• Published 7th Jan 2012
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Phoenix Wright - Turnabout Storm! - Firesight



A famous racer is found dead in the Everfree, and Rainbow Dash stands accused of his murder. Can an Ace Attorney from another world uncover the truth and prove her innocent, or will Rainbow Dash be banished to the sun for a crime she didn't commit?

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Part 7 - The Blooming Apple

At Phoenix’s request, Trixie revealed how the police were informed of the murder.

“Prior to the crime, the police received a vague tip that wished to remain anonymous,” she began. “You may be assured they were questioned far more thoroughly in the aftermath of the murder, but they were determined to have no involvement with the crime.”

“What was the tip?” Phoenix asked, filing the information about an anonymous source away for later. He knew something was going to happen but had nothing to do with the crime? I find that rather unlikely!

“That ‘something big’ was going down in the Everfree Forest!” Trixie answered.

“That’s it?” Phoenix was disappointed in the short and unreliable statement.

But the showmare prosecutor simply shrugged. “Trixie told you it was vague. And due to the… attitude of this anonymous tip, the police didn’t respond as quickly as they could have, since the tipster failed to specify a time when this ’something big’ would happen,” she further explained.

“Isn’t that negligence?! If they had bothered to check it out, they could have saved the victim’s life!” Phoenix protested.

“Mister Wright is correct, Ms. Trixie. The police should have responded to this tip more responsibly,” The Judge concurred, which in Phoenix’s experience was a remarkably rare event.

The mare magician gave a dismissive wave of her hoof. “If you were to meet this ‘Anonymous Tip’, you’d have taken it every bit as seriously as the police force did—which is to say, not at all. Any more pointless questions, Mister Wrong?” she asked, insultingly as ever.

“I told you, it’s Wright!” he corrected her for the second time. “I do have questions regarding that storm cloud though—how many times did the lightning from it strike? I noticed two charred areas that were quite a distance apart from each other on the crime scene,” he challenged Trixie, remembering both the burned grassy area around the body outline and the felled tree with the scorched trunk, realizing only then the latter had to have been hit by lightning.

“Three times. After the cloud was activated by… heh! You-know-who,” she said with mocking glance at a now-restrained Rainbow Dash, who just glared, still looking like she wanted to pound the insulting showmare into the ground. “After being initially triggered, the cloud then operates by itself, gradually discharging its remaining lightning bolts at random times, but never in the same place twice. It wasn’t a particularly large cloud; only holding three bolts of lightning,” Trixie noted.

“Three?” Phoenix pondered, his hand on his chin again. Clouds contain bolts like guns do bullets? How does that even WORK here? he vowed to learn before he left. “But we only saw two impact points!”

“For once, you are correct, Mister Wrong,” she called him again with a grin, able to see for herself how much she was getting under his skin. “As Trixie stated earlier, the first bolt struck directly under the cloud where the late Mister Swift lay, killing him. The tree was hit by the third bolt, but as to the second… unfortunately, we were unable to determine where it went.”

“Wait! Then maybe it was—” Phoenix began.

Trixie cut him off hard. “Trixie knows what you are going to say and it’s not going to work!”

“But—”

“Do you truly think that Trixie would be so sloppy, Mister Wrong? The investigation team combed the entire perimeter of the crime scene and didn’t find any indication the second bolt hit the ground or any trees in proximity to the cloud. There were no burn marks found and no sign of damage to any of the trees or forest floor other than the ones already noted. It’s truly a mystery where this second bolt of lightning went,” Trixie conceded, shooting down his theory before he could even voice it.

Thwarted, Phoenix tried to change tactics. “Okay! Then, what if it—”

Trixie cut him off again. “Nor did it strike him in midair. Ace was found wearing a lightning-proof racesuit that protects the body from lightning—standard issue for all participants of the Equestrian 500, which involves flying through several storm-based airborne obstacle courses. The only reason the first bolt killed him is because it was aimed with precision at one of the exposed areas… by Rainbow Trash!” Trixie asserted, causing Rainbow to audibly snort in anger, pulling hard at her restraints.

