A Game of Skill

[Fraze]

With no other options readily available, you reluctantly resort to animal testing. This being winter, however, all of the wasps have either died or gone into hibernation, so you can't find any to test.
However, this being a castle, there is no shortage of mice. After some scrambling around, you manage to capture four mice and keep them in a cage. Your request for a sample of wasp poison is met with a great deal of suspicion, for obvious reasons, and after a great deal of debate it is finally decided that you will conduct the test in the dungeons, with guards watching the poison barrel, to make sure that none of the poison gets taken away.
You observe all of the mice for an hour, and while they appear scared, they all seem to be in good health.
You put each mouse in a separate cage. You give the first one some of the brandy in a small bowl. It takes a drink, and dies less than a minute later. The same thing happens to the mouse that is fed just the poison, and the one given the poison and brandy together.
The control mouse survives the whole ordeal, and you let it loose in the woods.

When you complete the test, you find Maxwell again. "Ah, you again. Well, what were your findings?"

[Draco]

"Posion is poison. Brandy is poison. Both together is poison. Still not exactly sure if the poison was placed in the brandy, but the brandy is indeed deadly."

He stares at the bottle of brandy.

"So, might want to check other bottles before drinking in the future. Just to be safe. But for now, we know this one isn't any good, and is most likely the killing device. We still have to figure out who exactly did it."

He shrugs a little trying to remember everything about who handled the bottle that night.

"We'll have to meet with that servant later. But we also have a meeting with the Queen."

[Kristykimmy]

Though a little downhearted about the experiment, Kristy was glad it was over with a definite result.

"But," a thought striking her. "Are we sure that it was the brandy, though, and not the apples? Those smelled like the poison too. In either case, maybe the queen will be able to clear some things up for us since she said she'd meet with us after we found out if the brandy was poisoned or not."

[Pixie]

"So I guess the assassin really wanted the king dead if he was given two poisons. Or maybe the poisons by themselves aren't enough to kill a man- rats are much smaller than humans and can only take so much ."

[Celestial]

Celestial chewed on the pipe, still feeling a little responsible for the senseless death of the mice. However, the result was quite surprising.

"Emma, if that is the case, we have to repeat the experiment since we were supposed to do it proportionately, accounting for weight differences and the physiology of the mice. It was as far as we can make it," she said, taking the pipe out and twirling it between her fingers, looking at Maxwell. "Perhaps there were two assassins? One poisoned the apples, another poisoned the brandy independently."

[Fraze]

As the Queen's letter stated, Maxwell makes a public announcement to the castle detailing your findings. Shortly after that, he leads you personally to the upper levels of the castle, down a hallway, and to a room with an ornate door and a guard on each side. He nods at the guards, and they open the door.

The Queen sits at a desk, writing a something on parchment with a quill pen. The butler clears his throat, and the Queen looks up. "Your majesty," he begins, bowing. You realize you should probably do the same. "These...investigators have examined the brandy bottle and found that it contained poison. As per your instructions, I have brought them to meet with you."

"I see." The Queen scrutinizes the players, as if trying to read their life stories. "You may enter," she tells the dwarves. "And Maxwell," she adds. The butler, who had been about to walk away, spins around on the spot. "It would be best if you stayed. Close the door."
"Y--yes, your Majesty." The prospect of standing still seems to disturb Maxwell, but he obeys.

You enter the room, and draw closer to the Queen's desk. "I have tested your intentions," she begins, "though you might not yet realize it. You passed my test, so I have decided to trust you. Had you failed, you would be locked in the dungeons right now."
The Queen stands. She is tall and thin, almost gaunt, and appears to have aged beyond her years. "I am almost certain that I know who killed my husband. I could tell you who it was, but I think that it is better if you see for yourself." She walks over to a table, where something is covered by a white sheet. She pulls off the sheet, and you see a hanging wall mirror laying flat. "This mirror has been kept by the royal family for centuries. It sees everything that happens in the kingdom, and it will show whatever is asked of it, but it only answers to the Queen."

