The first 8 pages of build 3.

Normally, I don't upload any of the text, but because this is the continuation of the cliff hanger in build 2, I didn't want to keep my loyal Patreon members waiting <3 Please enjoy, and let me know what you think! If you want to listen to the song as well, look up "snowfall By Scott buckley" as you read the prompt for it <3 This image is the "Bg titan" in question. Italics don't work in patreon text, so you'll have to use a bit of skill to read the internal dialogue as such. EDIT: The song played from the moment they enter the door to the dorm to the time the scene ends is actually "The long dark" by scott buckley! And lastly, this is UNEDITED! Changes to this script WILL occur before publication to make it more lengthy and well thought out <3

…

…

Wicked daggers pierce into every facet of my brain, freezing me in place at the horrific sight before my eyes.

My thoughts are compressed down by an oppressive weight, as if being squeezed and mashed into a crate.

Blood runs down the corpse’s rigid fingers, splattering against my muzzle… but I’m too shocked to even flinch.

It seeps into the corners of my muzzle, tasting like potent venom.

Red eyes: “I’ll… Devour… You… Too…”

The voice whispers through my mind, and memories of my vision come rushing back to me, accompanied by a pair of glowing red eyes.

Eco: “N-Nine days… N… Nine…. Days…”

Electricity surges through the cables, animating the hanging victim to twitch and writhe in a macabre dance.

I swear it smiles at me, peeling its bloody muzzle into a wicked grin.

Kai: “[character]... [character], come to me, do not look at it!”

Kai: “Do not look at it anymore, little wolf! You must remain in control!”

The exposed ribs, laid bare into the hall, splurt and pulse as they void themselves of their essence.

Every red rivulet, every shred of torn flesh, every piece of bone seems so chaotic… a canvas of suffering blended together by a practiced paw to create a masterpiece of carnage.

Kai: “NOW, [character]!”

His commands are meaningless… falling by the wayside as the silent conversation continues between myself and the disemboweled carcass.

Kai rushes over to me, ripping me from my trance by force.

Kai: “Please, little wolf, please, we must go, now, it is not safe here for you, I beg of you!”

His strong arms wrap me tightly as he tugs me away from the gruesome scene… but I resist…

I don’t want to go… I want… I want…

I want to join him…

Eco: “I’m… a good… little… slave… just a ripple in his pond…”

Kai looks down at me in horror at the sound of my words.

Kai: “Only a little farther, my friend… only a little farther until we are in the safety of our room.”

He huffs and snarls as he drags me unwillingly along.

Eco: “Nothing but a pair of red eyes… here to take me home.”

With one last grunt of effort, he hauls me to our door, tightening his grip as he navigates the keypad

(Door open 1)

(Transition dorm room dark)

(Permafrost BGM)

The door slides shut behind us, and he picks me up, placing me gently on his bed.

Kai: “[character], speak to me, okay? You are safe here, little one, I will keep you safe, I promise you this.”

Kai: “But first, we must call for help, can you do this for me, [character]? Can you manage the data-pad?”

His words wash over me, meaningless compared to the mangled body branded into my psyche.

Kai shakes me gently, desperately trying to pull me from my horror stricken trance.

Kai: “[character], I beg of you, I can not read! We must call for help!”

Help…

There is no helping us… 

The Red Eyes will come for us all… They’ll devour us too.

Kai: “Gods be damned… okay… stay here, my friend, I will do it myself.”

Kai rushes over and picks up the data-pad, his gasp on it trembling as he holds it close to his eyes.

His paws frantically swipe over the screen, searching for a way to call for help.

Kai: “Where is it… Where is it… WHERE THE FUCK IS IT!?”

He roars out in frustration as he desperately tries to find the emergency line.

Eco: “He’s calling to me… Kai… he wants me to go back… he wants me to play with him for eternity to come…”

Eco: “Such a sweet tune for me to listen to…”

Kai: “DAMNIT!”