Frustrated at her anticipating him yet again, Phoenix tried a third line of attack. “I still think that—”

She was still one hoof ahead of him, cutting him off yet again. “Give it up, Mister Wrong! Even if the second bolt struck the victim directly, it should still have passed right through him and touched the ground, leaving a burned area like the one under the cloud. This holds true even if he were struck while flying. Ergo, the second bolt could not have killed him, and thus the first bolt is the murder weapon!” Trixie concluded, and Phoenix finally fell silent under the weight of her very well-reasoned assertions.

“The prosecution’s logic is very sound, so I must overrule the defense’s objection,” The Judge ruled as he hammered down his gavel, making the decision final.

“But… but... I didn’t even get to finish my sentences!” Phoenix complained somewhat sheepishly.

“Very well, then—what were you going to say, Mister Wright?” The Judge asked.

Phoenix could only give a goofy, freshly embarrassed smile. “Well, uh… exactly… what… she said,” he admitted, inwardly conceding that Trixie was proving a much more difficult adversary than he would ever have imagined.

“Then the defense’s claims have been double overruled!” The Judge hammered his gavel hard twice to emphasize the point.

“What about the third lightning bolt? Is it possible that killed him instead?” Phoenix asked, grasping for anything he could use.

“Not even remotely.” Trixie looked like she was thoroughly enjoying rubbing Phoenix failures of deduction in his face, shooting down his alternate theories one by one. “Since the storm cloud was important evidence, it was left on the scene undisturbed and was still present by the time the police forensics team arrived. In fact, they personally witnessed the final bolt take down a tree just east of the crime scene, as Trixie will show you on this diagram of the clearing.”

Trixie’s horn glowed again with her trademark light blue aura. She levitated out a large, detailed map of the Everfree forest clearing from behind her rail and placed it on a mounting stand, releasing it and then picking up a long pointer in its place.

“Right here is where the first lightning bolt hit—directly above the body. We know it was set off at 8:40 PM,” she said, the magically-controlled pointer tapping the spot in the clearing where Phoenix and Twilight found the tape outline.

“The second one, as stated, is a mystery. We don’t know where it hit but we are certain a bolt of lightning left that cloud at 8:50 PM. The third bolt touched down at 11:35 PM when the investigation team was on the scene so we can completely rule it out of the crime. It just took down a tree right here.” Trixie next pointed out a spot on the west end of the crime scene, exactly where Phoenix and Twilight saw a felled tree the previous night.

So that’s what happened to that tree! Phoenix realized as Trixie floated a smaller copy of the diagram over to him and Twilight.

“But how are you so sure of the time the first two lightning bolts touched down?” the question had been nagging at him, studying the diagram more closely. He would have already objected on that basis, but was afraid he’d just be showing off his ignorance again.

Trixie quickly confirmed he was right to hold back. “Police forensics were able to use Cloud Ballistics to confirm the second bolt left the cloud at exactly 8:50 PM.”

Phoenix blinked and his jaw fell fractionally open again. ‘Cloud Ballistics’? You have GOT to be joking! he thought in disbelief, resisting the urge to facepalm. I better not question it though—I don’t want to get another penalty! he reminded himself, knowing that The Judge’s patience was generally limited to only five or six before he threw you right out of court and slapped you with a contempt citation, and sometimes it was even less than that. “And the first?” he followed up his previous question.

“That’s where Trixie’s eyewitness comes in!” she proclaimed theatrically, rearing up on her hind legs in delight and excitement over what she apparently thought was decisive testimony.

Twilight cast a worried look at Phoenix. “It must be Fluttershy,” she noted, having reached the same conclusion that Phoenix did.

“Since the first bolt was manually set off by a Pegasus, Cloud Ballistics is unable to confirm when it was fired, but luckily, we have an eyewitness who saw it,” Trixie announced.

“The court wishes to hear the testimony from this witness. Please bring them out?” The Judge requested.

“Trixie would be more than happy to, Your Honor!” With that, Trixie nodded to a unicorn bailiff, who went out and came back in a half-minute later, escorting an unseen somepony to the witness stand, his body shielding them from sight.

“State your name and occupation please,” Trixie asked calmly, though Phoenix, Twilight and even The Judge couldn’t see anypony in the witness box.

