[ yeah this sure is a weird thing when you're all twelve but we're committing

ines looks at w like what the fuck. what's a sephiroth.

lucrecia and hojo also very quickly slap the floor button, but they're not fast enough - hojo sneers at vincent from his space, and lucrecia looks very, very confused and kind of dazed.

tifa opens her mouth at the same time as vincent, but he says it with such confidence that she looks unsure? so she closes her mouth again, and just figures he knows what he's talking about.

and... the chihuahua claps his paws together! ]

Way to go, Silver Snakes. Good answer! Go ahead and take the next step down.

[ w, ines, vincent and tifa are now on the same level, with hojo and lucrecia at the start. ]

Next question. Olmec?

[ and the studio gets quiet. there's a very long pause. a tension rises, makes the silence almost thick with it, as all eyes are on the three pairs of teams on their platforms. there's a buzzing, even, faint. it feels like it's coming from behind them, but inside their ears, too, behind their teeth.

finally, olmec speaks: ]

What are you willing to lose to win your prize?

[ ... is there even a right answer to this question? ]