Hinckley

"I was going to whine about that too. I was under the impression that I could unlock every door on the ship, but apparently that doesn't include combo locks." "Is there any significance to Jason and Pierce visiting each other's cabins?"

"Jason, Pierce, could one of you open this closet?" I am asking Jason or Pierce to open the damn closet.

"If Ezra is down in storage and our sensors are so useless that they just say 'front of the ship' as opposed to 'storage' then that's bullshit. If someone was in the Captain's quarters, we really wouldn't know if they were there or 1A? We should not waste any more time here. " @Bob it would also be helpful to have the room assignments in the first post, thank you!

"You're offering me a bottle that you stole from my private stash? Gee, thanks."

I'd like to open the closet with my security code. I'd like to scan my key card.

"Hangover? You only get a hangover if you stop drinking."

I would like to check the sensors for life signs again. "Is someone planning to blow up the moon?"

We're done arguing, take us to the bridge!!

"Blah blah blah blah blah. I hate people but I love my engine. I would never do anything to hurt her. And as much as I hate people, I don't think anybody deserves to be murdered. I've been very proactive in trying to get to the bottom of this. I've been given the most information out of anybody and I shared it all with you...eventually. Minus a couple of things. But those are only fail-safes I triggered in case anybody tries to mess with the systems further or attempts to escape. Telling you what I've done would only clue the culprit into how to get around it."

"I think you'll find the coveralls are exactly my size. It's easy to tell just by looking at them actually, since we're all not the exact same body shape. Being the only Engineer on the ship, I think it's obvious to everyone that the engineering coveralls are mine. But go ahead and keep them. If you think it's sociopathic to leave things in people's rooms, I'd like to point out that I haven't stolen anything from anybody. Perhaps you don't see what you're doing as stealing, but that's most likely just the entitlement you feeling from having the power of public office for so many years. Don't worry, I don't blame you. Power always goes to people's heads." "Honestly, did any of you think that I, of all people, when given access to everyone's room wouldn't choose to fuck with people? I suggest you all stop clutching your pearls about it and move on." Gabriella finishes off her martini. "Arthur, dear, could you please mix me another? Feel free to use my private stash since running back and forth to the lounge seems silly. Also, I'm willing to share. Isn't that nice and non-sociopathic of me? If any of you had extra booze on you, I wouldn't steal it from you then claim it must belong to anybody. Just saying... "

"If you're losing it over me leaving the Captain's biography and a Marvin the Martian plushie in people's rooms, it doesn't sound like you're in touch enough with people's real problems to be a lawmaker. Perhaps being at the top for too long has left you out of touch with your constituents. Not to mention, it's never a good idea to provoke a sociopath. I might leave a plushie in your medicine cabinet. " "Typically, people ask before they go taking someone else's clothes. Or do you think I'm some sort of handmaid for you? " Gabriella sips her martini while side-eyeing Charlotte. I would like to take my coveralls back and anything Charlotte found while digging through the pockets.

I would like to raise the bridge on the nearest terminal and ask Jason and Pierce if Ezra is there with them.

"Captain, Bennet, it's Falcon and Foster who are also missing. They're on the bridge." "If Ezra isn't on the bridge, but is in that gigantic storage area, that's fine by me. I'd rather check the bridge to ensure that our fellow crew members are safe!"

Gabriella takes a sip of her martini, then spits it out. "If Ezra is on the bridge, what the fuck would he be doing there? He shouldn't even have access! Shouldn't we get there immediately to ensure he isn't killing Jason or Pierce?" If we have time as we rush over to the bridge, and I assume we have like 24 hours, I'd like to scan every keycard to learn which doors which passenger opened and at what times.

Gabriella goes to a terminal and continues clicks button after button, assuming she can find what she's looking for then finally gives up and says, " @Bob Can we get the ship map posted in the first post of the chapter please? That would be helpful. Maybe with indicators of where we've already been? Please and thank you."

I'd like to unlock the compartment with the keycode I obviously know since this is my Engineering bay. "I'm pretty sure that's mine." OK, so Ezra is at the front of the ship and alive? It's not sensing Alfie in the freezer because he's dead? How does the sensor sense life signs? Is it one word because it's a brand of watch or something that people wear?? Is it actual signs of life? "If so, we should find him right away. Perhaps he's been almost murdered and can tell us who did it before he dies!" I would like to recall exactly where I was before the drive shut down. "1. I already explained why I did it, try to listen. 2. I'm not staff, I'm a member of the ship's crew 3. Get your hands off my stash. "Did you learn nothing from Senorita Teapot Smasher?"

"Thank you for the drink! " Gabriella takes a sip of her fresh martini. "You know, you're being kind of an ass. I did all of that before anybody was murdered. I haven't broken into anyone's room or left weird things since the drive shut down. I'm not delusional, I'm a sociopath. And I was bored. It felt like we were in that lounge for a week and nothing was happening." Gabriella sips her martini. Gabriella sips her martini again. "I thought it made sense. That's how other mysteries I've been involved in have proceeded. The killer didn't know until the evidence was presented, just like everybody else. If we win by answering the most questions correctly, how would the killer not know the most if they were informed ahead of time? And I won't show up in the logs the way that old lady is suggesting. I wasn't the one who entered Engineering just before the drive was shut down. I know that."