(Shatter 1)

Kai throws the data-pad in a rage, shattering it against the wall and causing translucent glass to cascade across the tile.

He rushes over to me, placing himself behind me as he lays me down onto his bed.

Kai: “It’s okay, [character], I am here… I have you, you’re okay.”

Kai places his arms around me, holding me tightly against his muscled chest as he gently runs his paws through my fur.

Kai: “Shh, little one, shh, it’s just a dream… just a dream, [character].”

Kai: “Focus on my voice… come back to me, you are in control here. Fight it off, my friend, you are stronger than this condition!”

He gives me a reassuring squeeze, his frigid arms enveloping me in a glacial embrace.

Frigid and cold… cold like a corpse…

My body convulses as I swallow the torn soul's blood, still lingering in my mouth, tasting like the coil of death itself.

It rushes down my throat, boiling in my gut as I gag from the sensation.

I heave a few times before puking over the edge of the bed, expelling the contents of my stomach onto the floor.

Kai tenses up at my sudden bout of sickness, patting me on the back with a firm yet gentle touch.

The pressure in my mind recedes as the wrenching pain in my intestines grows to take its place, slowly allowing my mind to return to my own dominion.

Eco: “K-Kai?”

I feel his paw glide down to my stomach, softly caressing and soothing the fur on my abdomen.

Kai: “Yes, little wolf, I am right here. I am right here for you. Keep speaking, [character], just keep speaking to me.”

Kai pulls me tighter against him, the arctic temperature of his touch a harsh contrast to the pain that wracks my muscles.

Eco: “I… I still see him in my mind… his chest… his arm… h-his heart… wh… what happened to him, K-Kai?”

I feel his muzzle shake from side to side against the nape of my neck as he whispers against the back of my head.

Kai: “I do not know, my friend, but it does not matter. You must control yourself. There is nothing to be done for the poor soul.”

Kai: “The killer could still be nearby, and we must remain vigilant. You must regain control of your senses, my friend. We are in great danger...”

Eco: “K-Kai? What’s wrong with me? Wh-Why is this happening to me?”

Eco: “This can’t be real… I just want it to stop, Kai.”

Eco: “I can’t take it anymore! I just want it to stop!”

Eco: “JUST MAKE IT STOP, I’M BEGGING YOU!”

I reach up and rake my claws down my muzzle, drawing deep red furrows through my fur and skin… anything to take my mind away from the horror draining itself in the hall.

Kai quickly snatches up my arms and tucks them against my sides, not allowing me to move.

Kai: “None of that, my friend, none of that. This too will pass. Just focus on my voice.”

Kai: “Let it all flow down the river, [character], let it all float away.”

Float away… Nothing but the dream of a weary mind… Nothing but a dream.

I struggle against his clutches for a moment, but resign myself into his grasp.

My ragged breathing slowly becomes more measured, and my senses seep back into my control.

I feel the pit in my stomach pressing against my spine like a jagged stone, and the scent of my vomit pierces through the air like a hail of hungry arrows.

Kai laces one arm behind my neck, then rests it across my chest as he continues to whisper soothing words into my ears, coaxing me to relax.

His tongue flicks out, gently licking at my bristling fur.

Kai: “Are you feeling any better?”

Kai’s deep voice rumbles straight into my body from his chest, the vibrations coursing through my muscles.

Eco: “I… I don’t know… every time I close my eyes I… I see th-that thing in the hall and…”

My voice trembles and fades away as my body shudders once more.

Gods, I think I’m gonna fucking puke again…

Kai grumbles against me, and places a tender kiss on my ears.

Kai: “I know you do, [character]. I know… death is not an easy thing to see first hand…”

Kai: “His soul goes to be with Aetherion now, and there is naught I can do to help him… but here? Now? I can still help you.”

Kai: “Tell me what you need, little wolf. Tell me how I can best aid you.”

