make the biggest impact.

The letter from the DA's office was inside his jacket and he smoothed his hands over his jacket while von Karma finished speaking.

"Doctor Michael Xavier, emergency physician at Skye Medical." It wasn't his name, but, at least with the last statement it covered him from commenting perjury with his first statement.

[dancing_pierrot]

Franziska nodded, just slightly, a response to show she had acknowledged his response before moving straight onto the next question. "And how are you related to this current case?"

[makes_asteroids]

"I was a member of the South Site rescue party, rescuing Vanille and three others." His voice softened just a little as he spoke Vanille's name - one of the children he'd become fond of. One of the children now gone. It wasn't completely acting - losing the girl had been a blow, and he had cared for her. And her loss had affected his circle and his family. But it was his choice to not lock tight on his voice, to let that fondness for the girl, and the grief of her loss, show.

[dancing_pierrot]

It seemed like he'd cared for the girl; was that what had spurred him to go on the rescue missions at all? Franziska herself wasn't much of a fighter, but she had known that when the case came to trial it would be her time to make a difference, to ensure that the culprits were brought to justice. "So you didn't know the names of the other three. How did you become involved with the rescue party?"

[makes_asteroids]

"Vanille and Hope were room mates, he decided he was going to track her, attempt to rescue Vanille himself. Myself and Charles Xavier, a family member from my world who has also been pulled into this world, followed a sort distance behind him. When we reacted a safe distance from the site, we met up with a young woman named Tifa, also an acquaintance of ours." He glanced slightly aware from von Karma, to his hands folded in his lap, jaw tensing for a moment, regaining a calm, detached air. It wouldn't do to let the grief - and the anger - that he felt at her leaving show. "Charles and I had taken the youngsters under our collective wing."

[dancing_pierrot]

"So is that why you noticed they were missing and decided to investigate? What happened once you did?"

[makes_asteroids]

"We - Charles and I - noticed they were missing the night of the broadcast. We started looking that evening, meeting up with Hope and later Tifa." His posture shifted slightly, becoming more erect, and his eyes fixed at a spot over the heads of the others in the room. There's something to his posture that would call to mind a commander giving a report, one who had seen too much violence and bloodshed, and knew this wasn't going to be the last time - that was, if anyone in the court room had any experience with battle-hardened old commanders and their flashbacks

[dancing_pierrot]

At the mention of the broadcast, Franziska's attention flickered over to the AGI legal team; for once, they actually seemed to be paying the trial some type of mild interest -- most likely because the witness had mentioned the network broadcast.

"And did you manage to locate the hostages?"

[makes_asteroids]

"We did. Sector 6, in boathouse. It was located on a piece of a private property." He also gives the latitude and longitude of the site.

[dancing_pierrot]

Franziska paused for a moment to allow everyone the opportunity to comprehend the fact before moving onwards. "And what happened once you arrived there?"

[makes_asteroids]

"Hope took sheltered position several metres back, Charles took a more open but also protected position two metres away from the boathouse. Tifa and I assaulted the building, with myself taking point and Tifa on flank. We were initially met with heavy resistance and I became worried lethal force may have to be used. Tifa and I took out a wall to provide cover for the hostages. We were attacked by five Cult members once we breached the interior, and would have suffered mortal injuries were I not able to create a defensive shield. Because my shielding is electric in nature, when one of the cultist attempted to attack though it, he was killed. As Tifa and I took a moment to regroup, Charles alerted us to the presence of two other rescue parties. One didn't make it inside the boathouse, but one did. Shortly before the arrive of the second party, consisting of two males, the Cultists began to attack each other savagely. Several of their own perished under the 'friendly fire'. In the mayhem, I was about to grab Vanille and hand

[dancing_pierrot]

With a small smile in the direction of the witness stand, sincere in the parts that it wasn’t cocky, Franziska gave the witness a small bow before now redirecting her attention to first the judge - who seemed to be paying less attention to the proceedings than his Los Angeles counterpart - then to the jury, as her time would be far less wasted by addressing them instead. "Thank you, Dr. Michael Xavier. As we have just heard from this witness, the culprits in this case turned violent when their plans were interfered with. Do these sound like the actions of rational, well-intentioned members of society to you, ladies and gentlemen? Or do they sound more like the actions of desperate radicals who pose a clear threat to society? In the end, that decision lies with you." The lingering pause at the end implied quite clearly what Franziska thought the answer to that question was -- yet, she couldn't say it. Whatever, it was rhetorical enough.