Take Responsibility.

[kingmakereffect]

And after a given amount of time, those elevator doors at the end of the first-floor corridor open up; as it was last week, the ride down is smooth and quick-moving, even if there are less of you this week. (Technically, you're only down by one in the elevator; Bruce has ensured that Pearl is with you in some way, albeit unconventionally and by the grace of Ziploc.) However, when the doors open up to the podium circle standing in the middle of that black void of a courtroom, there's no mistaking the fact that there are fewer people present than there were last week – Kamui and Pearl have joined those with podiums draped in black, their framed profile portraits watching the proceedings in shades of grey. It's still impossible to tell exactly where the Kingmaker is watching the proceedings from, though it's obvious that he is; he'll wait until everyone is settled before he speaks, his voice coming from everywhere and nowhere all at once. "Devoted has been taken from you. All of you know what the stakes are now, but this happened anyway – looks like someone's determined. Whether they succeed or not is up to you." Twenty-four Survivors remain. We'll see how many are still standing by the end of the day.

Comments

[penduli]

[ It's not that this is easier to watch, but it doesn't give him the knee-jerk instinct to turn away and practice some deep breathing exercises. The melody is beautiful, and the dance is, too; he flinches when Pearl's spear drives through Caren's pendant and the rest of her, at least.

If he isn't careful, the same thing can happen to him. He blinks slowly, staring into the pit's blackness, before he lets out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding and steps away from his podium.

He'll be keeping his head down on the way back, avoiding anyone's looks. This is two for two, twins-wise, and it's not like he's been particularly quiet about his own (and the lengths he'd go to for her, to some people). ]