California Forests, Smelling

Tyro finishes his sniffs and rubs his chin. "This is odd. So I smell a woman's scent, and I don't mean the lady over here, but no decaying flesh. ...How can that be? And I know that smell as well, cause of where I'm from. Also, some moss. Something is not rotten in the state of Denmark."

Athena - Carlin's Trailer

"This was not my idea, but our director suggested this. I was chosen to actually bring the matter up."

It's a small lie alright?

"From what I know, the old script was more realistic than fictional. I think it would be best if we went with a more fictional route instead. Fiction allows us more flexibility in what we can do to make this work. At least according to the director. We may add a bit of mystery into the mix, but that's yet to be decided."

Edited by sci300768 on Aug 21st 2022 at 12:52:34 PM

Scott Lang, California Firewatch Production Zone, Inside Ms. Carlin's trailer.

Ruling out nothing as a clue, Scott takes a handful of photos of the scattered mess as he hurriedly navigates the place—annoyingly impeded by the shag carpet that's suddenly become a veritable forest at his current size—but his attention is drawn primarily toward that square on the floor as he hops up to a higher countertop vantage point. Had the bed been pushed aside? Had something been sitting there, and if so, what?

Then before that line of thought can run its course, he catches sight of the dresser. Hellooo, what's going on here?

Taking a glance up toward Rose herself to verify that the distraction still holds, and ready to escape into the forest of carpet should it not, Scott makes a few small hops over to the edge of the dresser drawer where he peers down inside to investigate.

Edited by Chortleous on Aug 21st 2022 at 8:11:08 AM

Maaris - Production area

They had their cover story such as it was, so with any luck there wouldn't be any problems as long as they didn't do anything too suspicious while investigating...

Well, Ms Carline probably didn't need everyone helping to distract her while Scott did his thing, so rather than make things any more awkward she started looking around the area herself and taking notes of places where her gelatinous form might give her access while trying to play the 'lost new hire' role as needed.
If nothing else maybe she could find a way to keep an eye on Ms Carline and catch the killer when they tried to finish the job.

Edited by BlitzTrain on Aug 25th 2022 at 6:09:33 AM

Ben results of investigation

"Oof sorry Gumshoe. This is the only one from my dimension, but if I ever end up from where you come from I would gladly help as I can."

And then the Omnitrix lighted up, three new aliens? That could only mean three different species would be involved in the murder.

"The omnitrix already picked up 3 different samples of alien dna. Lets see how our suspect could look like."

Dialing the first new form, he would slam the omnitrix to transform in the new alien.

Twilight Sparkle (Carlin's Trailer)

"Fiction. Yes. It's...it's good." Twilight said, sounding rather out of her depth, but that was to be expected since she was forcing herself to talk, sensing a lull in the conversation that, for once, she didn't want to last. "I can write down everyone's ideas. Proofread them. I can...I can help."

("Whatever you're doing in there, Scott, make it quick, I don't know how much of this I can take...") Twilight thought privately, having the sinking feeling she'd screw things up just by opening her mouth.

Hinata: Carlin's Trailer

Hinata couldn't help but notice Twilight's lapse in confidence, and she moved beside her in order to give her a squeeze on the shoulder. There wasn't much else she could do without giving it all away, so the best she could do was play it up as Twilight merely being bashful.

Which, admittedly, was a little ironic. But she offered Twilight a gentle smile, showing that she was doing okay. After all, if the parts they were playing were genuine people, they'd probably be a little nervous anyhow.

“I-It's okay, Twilight-san. I'm nervous around her too,” she muttered, sharing her trepidation while framing it as being merely starstruck. “B-But I'm sure she gets it all the time. It's fine...”

California Forests

The Omnitrix does its usual sounds and light show as the altering of forms takes hold. This first new form doesn't take long to finish though, leaving Ben in the body of something clearly alien.

On first impression, the body has the look and feel of a bipedal rhino, all muscle and rough skin; though the first major difference was a face more like a pug dog's than the snout of a rhino. Still had some small tusks in there though, the second major difference being fairly functional hands. The Omnitrix had also provided some basic though somewhat chunky plate armor in the usual black and green. Sapphy perked an eyebrow and wandered over to check out the new form.

