(Execution Livestream Continuation, 'The Pit')
Chains scraped loudly against the execution platform as Veyr was dragged forward, his knees buckling briefly when Raymond forced him down, the suppressive shackles biting into his wrists as the stone beneath him felt colder than anything he remembered.
*KLANG*
The impact echoed outward as his knees struck the platform, the sound swallowed instantly by the roar of the crowd, billions of voices crashing together into a single, overwhelming demand for blood.
"EXECUTE!"
"EXECUTE!"
"EXECUTE!"
The chant battered against him from every direction, not as sound alone, but as pressure, as hatred, as expectation, as if the universe itself had decided that this was the moment it wanted him to disappear.
Veyr lifted his head slowly.
Not in defiance, nor in fear, but because he refused to bow any lower than he already had, as that much dignity was all he intended to keep.