“Huh?” Phoenix said, breaking the awkward silence in the courtroom.

“Um… Where’s the witness?” The Judge asked in confusion.

“Ah’m down here!” A young, country-accented girl’s voice called, its source still unseen.

“That voice...” a surprised Twilight said, apparently recognizing its owner.

“Who is that? I thought Fluttershy is going to be the witness?” Phoenix asked her, feeling as confused as The Judge, who was only hearing a disembodied voice from the stand.

Twilight gave him an uncertain look, sparing a quick glance up into the stands where she shared a surprised look with an orange pony wearing a stetson hat. “I think it’s my friend’s younger sister. But what does she have to do with this?” she wondered aloud.

Phoenix shook his head. “Your guess is as good as mine.”

“Perhaps we should get some boxes for the witness to stand on,” Trixie suggested, which were promptly floated in by the unicorn bailiffs and stacked at the base of the stand. “There, much better,” she pronounced as a smiling and very cute young earth pony girl with yellow fur and a red mane stepped up, her head and shoulders now visible above the witness stand.

“Howdy!” the filly said with an eager smile and a thick country accent, a large pink bow adorning the back of her mane.

The Judge, to little surprise of Phoenix, went all dewy-eyed over the sight of the cute little earth pony filly in front of him. “Awwww, aren’t you the most adorable little thing!” he gushed over her without an ounce of shame.

Always a sucker for a pretty face, aren’t you, Your Honor? Phoenix couldn’t help but roll his eyes.

“Now then, witness. State your name and occupation,” Trixie asked the standard opening question.

“My name’s Apple Bloom! And I’m a CUTIE MARK CRUSADER!!!” she shouted, loud and proud.

The Judge looked as confused as Phoenix felt. “A cutie mark… what? I did my research of Equestria, but I never came across anything regarding ‘Crusaders’.”

“Uh… what the heck is a “Cutie Mark Crusader,” Twilight?” Phoenix asked his equine co-counsel in turn.

“It’s… um… kind of hard to explain,” she admitted to a still-baffled Phoenix before Trixie pulled their attention back to the case at hoof.

“We were informed by a resident of the Everfree Forest that this little filly was walking home the night of the murder. And sure enough, she witnessed the first lightning bolt,” Trixie explained. “The witness’s occupation or lack thereof doesn’t matter. What’s important is that she—”

Before Trixie could finish, the young earth pony cut her off. “What are you talking about? It does matter! As a Cutie Mark Crusader, it’s mah duty to crusade my talents everywhere so Ah can earn mah Cutie Mark! Even if only one-third of the team is here!” Apple Bloom insisted.

Phoenix rubbed his eyes and turned to Twilight again, confronted with yet another unfamiliar concept. “Ugh… I’m so confused! What on earth is a ‘Cutie Mark’, Twilight? Is it a nickname of her boyfriend ‘Mark’ or something?” he asked, trying to make sense of it all.

Twilight smiled knowingly at that. “A Cutie Mark is a symbol ponies earn when we find out our special talent. For example…” she shifted slightly to show him her flank, drawing his eyes to the starburst symbol on her hip. “The stars on mine represent my expertise in magic and love for stargazing!”

“That’s just… strange,” Phoenix said, his eyes lingering on her flank for a moment. Then again… actually, I wonder what MY cutie mark would be? Maybe a hand pointing an index finger filled with righteous justice! THAT would be amazing! he decided, hands on his hips and chest puffed out as he imagined how proud he would feel.

For her part, Trixie was getting steadily more irritated the longer she was ignored. “Listen… sweetie. Your job is to testify just like Trixie told you earlier,” she reminded Apple Bloom, trying to get her back on topic.

To her frustration, Apple Bloom continued to pay her no mind, instead turning her attention on the defense bench. “Hey! What are you?” the young filly asked while looking at Phoenix, studying him curiously.

“Huh? Me?” Phoenix looked back at the young filly.

STOP IGNORING THE GREAT AND POWERFUL TRIXIE!!” Trixie demanded, irritation boiling over.