"Wow. You're tall, and wide. And probably heavy. You think something like this killed James Whitloff?"

Production Area, Exterior

Rose Carlin stood there, listening to people attempt to console her and eventually let out a little bit of a sigh. First, she looked at Hinata.

"I could use something to eat, yeah. You mind fetchin' it?"

And then she took the time to ponder through the words of Athena.

"Followin' the lead of our distinguished competition then? I mean once I've had some time, I guess I'd be up for taking the lead..."

And then the shyness of Twilight caught her attention.

"Don't worry, I get how intimidating it can be standing before a starlet like myself. If it helps, just consider me a co-worker or somethin'."

Rose Carlin's Trailer

From his vantage point and current size, Scott manages to catch the glint of light reflecting off what might be brass or gold. But beyond that, the interior of the draw seems black as pitch beyond a faint green glow at the edge of the crack.

Scott Lang, California Firewatch Production Zone, Inside Ms. Carlin's trailer.

The green glow catches his eye, but glancing back up, Scott senses the distraction might be wearing thin. Shit. Hold on a minute, guys, things are getting juicy...

Activating an onboard light, he peers into the drawer and carefully slips inside to investigate further, taking snapshots of his surroundings all the while but still fully prepared to bail at a second's notice. He briefly glances down to a compartment on his belt and verifies that he'd packed them—twelve shuriken-like discs the relative size of coins, six marked in blue and six marked in red. Taking a red disk in hand, Scott looks over the source of that glint and the corresponding glow.

Cecilia in disguise - Production Zone outside Ms. Carlin's trailer - The show must go on?

Rose didn't really respond to what Cecilia had said, and instead seemed to only care about the business work and acknowledging her own fame. As opposed to say, feeling grief over her coworker's death and setting aside work in favor of mourning. It seemed rather suspicious to Cecilia, suggesting to her that this woman, whether or not she was really Rose, could very well have a connection to the murder of James Whitloff.

... However, now was not the time to act on it, nor was there really an opportunity to relay that to the others at the moment without possibly tipping Rose off. So, keeping an understanding expression on her face, Cecilia simply nodded as if in agreement with Rose. "Excellent then, miss Carlin. Perhaps we should take this discussion somewhere where we can sit down?" Cecilia then suggested, figuring that getting Rose away from the trailer entirely would be best for Scott.

Athena

She agreed with what the others did.

"Then, I think it would be best if we sat down in a place with enough chairs for us. I will try my best to get the director to consider your requests in a way that makes everyone happy."

She's STILL pretending the fake director is the beheaded...

"Though, I personally think adding some fictional or fantasy would allow for more creative freedom if done right."

It's more like she's accounting for the... diversity of species that the group consists of.

Edited by sci300768 on Sep 23rd 2022 at 10:57:06 AM

Twilight Sparkle

"Y-Yes, of course, we're coworkers, it's fine..." Twilight babbled, unintentionally selling her character all the more, though a part of it did hold true: she was intimidated. Not so much by Rose Carlin herself, but more by the idea that they'd be discovered and their cover would be blown. The sooner they could get a move on, the better. At least, that was her opinion.

Ben new alien!

Looking at his new form, Ben concludes this alien is more fit for physical task like fourarms, he can't wait to give it a use..

"Well its hands are pretty articulated, it could probably hold a gun but doesn't seem to be very sneaky, it would have leaved some footprints with how heavy it is and probably someone would have seen it. Unless it's got an abilities for concealment or equipment."

Ben then tries to see what this form can do, after all the omnitrix uploads the basic instincts of the aliens. That's how he knows all their capabilities.

Hinata: Carlin's Trailer

"O-Of course..." Hinata bowed shortly to Rose in response, before quickly turning and walking away to find some kind of snack food for her. She didn't want to stay away too long, however, so she decided to ask the nearest faculty if there were any refreshments were nearby, hoping to save some time in the process.

It was nerve-wracking, honestly, to feign a conversation while someone was investigating the area just behind the potential suspect. But she had faith that Scott was capable, in the same way that she had faith her team was capable. So all she had to do was help keep the facade going for long enough that he could find whatever he was looking for.

