truth_is_cold

[Private to Ben | Audio]

Ben, I need to know what happened today.

[Private to Zack | Audio]*

I need to know if you two have spoken. He's going to be held accountable for someone's murder [and Rhade is very perplexed by this, because Ben doesn't lie], and he's been concerned with how you were going to react when you spoke to him. Did he seem in control of himself?

[Private to Charles | Audio]

Would it be possible for you to examine and speak with Ben? Review him for outside influences? Fugue states? I don't believe he is lying to me when he says he was in his room, but considering this ship...

[Private to Dylan | Audio]

[All that awkward from before? Have to forget it.] I need your help.

[Warden Filter | Audio]

Who here is a competent detective or is experience with forensics, or alternately has an inmate you would trust to assist in an investigation? [He wants to be careful and not get Ben into more trouble.]

OOC: And I'll be adding a bunch more to this, and there will be a plotting post for detective types to investigate.
*Timed to after his conversation with Ben.

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

[He doesn't like doing it without the other person's permission, but after Doyle's post...]

I suppose so. Has something happened?

Dr. Kozak is dead. There was evidence of blood around his doorknob and tooth. Ben maintains that he was in his room.

He's made a habit of being honest with me. If someone killed my friend, using my inmate, I want to know.

Where is he?

He should be in his room, for the time being.

Please discuss it carefully with him. Manticore has a history of reprogramming their soldiers and I want him to understand that you are no threat, and while I'm aware you've dealt with the prevailing mentality enough.

[Ben is confused, of course, because he's been too distracted to pay much attention to the network as he usually would. Doyle's vision had unnerved him though not for the reasons most would think - regardless, in an effort to avoid any complications, he'd decided he would just spend as much of his time away from other people as possible to prevent whatever was supposed to happen from happening.

And then this. Ben hesitates, confused and still partially distracted when he does reply.]

Alright. Where, with whom, and when?

Is there anything more specifically triggering I should be aware of? Any sort of phrasing or terminology they'd use?

[Dylan sets aside his own awkwardness. Rhade's tone sounds serious so he answers professionally, like they're on duty together.]

What's the situation?

With Dr. Kozak. [And he'll be very upset if he did do something. Kozak is his friend, after all, and Rhade has just got over blaming himself for mistakes. But there is something off about this; why would Ben go after someone he has already identified as being harmless? And what would the Blue Lady have brought him?

Questions need to come first, though.]

Kozak was murdered and the evidence points to Ben. But Ben says he was otherwise occupied, and I'm inclined to believe him- at least that if it happened, he wasn't aware of it.

Ben doesn't lie to me.

But I would like your help in monitoring him. Possibly Blonsky's as well, if you feel he is now responsible enough. Both for security and for his sake.

[Oh, well, that's simple enough. Ben still avoids Kozak almost instinctively at this point, because he'd rather not be unsettling rather than simply obeying the firm, uncompromising command from Bucky several months ago. He sounds more comfortable when he replies without hesitation.]

I haven't interacted with Dr. Kozak today.

Dammit. Doyle's vision points to Ben being on scene, too. But between shapechangers and psychics and god knows what else on this ship, it isn't conclusive.

I think Blonsky's up for it. Do you want a guard inside his cabin or outside his door? Or do you want a more casual kind of monitoring?

He's careful about discussing the Blue Lady, a religious figure he contrived out of an image of the Virgin Mary, but otherwise he'll answer as bluntly as possible. Sometimes he speaks in metaphor.

Alright. I'll go talk to him. [And give certain people adequate warning in case something goes hideously wrong.]

When he's not in his cabin I'd like him to have an escort of some sort. We can alternate, but I want to get to the bottom of this.

[He rubs his hands over his face, so he sounds muffled for a moment.] Robert is my friend. I am... furious if someone used my inmate as a scapegoat to get to him.

[The oddest, longest pause.

He didn't deny what he had done with Ladd, he had just been quiet about it. Once he was cornered, Ben admitted to it. But here he is bluntly saying that he hasn't even spoken with Robert.]

And where were you? Were you with anyone that could account for your whereabouts?

[And just like that, whatever comfort Ben had found is gone, voice going wary.]

After the meal period I came directly here to my cabin. I am attempting to read some of the books given to me for the holidays. I am alone and have been since I left the dining hall.

I believe you [and somehow it makes him even more uneasy], but I need to come look around. They believe you are responsible for Dr. Kozak's death.

[And he's already on the move.]

[That gives Ben pause, several long moments.

His voice is vehement when he comes back.]

I haven't done anything!

Ben, there are people on board that can get into your head and make you do things, that can make you not remember. It's happened to me twice. [And he's a little worried about what his mindset might have been.] But I need to prove them wrong. I'm tired of them calling you names and treating you like you're a walking threat.

And if someone did use you as a weapon- [though why at Robert?] -I want to know.

I'm on it. Between the three of us we can have a full rotation, so no matter when Ben leaves they'll be someone ready to go with him.

Do you think someone was trying to frame him?

I suppose in one way or the other. I've been mind-controlled into attacking people, and Ben has no interest in Dr. Kozak.

But oddly enough, I don't know of anyone that particularly dislikes him.

Maybe Kozak was the primary target and framing Ben was just someone's way to try to avoid getting caught. Does Kozak have enemies?

I don't think so. I think that Ben does. I thought about it after I asked Perry about Kozak's potential adversaries.

He's pretty widely disliked.

[And that makes him genuinely sad, enough that it seeps into his tone.]

[Dylan lets out a quiet sigh. He likes Ben, and he doesn't like the idea of either Ben killing Kozak or of someone disliking Ben enough to frame him for murder.]

Any top suspects for who might want to get Ben into trouble?

No one with the means. And he recently was reintroduced to a family member, so I'm having him talk to Charles in case it was psychological.

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