Taking Responsibility.

[kingmakereffect]

And a while after that strange, dark floor is accessed, after you've had time to look things over and get some idea of what's happening...well. There won't be any sort of official announcement to tell you to get downstairs, nor will there be a personal invitation for you to do so. Instead, the doors at the end of the corridor (were they there before? You find that you don't remember. It doesn't matter anymore, though-) slide open, as they always do, and the elevator ride to the courtroom is probably the first familiar thing that's happened all day. It's smooth and quick, though it seems to take a bit longer than it usually does. And when the doors open at the end of the line, the courtroom looks different. The dark, weirdly cylindrical room is largely the same in and of itself, but the usual twenty-seven podium circle is gone; instead, there's a smaller setup in the center of the room - ten podiums total, and you'll likely find the way your spots have been distributed to be very familiar indeed. Of further notice is the balcony - there's a structure that wasn't there before in view of the courtroom, situated high above, barred-in by a railing that'd probably be at about waist-height on your average person; there's no one up there just yet, however. There are so few of you now. It seems that today there are no speeches to give; maybe the Kingmaker is absent, maybe he just doesn' have anything to say. Either way, however, the implication in the fact that you're here at all is clear. For one last time, make the guilty take responsibility.

Comments

[notjustawriter]

Maybe it has to do with believing what you're seeing is real?

[Like The Matrix. Except not, because that movie hasn't been made yet in Gabriel's world.]

[goodforsomething]

Like The Matrix!

[Here to help, Gabriel.]

[amygdalae]

[...Bruce barely remembers the Matrix at all, dear god.]

At least we're not stuck with flashy sunglasses and leather coats.

[sleepingkogoro]

I would take that over the jumpsuits any day of the week.

[notjustawriter]

The what?

[goodforsomething]

It's a movie about the world bein' a fake computer thing!

[amygdalae]

As far as I can tell this does seem to be a complete immersion, except...

[A pause as he glances at Gabriel with a pained expression.]

You still don't remember anything from last week? [...when Black, uh, attempted to off you.]

[notjustawriter]

[He shakes his head.]

I think I remember being strangled, but not much else, unfortunately.

[amygdalae]

[A frown here now.]

I'm not sure about you, but personally, the memory of being strangled tends to stick on pretty strongly.

[Of course, it could be a self-defense mechanism... but still.]

[notjustawriter]

Not if it catches you by surprise, right?

[He's just.... guessing here.]

Besides, it's not like I'd think something like that wouldn't hurt.

[amygdalae]

I'm not saying it wouldn't, but the gap in your memory is still something I'm trying to figure out.

[He might be thinking too much, honestly.]

[notjustawriter]

If this is all virtual, maybe it's just a glitch or somethin'.

[amygdalae]

Maybe. I could be easily thinking too much into this.

[At least he's admitting it.]

...I apologize for having bringing it back up, though,

[notjustawriter]

Don't worry about it.

[goodforsomething]

Say it is virtual - the ghosts must be in some other kinda virtual thing, right? Maybe it started movin' ya over and got confused when you didn't really die?

[notjustawriter]

Maybe. I really don't know what to make of it.

[captainobnoxious]

... You know, if it virtual, I... guess that might explain the easy clean up of the bodies? And explody stuff? Right?

[She thinks that's what that means. Yeah. She's pretty sure.]

[notjustawriter]

...It would explain it.

There never really was a sign that something went wrong after the Kingmaker cleaned up.

[amygdalae]

It would.

[Just a few buttons and stuff and poof! Instant clean.]

[goodforsomething]

Yeah, I'd say that.

[Some of his street fights have gone poorly.]

[amygdalae]

It could easily just be the mind's way of coping, but.

[He's just wondering...]