Edited by Enirboreh on Oct 17th 2022 at 12:35:38 PM

California Forests

Oddly there's not that much 'instinct' to this alien. Oh sure there's a lot of brute muscle and how to use it but beyond that there's a general sense that this creature wasn't merely 'an alien' but one of comparable intelligence to humans. Though with the size of these hands, human weaponry would probably be at best unusable and at worse outright crushed.

Anyway Sapphy pokes at Ben's new form a little.

"Hm... Yeah I think we would notice if there was a big stompy rhino-pug creature involved... What's the other ones like?"

Production Area, Rose Carlin's Trailer Exterior

Rose took a moment to breathe, nodding to the suggestion of sitting down.

"Sure, we can step inside and take a seat."

She made a pointed glance at the police cordon as her expression shifted dour.

"James was important to the lot of us and I don't think it'd do to talk about things when he's just out there under a sheet..."

Production Area, Catering

So, Hinata wanders away from the trailer and swiftly finds the catering table where the director of this production has his head in his hands leaning on the table.

"I'm ruined. I am so ruined..."

Production Area, Rose Carlin's Trailer Interior

So here's the weird thing about investigating the drawer from the inside: Whatever's in here seems to be a glowing green component of a larger object that... Well it's hard to figure out what the hell it even is. Most of it is this black material that might be black metal or stone, one part reflects golden ridges when when shone on and that green glow is coming from almost organic nodules dug into the construct.

Whatever this thing is, it's not something Scott can comprehend at his current comparative scale.

Cecilia in disguise - Production Zone outside Ms. Carlin's trailer - Vernacular hiccups.

Well, the plan didn't really work; yes, Rose was agreeing to sit and talk, but she suggested going inside, where Scott was. Cecilia was hoping for the opposite. "Well, I think it would be a little cramped and uncomfortable to fit all of us in your," Cecilia had a slight pause in her words as she had to think, what was this small domicile called? Oh right, Scott had used the word earlier. "Trailer, so why don't we take this conversation elsewhere?" she went on after just a moment, finishing her suggestion.

Ben another transformation.

"Lets see them then."

Ben would press the omnitrix medalion in the Rhinopug chest, changing aliens to any of the other two new ones.

Athena - Production Area, Rose Carlin's Trailer Exterior

She makes a thinking gesture before dimming her hair, which is currently burning very brightly.

"I do not think that your trailer can fit all of us inside comfortably. Another location away from... you know..."

She glances in the direction of the body under the sheet. Not to mention, her hair is burning hot enough that the increase in temperature would be noticed indoors... especially inside a trailer.

"That. I do think going somewhere else outside to sit away from that would be a very good idea."

She's not even sure if she can hide the heat emulating from her hair indoors at this rate. This is something she's used to, but not normal for a human.

Edited by sci300768 on Oct 23rd 2022 at 9:01:06 AM

Twilight Sparkle (Rose Carlin's Trailer)

By this point, Twilight realized that something seemed rather off about one of their number, and she shoots Athena a concerned glance. If nothing else, this helps Twilight not to internally panic so much about herself by giving her something (or in this case, someone) else to focus on.

While she doesn't say anything, not trusting her voice right now, the look she is giving Athena is noticeable enough.

Hinata: Catering Table

Ah. The director didn't seem to be doing well. Sympathy overriding any urgency she had to get back to the trailer, Hinata decided to approach the man and gently cleared her throat to get his attention; looking at him rather curiously.

"S-Sumimasen. Is... everything okay...? What's wrong...?"

She had a feeling what was wrong, but she didn't want to be presumptuous, especially as she knew that death could sometimes conjure strange feelings in people perhaps unrelated to the event itself. Still, she was inclined to believe that it was a stupid question to ask anyhow, so she didn't double down on it either.

Scott Lang, California Firewatch Production Zone, Inside Ms. Carlin's trailer.

Scott looks over the strange thing he's discovered in the dresser, taking an abundance of snapshots, looking over it for buttons or any kind of distinguishing feature that might identify it... before hearing Rose talk about stepping inside.

