Quests & Challenges

[center][img]https://images2.imgbox.com/88/cd/sI3Dial9_o.png[/img] On the border between the Wandering Contagion and Reedcliff Ascent rests a solitary, slightly dilapidated building. A wooden sign swings on rusty hinges above the door, [i]Sornieth's Sleuths[/i] is scratched deep into the plank by a dragon's claw. The inside of the building smells sharp of cigars and stale coffee. Papers are strewn across desks, and a beaten record player spits smooth jazz between jumps. While it doesn't look like much, this office serves as a gathering place for some of the best minds across different clans to come together and solve Sornieth's most pressing mysteries. The current mystery is a gristly one. The circus performer, Zephiel, was pronounced dead on the scene after a tragic tumble down a set of stairs. Four suspects are currently being held for questioning, including a seasoned warrior supposedly on vacation, a strange Veilspun floating through from the Southern Icefields, a swamp-witch Nocturne who speaks in riddles and rhyme, and a little living plush known as PushPin. A large corkboard on the side of the wall has pictures of the victim and each suspect, but it's becoming increasingly difficult to connect the clues. Will Sornieth's greatest detectives be able to solve the mystery and get justice for Zephiel, or will the murderer get away unpunished?

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This is a community-driven who-done-it challenge!

Over the course of this investigation, you will find several clues spread throughout Plague's dominance threads. These clues can be hidden in the Rules, Badges, Prizes, etc. of the thread, or in the comments. Interact with the threads and hunt for clues!

As soon as you find what you believe may be a clue to the case, take a screenshot and post it as a comment in this thread for everyone to discuss. Each clue leads us one step closer to find who may have murdered poor Zephiel!

Each clue will be listed below in the Current Clue Breakdown post, as well as the Current Ideas & Theories will be listed below it.

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ZEPHIEL One of the primary performers of Cirque D'amour, Zephiel is a feisty and overconfident dragon with a penchant for mischief. When it isn't dazzling the audience with its trained Storm Seekers, it's known to be quite the bully. The fame has gone straight to its head and caused it to pick fights with other dragons and ignore old debts. Zephiel's employer says that its murder was 'unfortunate, but not unexpected' and that Cirque D'amour will miss Zephiel's performances... but not its personality.

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SEVIS "Hm? What do you want? Questions? I suppose I'm free right now. I'm a warrio- hm. I... was... a warrior. As you can see, I'm not much capable of fighting anymore." He laughs dryly, vaguely motioning to the cloth around his eyes. "Those days are long gone." "I know Zephiel through... well... we often get into conflicts, is a polite way to put it. I admit that we never saw eye to eye, excuse the pun. It often loved hearing its own voice, most of the time to its own detriment. I believe their favourite thing in the world was its own voice." The dragon scoffs, and you can tell that he's rolling his eyes under the blindfold. "But it's rude of me to speak badly about the dead, isn't it? So I'll refrain from saying much else." "Where I was at the time of the incident? When was the incident?" He pauses, his head turning as he thinks. "...Most likely at the tavern. Yes, one of them around the area. I frequent many. Of course, you can ask around. I have nothing to hide."

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VASHJ The nocturne glances at you through the sockets of the skull atop her head. You wonder the origin of it, then maybe decide it's best that you keep your curiosity. "Me? Hmm. You may call me Vashj, if you would like. Or, you may call me whatever the spirits in the wind call me. That's what Zephiel did, after all. Well... considering how it ended up... maybe you should refrain from following its footsteps." "Zephiel and I? Oh, we are not close. However, Sephis and I go back many, many years. Our history is complex and intertwining, like the branches of The Behemoth... with that, of course, comes many, many favours. None that you will learn anytime soon, detective." "I was in my home. There are many things I attend to throughout the day, and the upkeep of my cauldron is one of them. No, there was no one with me at the time; not many would like to be associated with me. Zephiel made plenty sure of that."