Despite the raised voice, Apple Bloom continued to ignore the incensed mare magician, staring at the odd bipedal creature in front of her. “Yeah, you! What kinda pony are you? Ah’ve never seen anythin’ like you before!”

“I’m not a pony, Apple Bloom. I’m a human,” Phoenix replied, noting he was finally getting used to being gawked at.

“A human, huh? Is that your job?” Apple Bloom asked next.

He shook his head. “No, that’s my species. I’m a lawyer, if you’re wondering what my job is.”

“A ‘lawyer’? What’s that?” she next wanted to know.

Phoenix wasn’t sure how he’d been drawn into such a tangent, but answered anyway. You know, she is kind of endearing. I guess cute kids can be found no matter where you go! “A lawyer is someone who defends people accused of crimes, using logic and evidence to argue how the crime could have been committed by someone else,” Phoenix explained to the young filly, trying to keep the concept as simple as possible.

She gave him an odd look. “So your job is to… argue?” Apple Bloom latched onto the one word, seemingly making sure she heard him right.

Phoenix scratched his chin at that. “Well, yes. I guess you could say that,” he admitted with a glance at Twilight.

To his surprise, Apple Bloom got excited. “Ah knew it! Ah knew it! There is a cutie mark for arguin’! Wait till Ah tell Sweetie Belle ‘n Scootaloo! This means we’ve been goin’ about it all wrong! We can be—” she took a deep breath “—CUTIE MARK CRUSADER LAWYERS!!!” she announced, loud and proud once again.

Phoenix resisted the urge to facepalm. The future of criminal justice is looking pretty bleak right now…

“Witness! Let’s get back on topic! Testify as to what you saw last night!” Trixie commanded, getting very frustrated with the young filly.

“No! This is boring! Ah’m losing valuable crusading time ‘cause of you!

Trixie’s jaw fell open. “W-WHAT?!”

“Ah don’t have to listen to you! You’re that snotty and stuck-up showoff Applejack told me about!” Apple Bloom said, taking Trixie aback and causing roars of laughter to erupt from the audience.

“SNOTTY and STUCK-UP?! Why…! You…!” the showmare sputtered, nearing the verge of madness, a sudden but brief breeze stirring her papers.

“You tell her, Apple Bloom!!!” another country-accented female voice called out from the stands, in between guffaws from the rest of the gallery.

I’m actually kind of enjoying this! Phoenix admitted to himself, unable to keep the smile off his face or his hand off his head. But is it just me, or did it just get a couple degrees colder in here…?

Trixie saw his pose and glared daggers at him. “The defense will wipe that stupid grin off his ugly mug and the witness will cooperate!” she demanded again, the face Phoenix was making and Apple Bloom’s insults only enraging her further.

Finally, The Judge interceded, drawing attention back to himself with a rap of his gavel. “Witness… I know you’d much rather be out playing with your friends, but could you please testify for us? Then you can do all the crusading you want! It won’t take long at all,” he reassured her in a polite, placating voice that made Phoenix think he was speaking less as a judge at that moment than a grandfather. “Besides, maybe you’re a—oh! I know!! A CUTIE MARK CRUSADER WITNESS TESTIFIER!!!” he shouted just as Apple Bloom had.

This time, Phoenix did facepalm, as did Trixie, most of the bailiffs and half the gallery. Your Honor—how much shame do you have left after saying something like that? he wanted to ask, certain that The Judge had completely lost his marbles.

But far from embarrassed, Apple Bloom’s eyes lit up. “Wow! Ya know, Ah think yer right, Mister! Reckon that cutie mark is as good as mine!” she agreed in renewed excitement.

Though Trixie’s expression looked to Phoenix like she was being made to suffer fools, she took a deep breath and cleared her throat, starting over. “Very well, witness. If you truly want to earn your cutie mark in courtroom testimony, then all you need to do is tell everypony what you told Trixie earlier,” she said with a plastered-on smile as placatingly as she could, trying hard not to roll her eyes.

“Ah can’t wait! Alrighty then, here Ah go! CUTIE MARK CRUSADER WITNESS TESTIFIER!!!Apple Bloom shouted at the top of her lungs before beginning her testimony; both Phoenix and Twilight awaiting her statements with bated breath.

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