She beckons you to come closer. The glass is shattered, and appears to have been painstakingly pieced back together. "Unfortunately, it was broken two months ago. I had been keeping it on the door to the dungeons, in the hope that it would serve as a reminder to anyone entering with ill intentions. I realize now that this was foolish. The mirror mysteriously broke and nobody stepped forward, but it was treated as an unfortunate accident.
"I have been able to reconstruct most of the face, but there are still three small shards missing. It can answer my questions, but its answers are...shattered."
She touches the edge of the mirror. The face glows dimly and seems to sputter, and swirls of almost-coherent images display on its surface. "Show me the last thing you saw in front of you before you were broken."
The face of the mirror clouds over, and gradually, an image forms. However, the image appears to be fractured, with different pieces mixed around.
The Queen holds one hand over the mirror's face. "Screen capture," she murmurs. She then lifts something off of the face of the mirror: a picture on paper, identical to the one shown by the mirror itself.
She hands the paper to the players. "This is the image of the person who broke the mirror. It is somebody that I believe you will recognize. You may reassemble it here. Tell me when you are done, and I will explain more."

((In case you didn't catch it, the above link is a jigsaw puzzle. Put it together, and either post a screenshot or a thorough description of the finished image. The puzzle might not work for everybody--I apologize if this is the case, but we only really need one person to put the image together.))

[Celestial]

Celestial bows, "Of course, your Majesty."

Despite the fact that she enjoys puzzles like this, the mage's lack of dexterity in the form of a dwarf means that she takes longer than usual to put the picture together. By all logic the picture should have been an extreme close up of whatever it was that broke it, such as a hammer for example, but the face is still pretty clear.

SPOILER: Click to show

Once she is done, she steps back, puts the pipe in her mouth and opens it just so the pipe can clatter dramatically onto the cobblestones. She turns to the Games Masters queen, awaiting answers.

[♥ Azzie]

Azalea looked at the picture. "Does this mean-?" she gasped. "But why?" It made so little sense, and yet...
She turned to the Queen. "What's going on, Your Majesty?"

[Pixie]

((I just would like to say that while celestial posted that, I was working on the puzzle too. It took me a little over a half an hour to complete it, but by then the picture was already out. . Also, just a guess, but I think the women in the picture is Brenda.))

[Kristykimmy]

((The puzzle was fun. =D ))

Kristy looks over Celestial's shoulder at the picture.

"No way, is that...?" she lets her question trail off in confusion, looking to the queen for confirmation.

((It is Snow White, right?))

[Tiger]

((Think it's Snow White, too. Also, I finished the puzzle in twelve minutes and uploaded it to photobucket and came to post it...two minutes after Celestial. I'm just failing all around at being helpful this round! XP ))

Tiger frowned at the image. She'd been silent the past few days, mysteries not quite being her strong suite. The trial with the mice had driven her mood even farther south, though there had been no other choice. Even if her magic was working, her mist animals' magical properties could have interfered with the poisons.

She set her thoughts aside, leaning over the table. "Hm. That could explain a lot...although I still have some questions."

[Some time ago]

Some time ago...

"Sir, I have a proposal for your next story."
"Ah, good. What is the setting?"

...

"Ooh. I've been interested in that story plane for some time. I recall the Horsemen having trouble there. It sounds good so far. What is the proposal?"

...

"A mysterious circus, incorporating a framework tale and four other story planes? That sounds excellent, you've really outdone yourself. It just needs to be completed."

"I beg your pardon?"

"Oh, come on. The traveling performers roll into town, they put on a show and everyone loves it. But they always need to take something before they leave. Something more than money. What do they take?"

"Well yes, sir, about that..."

[Fraze]

"Indeed," the Queen answers to the assorted exhortations. "It seems that the last person the mirror saw at the door to the dungeon was the Princess herself. Even without this piece of evidence, she is still the most reasonable suspect, because she has the most to gain. If she manages to kill the King and lay the blame on me, then she will ascend to the throne.
"I am sure that you have your doubts. This is reasonable. Surely my route to the throne would be more direct, if the King passes away. Add to that, it is widely known that chemistry is an interest of mine. And given my husband's...extracurricular activities, surely I have some degree of jealousy. I will not deny this last, but that is no reason for me, or anyone affected by his charms, to want to kill him."

The Queen walks across the room, managing to pace while still looking regal. "Even if my face is not on its coins, I already rule the kingdom. My husband was the head of the royal family, but he did little to govern. It was I who guided his hand when proposing laws, directing policy, and dealing with neighboring countries. I consider this my duty, and I do it gladly. However, I can serve my land much more effectively when my own life is not in danger. So no, if brought down to the level of basest ambitions, it was in my best interests to keep him alive. But more than that...I did care for him, despite his flaws."