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WISP The veilspun flitters around you, seemingly unable to stay still. It takes a few minutes for you to plead with the dragon to settle down, and eventually, it does so on the desk across from you, a wide grin on faer face. "Hm? Oh, you wanted to talk to me? How dull. But if it's about Zeph, sure! We were best friends. We hung out constantly, it was great. It's really all I did, y'know? Didn't have much else to do. Until, y'know, they died." Faer mouth forms a small frown and fae becomes silent for a few seconds. "It really understood me, y'know? It 'n I, we... we were somethin' different." Fae takes a few seconds to reorient faeself, then looks back up at you, head tilted. "I was off in the woods when it happened. There's a nice, cool brook down south of the woods entrance. Cold 'n reminds me of home. Sometimes I miss it there. Zeph would've liked it, I think." Wisp hops off the desk, fluttering around you once more as fae stares at you, eyes glimmering. "Hope you find the murderer," fae says with a smile before flying off without another word.

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PUSH & PIN The aberration is busy fighting over a ragged sock, torn and used to the point of holes and fraying. It takes a few minutes for you to get their attention, and it's then when they drop the sock, seemingly forgetting about it as they look at you. "Hi!" one head chirps. "What're ya here for? Oh, about Zeph?" The stare at each other for a few seconds, then look back at you. "I think we played tag the other day," the other head said. "We're not friends or anything, but we sure do love playing games! So we played with Wisp and Zeph and... and... maybe some others?" They shrugged, then the left head picks the sock back up, chewing on it. "I don't remember what we were doing when the accident happened," the right head continued. "Anyway, you wanna play hide and seek?" You politely decline and excuse yourself, glancing at the torn sock as the two resume fighting over it.

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• A mocktail that wasn't sold at the Mocktail Bar was found at the scene of the crime. We don't know where it came from, but all the ingredients come from Ice.

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• Since all the mocktail items came from Ice, detectives looked into Wisp, as faer an Ice dragon.
• When asking Wisp about the mocktail, fae mentioned that there were rumors of a way to foster these plants and animals outside of their native environment/region, specifically linked to magic and alchemy

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Special thanks to:

ShyBagwitch for helping out with coding, storyline, and many more things!
ufology for the art of Push/Pin & Wisp, along with organization & lore assistance!
Evmodus for lore suggestions, inspiration, & general organizational help!
SoftFrogger for lore blurbs of the Suspects!
DepressoDad for the Zephiel's icon, lore blurb, and use of Zephiel for the event!

[quote name="@Eelation" date="2024-12-22 12:10:38" ] Been super excited for this event, though I'm honestly not the best at putting clues together for mysteries >~< Figured I'd still try my best to contribute and leave this thing I found over at the mocktail bar, since it is suspicious! A mocktail being left at the crime is curious, and begs the question of who left it there. [quote][img]https://www1.flightrising.com/static/cms/trinket/7683.png[/img][img]https://www1.flightrising.com/static/cms/food/6.png[/img][img]https://www1.flightrising.com/static/cms/food/124.png[/img][img]https://www1.flightrising.com/static/cms/food/83.png[/img][img]https://www1.flightrising.com/static/cms/food/990.png[/img] "Oh...? Looks like we found another mocktail left behind at the scene of the crime. This one isn't for sale, as we aren't quite sure where to source the ingredients... who could've brought this here?"[/quote] [/quote] Great find! Something I've noticed is all the food items share one thing in common- they're all found in Ice. Not sure if that's relevant but it could be a clue? Wisp also looks like faer an ice dragon.

Not sure what to do with this, but the spot-the-difference has this picture. Looks like there's some shattered glass at the scene. Not sure if all the other items were there during the crime or if they belong to the investigators, though [quote name="SoftFrogger" date="2024-12-23 16:45:43" ] [center][b]Sunday[/b] [img]https://i.imgur.com/Mg6ptyJ.png[/img] [img]https://i.imgur.com/cmhbVhu.png[/img][/center] [/quote]

@Eelation @Dormiebasne [size=4][i]You show [u]Wisp[/u] the mocktail, and a look of sadness flashes across faer face for a moment. [/i] [rule] [columns][img]https://i.imgur.com/6IW7nRU.png[/img] [nextcol][font=garton][size=5]"Ah, this is a familiar drink... It's been years since I've last been in the Southern Icefield though, and I didn't bring much when I came here. Hard to carry a lot when you're a Veilspun! Oh, but y'know what? I've heard rumors of a way to foster these plants and animals outside of their native environment; something to do with magic and alchemy. I wouldn't know the details, not my thing. Do you think someone here is doing that?"[/columns] [rule]