Shit. Shit. Shit. he curses to himself, reigning in his own growing panic. Keep it cool. You've been in worse situations than this. He shuts his eyes for a moment, stowing away that shrink disc and momentarily holding off on the theft. Think. Do we want to bail, or stay hidden? We've got all we're going to get out of here. I think.

Clambering up to where the drawer is open, Scott peers out and tries to verify if he can be seen from the doorway while Rose's back is turned, to perhaps signal to one of the film set team. No, stupid.

Then Cecilia wisely tries to steer things back outside. A for effort... and maybe giving him time to slip back out. Scott takes the opportunity to scramble back the way he'd come, hurriedly navigating scattered detritus with careful attention paid to remaining hidden before finding a way back up to the windowsill and safely behind the curtain. From this vantage point, he looks back to watch things proceed for a moment before hopping back down to the ground outside and triggering his suit to return to full size in a single motion.

He disengages the helmet and releases a held breath before peering around to the front, just out of Rose's sight, and giving his team a thumbs-up.

Edited by Chortleous on Nov 27th 2022 at 3:05:11 AM

California Forests

This time, the result was much less physically impressive. Spindly arms and legs, no sign of muscle tone, thin boney plates covering what feels and looks like exposed muscle fiber. For a moment, there is this overwhelming sense that this creature could never survive with Earth's gravity, atmosphere and temperature before the Omnitrix beeps concerningly and that sense of overwhelming weakness gives way to just enough support to function. Mentally, there's this lingering sense of emptiness, like there's a piece missing that would have allowed this alien enough strength to live without the Omnitrix's constant support.

Sapphy squints her eyes and tilts her head.

"You look like if an old guy turned inside out..."

Production Area, Rose Carlin's Trailer Exterior

"... Alright. I know somewhere quiet but just... I need a moment okay? Wouldn't do to go out wearing my nightie."

Rose gestured weakly down at the fact that she was just still wearing her nightgown before stepping back and slowly closing the door.

Though it seems that her brief time inside to get changed will not rumble things too badly given Scott is back from his stealth section. Might be a good time to catch up and share information.

Production Area, Catering

The director remained with his head pressed against the catering table before deigning to respond to Hinata's questioning.

"What's wrong is that someone has been murdered on my production! Not only that, it was the only man I was able to find who could pull off a convincing Hoff affect. The production can't go on and even if we did the fact that someone died making it means it'll be radioactive when we start shopping it around for syndication. Which means the investors are going to come knocking and..."

He sways in place, trailing off and making a series of concerned noises before putting his head back on the table.

"I owe some bad men a lot of money..."

Hinata: Catering Table

"I..." Hinata paused, frowning slightly as she took in this murmured information. Bad men...? Oh, dear. So the director of this production was taking investments from questionable individuals. That was never good, and Hinata wondered just how much trouble he was in. Discreetly activating her Byakugan, she scanned the man for anything suspicious, just to be sure there wasn't any usable evidence on his person.

"If... you'll forgive my prying, what do you mean by bad men...? I-I'm just curious... but if that information is connected..." she considered, before moving beside the director and placing a hand on his shoulder. "Please, you can trust me. I want to see this turn out well for you... and anything you know that could be useful might be able to... s-smooth things over. A-Ano... if they're questionable people, is it possible that... they might have something to do with this...? Or whatever rivals they have...?"

It was a stretch, but she felt it vital to consider all eventualities in situations like this. People were fickle, and sometimes complicated scenarios like this ran on poor logic on the part of the perpetrators.

Forest of California

Tyro blinks. "He goes through more forms than some of my friends do." He opens up a panel on his arm. "Paging Athena. Come in, deadly one. This is your neighborhood-friendly Digital Cyborg Dinosaur speaking." You can easily see his goofy grin as he speaks in the most silly voice ever. You could say he's taking acting class. Acting like a doofus!

Athena -Movie set

Her phone rings and she answers the call. Judging by Tyro's response...

"Hello, why are you calling me? Is this related to the case?"

Edited by sci300768 on Nov 27th 2022 at 3:22:15 AM