She pauses for a moment, to gather her thoughts. "Unfortunately, tearful words and impassioned speeches alone are not enough to prove my innocence. If I were judging this trial, I would not accept such testimony unless it came alongside solid proof. It is that proof that I need from you, noble dwarves. My life is in danger, I must tread carefully, but you can go where I cannot. I hope that you can find the final joints that make this contraption move."

The Queen picks up a piece of paper from her desk. It seems to have a list written on it. "There were several things that I found to be odd. I believe that they will all fit together somehow, but I can only conjecture at this point. First, there is the problem of the poison on the apples. The poison in question is potassium cyanide, which is also what was in the brandy bottle. I tested both sources myself. The problem is, had the poisoned apples been put into a pie and baked, the process would have released enough cyanide gas to make the entire kitchen staff seriously ill, if not kill them outright. I do not know how this happened, but the simplest explanation is that it was added some time later.
"Second, the Princess excused herself from the banquet. I found this odd at the time, but did not want to make it into a confrontation. Thinking back, however, she left right after the bottle was brought out. She stayed in her bedroom for the next several hours, and was not even disturbed with the King's death. Royal wishes can be inconvenient in that way. Several servants brought her up to her room and left when she was there, and nobody checked on her until several hours afterward.
"Finally, there is the issue of the mirror. I only just finished reassembling the it the day after the King died; if I had been faster, perhaps this could all have been avoided." The Queen's voice becomes strained, and she stops speaking for a moment before continuing.
"In this image, it seems that she is holding a sheet up to the mirror. I suspect this was to muffle the sound of the blow that broke it. But also, like I said, three small pieces are missing." She points out three gaps. "The entire dungeon level was searched thoroughly on my orders, not a speck of dust was thrown out until it had passed inspection, but these pieces were never recovered.I suspect that the Princess took them, to prevent the mirror from working properly. The mirror is a powerful tool for a queen, and I am sure that she wants to continue to use it. I think it is highly likely that she is keeping these pieces somewhere on her person. This is your most important task, but also the most difficult: if you can prove that she has been keeping these three pieces of the mirror, then the rest will fall into place."
She sighs. "This will be dangerous for you, but please continue to help me. If you need any assistance, ask Maxwell." The butler, who seemed to be lost in his own thoughts, raises his head upon being addressed. "He has been my faithful servant for many years. If you believe me, then you should rely him as well; if you do not trust me, then neither should you trust him."

She raises a finger. "Oh yes, and one more thing. I told you that I had tested you. I found your presence suspicious, and thought it likely that you were working for the Princess. If this was so, then she would have wanted you to note the cyanide on the apples, but not in the brandy. So, if you had found nothing wrong with the brandy, then I knew that it would be likely either that you were lying, in which case you were probably working for the Princess; or that somebody had tampered with the bottle. Thankfully for all of us, you found the poison and answered honestly."

She picks up the letter she had been writing when you walked in, and hands Maxwell the letter. It now bears the royal wax seal. "If I die, take your family and go to the kingdom to the south immediately. Give this to the king. He is an old friend of mine, and will give you protection."

Maxwell takes the letter, and looks at it. He swallows. "Thank you, milady." He bows, turns, and leaves the room.

The Queen turns back to address the players. "If you have any questions, ask them now. If not, then I wish you luck and urge you to continue your search."

[Pixie]

Ellen gasped at the sight, the recognition flooding back. She gave a cry of exclamation before calming down enough to ask "The Princess sought us out. What do you think she could gain by sending dwarfs out to investigate a crime she very might well have committed? And is their anything in the mirror shards a magnet could pick up?"

[Kristykimmy]

Kristy frowns, but realizes that the Princess has just as much motive to want the king dead, maybe more with illegitimate half brothers running around.

"Milady, is there anyone besides the Princess you can think of who might have wanted the king dead? Despite the fact that the Princess may very well have broken the mirror, there could be other reasons for that than covering her tracks in preparation for a murder. We don't want to too quickly narrow our sights to one or two suspects at this point and risk missing the real culprit. Also, who is the Princess close to here in the castle? Talking with her friends could yield clues if she is responsible."