”What do you mean that Ruck killed her?” Anna asked.
None of us had been prepared for that curveball.
“She was killed in a hit and run sometime yesterday evening before the party. Witness statements said that it was an orange pickup truck. The description sounded just like the one that Ruck was driving. They had paint chips from the scene.” Camden said.
"Oh..."
"In real life, it would be a coincidence, but... I doubt it is here," Camden said.
“OK, but what does this have to do with him getting murdered?” Kimberly asked.
None of us knew.
Was it possible that someone from the party knew this girl? If so, how would they have known that Ruck was responsible?
“He did almost hit the house when he pulled into the driveway,” Anna said. “He had been drinking.”
“But who would have known so quickly?” I asked. “It doesn't make sense.”
The murder victim in a whodunnit having a dark secret is not unusual. However, this was really late in the movie to find out about it. I couldn't figure out how this fit into the larger puzzle.
“In any case," I said. “We have to look into Evan. Only one person could have known that I was at the house at the time of the murder, and that's the killer. Either he is Ranger Danger or Ranger Danger told him that I was there.”
Evan was the best suspect so far, even if we didn’t know the motive.
“I'm not going to be able to do that,” Antoine said. “The game is today so unless this story ends before then I'm probably going to get forced into playing.”
It hit me.
“You will be forced into playing,” I said. “Think of it. We're being hunted by someone dressed as a football team's mascot. I'll bet anything that he's there.”
“He'll blend right in,” Anna said.
“Exactly.”
With Second Blood approaching, these were our stats and abilities:
Player Stats and Tropes
Riley
Antoine
Anna
Kimberly
Camden
Archetype
Film Buff
Athlete
Final Girl
Eye Candy
Scholar
Plot Armor
/ 2
+ 2
Mettle
+ 1
Moxie
Hustle
+ 1
Savvy
Grit
TROPE MASTER
Type: Insight
Stat: Savvy
Effect: Sees enemy tropes. Lose half of PA
IT’S PART OF THE UNIFORM
Type: Buff
Stat: N/A
Effect: Higher Mettle when attacking with sports equipment
LAST ONE ALIVE
Type: Rule
Stat: N/A
Effect: Cannot die until the party is killed
CONVENIENT BACKSTORY
Type: Buff
Stat: Moxie
Effect: Can change backstory to assist with the current task.
EUREKA!
Type: Insight
Stat: Savvy
Effect: Helps find important information with text.
CINEMA SEER—SURVIVE
Type: Buff
Stat: Savvy
Effect: Buffs Savvy and Grit of Allies by predicting plot elements
GYM Rat
Type: Buff
Stat: Moxie
Effect: Buff Mettle and Hustle by revealing athletic backstory
WHO’S WITH ME?!
Type: Buff
Stat: Moxie
Effect: In Finale, Allies gain a buff to relevant stat when assisting the player.
SOCIAL AWARENESS
Type: Insight
Stat: Moxie
Effect: Can see the Moxie stat of all enemies and NPCs.
RIGHT TOOL FOR THE JOB
Type: Buff
Stat: Savvy
Effect: Buffs Savvy and Mettle when fighting an enemy with their weakness.
THE OBLIVIOUS BYSTANDER
Type: Rule
Stat: Moxie
Effect: Cannot be targeted while convincingly acting oblivious to the enemy
JUST WALK IT OFF
Type: Heal
Stat: Grit
Effect: Heals Hobbled status by walking
LET’S NOT FIGHT
Type: Buff
Stat: Moxie
Effect: Stopping infighting buffs Savvy
LOOKS DON’T LAST (Not Brought into the storyline)
ZIPPOS ARE CHEAP
Type: Buff
Stat: Savvy
Effect: Boosts Savvy for plans that expend Zippo lighter
ESCAPE ARTIST
Type: Buff
Stat: Savvy
Effect: Plausible escape plans boost Hustle
GET A ROOM!
Type: Rule
Stat: Moxie
Effect: Exploration with loved interest during the party boosts the odds of important discoveries
A HOPELESS PLEA
Type: Rule
Stat: Moxie
Effect: Asking to be released forces the captor to explicitly deny the release