"Oh you know, just 'cuz I hate the passengers. Oliver is an artist. Pfft. Must be nice to draw stupid pictures and have people pay you millions of dollars for them. The book was just the first step. I was going to leave something there every night to make him believe the Captain was interested in him. You know, sexually?" Gabriella waits for confirmation that she's understood, but people are just staring blankly at her, so she continues. "As for Jack, his books are so self-aggrandizing. Why do we need all of his personal struggles about his planetary exploration? Tell me all the information about the planet without being pretentious and over-dramatic. So, I left a martian in his medicine cabinet because I found it humorous." Gabriella finishes off her martini. "Can you be a dear and make me another? You really know how to mix, I'll give you that. Damn." "Right??? I mean, DUH!" Gabriella is so shocked at the accusation of being selfish that her mouth drops open and her hair bagels pops up like a question mark. "It's not selfish. I just thought that since it's a game and the person who answers the most questions right wins, if I kept info to myself, or sneaked into people's rooms and left false evidence—which I haven't gotten around to yet—then I would get the most answers right, I would win. It's not selfish, it's a strategy. A strategy to make me win, so it's...self-centered, not selfish. Right?" Gabriella fixes her hair bagel. "As for being the killer, I might be. We all might be. The killer doesn't know they're the killer yet. At least, that's what I'm assuming about the setup...of life. My name, however, will not pop up in the logs. To make up for being self-centered, I'll share with everybody that I've learned the person who shut the FTL drive down was not me." Gabriella smiles. "Oh no, a politician doesn't like me. Whatever will I do? "

I'm not a Gabby, Gabriella thinks to herself in response to Arthur's train of thought. "You can assuage my fears by not being a murderer." "As for the key cards, this was my original plan, though I had wanted to do it stealthily to keep information from everybody so that I could win the game. 1. We should check all of our key cards with the security terminal to assess who has accessed which doors and when. I was keeping the Captain's key card for myself to see if I could ascertain her activity, but I suppose it would be best if everyone had that information. Full disclosure, I have the same access the Captain and Arthur have, every room on the ship. As we're about to reveal who accessed whose room and when, I was the one who left the book in Oliver's room and the Marvin the Martian in Jack's medicine cabinet. As long as we're on the subject, how ignorant of pop culture are you? It's Marvin the Martian, not a demon: Honestly... "2. Once I get my answer on how many people are in each room, I will try to ascertain who was where prior to the data being manipulated. The sensor data should be able to tell us how many people were in each room just prior to the drive being shut down or the sensor data was manipulated. Hopefully I can word the request in a way that will give us pertinent information." "One point I would like to make is that the murderer is unlikely to be anyone who had access to every room. If one of us wanted to kill Alfie, we would've just used our keycard...although, if we wanted to do it without anyone knowing, we might shut down the ship's systems...although again, we would probably be able to manipulate the ship's sensor systems to temporarily not track our keys..." Gabriella scratches her hair bagel and sips her martini.

"OK, I'll try to explain what I've already done in here. I came directly here once the power went out and the ship lurched into standard propulsion. It didn't take long to get the FTL drive back online. It is relatively simple to maintain, which is why I'm the only Engineer on board. I don't want to be too specific about how it works since someone on board has already sabotaged it and the more they know, the more likely they are to be able to do something again. If we get closer to finding Alfie's killer, they may try to sabotage the ship again and escape. But, don't worry. I think I put something in place to alert us to any such activity, though I won't specifically say what ." Gabriella takes a sip of her martini. "As I'm sure you all know, the FTL drive is a helical drive. Elecromagnets fire particles at each other so it operates much like a particle collider, harnessing that energy to propel us through space without the need for fuel. The grease comes from keeping the mechanisms that aim the magnets. When the drive is reset, the mechanisms need to be reset and that's how I ended up with all of the grease on me. Once the drive was back up, I was able to turn the other systems back on, which is when I realized the life support systems hadn't been manipulated, but all of our security sensor systems had, including lights and door locks. Re-booting those systems is simple with the right access. Once the security system was back up, I tried to access what data I could regarding who was in here before the shutdown and who was in here afterwards. One individual was in here before the shutdown and afterwards there were four. I was one of them, and I was soon joined by Captain Bennett. Falcon and Foster joined us soon after, accounting for the four individuals to access this room after the shutdown. Since this is not a Naval vessel, the sensor data does not identify individuals. Our security practices don't currently require identification in our sensors. I can only determine how many individuals are on the ship at a given time and where they are." Gabriella slaps herself in the hair bagel and goes to the security terminal. "Oh duh! Why didn't I think of this earlier?" I would like to check the ship's sensors to determine where Ezra Parry is. Or rather, due to the security's limited capabilities, how many people are in each room? " :blush: Anyway, I attempted to access the keystroke data, but it has been erased. I tried to figure out how the perpetrator erased the keystroke data, but found several indicators that sensor data had been manipulated, so whoever did this has knowledge about a ship's security systems, which is why my endeavor to build a friendship with Arthur is on hold. As for the monitors and buttons. Most of these terminals are system terminals for the ship. While the drive is incredibly sophisticated, it doesn't take very much to operate it. The screen here monitors the collider feeding sensor information to all of these dials which monitor the operation for safety. This board with the dials is ensuring that the drive is operating within the safety limits of such a potentially violent process. If there's any information you'd like me to get from any of the system monitors, just ask." Gabriella takes a self-conscious sip of her martini. "Any questions?"

"I did all of that. The data was manipulated."

"Engineering sounds good. Sorry about the suggestion to check the kitchen. I thought Noah looking towards it after the shutdown meant something. Apparently, not. But at least we had pie!"

I would like to open the drawers and rustle through them.

I'd like to help move Alfie's corpse to the freezer so I can check under his sheets and mattress. @Bob

Let's search the kitchen!