I rest my head against his bicep, relaxing further into his arms.

Eco: “Just… just keep holding me like this… p-please.”

I feel his head nodding behind me as his shadow dances across the room, illuminated by the shimmering blue blade.

Kai: “Would you like me to remove the mess on the floor first? It will only be a moment, and then I will return to you, I swear it.”

I gag at the reminder of what’s over the edge of the bed, and recoil back onto his chest.

Eco: S-Sure, Kai… T-Thank you.”

He pulls his arm out from beneath me and gets to his feet, taking meticulous care in where he stands.

Kai: “Of course, my friend. I will be swift.”

Kai grabs a towel from his dresser and soaks it with water from the bathroom before returning to mop up the glass and sickness.

After only a minute or two, he finishes cleaning, depositing the glass into the trash and discarding the towel.

The putrid smell dissipates, fading away like a fragment of my imagination.

He quickly washes his hands and returns to the edge of the bed, offering me his paw.

Kai: “Come. Let us wash out your muzzle, and then we can return.”

I nod weakly, and allow him to lift me to my feet.

Kai steadies me as we walk towards the sink. He turns on the faucet, supporting my chest as I lower my head down to take a drink.

I slurp eagerly at the stream of water, allowing it to wash away the bile and bitterness.

Kai: “There you are, [character]. Let us return now, it will all be over soon.”

He lifts me up, but I push his arm down, choosing to walk on my own now that I’m beginning to feel more stable.

I move over to his bed, lifting up the blankets and sliding beneath them.

Kai hesitates for just a moment, but clambers over me regardless, nestling against me.

His knees tuck against the backs of my legs, and he once again wraps me up in his paws.

With a gentle pull, he rests my body against his body, and starts to run his paw through the fur atop my head.

The constant rise and fall of his breathing, mixed with the steady drum of his heart against my shoulders serves as a constant reminder of his presence.

In spite of this, my mind is still racing, refusing to stay quiet for a single second.

The dreams… the star sickness… what the hell is happening to me?

Why did Kai find me standing in the hall like that for the past two days in the exact spot a murder happens?

The message…  the red eyes… the missing heart in the corpse…

‘I’ll devour you too…’

Its threat doesn’t seem so hollow anymore… but… but why the hell would it be saying it to me?

Have I been poisoned? Is this some kind of trick? Why the FUCK would I be seeing shit like this in my dreams?

My body starts to panic, and I feel myself beginning to hyperventilate.

This… This thing is coming for me… whatever it is, it’s going to find me and it’s going to fucking kill me,

Find me? Shit, it already knows where I am! There’s nowhere to hide! Nowhere to run, nowhere to…

Kai pinches me, and the sharp pain captures my attention.

Kai: “I can feel you dwelling on it, little wolf. Let it flow down the river, [character], let it flow. It does not bode well to focus on such evil things.”

He licks my ears gently a few times, trying everything in his power to get me calm.

Kai: “Can you do something for me, [character]?”

He gives me a squeeze, enticing me to respond.

Eco: “W-What do you want?”

(Fade BGM)

His breath ghosts over my fur, and he relaxes into the mattress.

Kai: “Tell me of your home, little wolf. Close your eyes, take a deep breath, and tell me about where you come from.”

W-Where I come from? Titan?

He wants to know about Titan?

Why would he want to know about Titan? It’s… it’s so far away… just another pebble in the current… another star in the sky.

(Play snowfall)

I close my eyes, and meet the grisly visage of the disemboweled shell discarded in the ceiling once more.

My body winces at the sight of it, but slowly the image fades away, replaced with the familiar sights of home.

(Bg_titan)

I can see it vividly, as if it was only yesterday that I was boarding the ship to leave.

The scene is pure as day, and a sense of clarity washes over me at the sweet memory.

Eco: “Titan is… it’s wonderful, Kai. Truly one of a kind.”

Eco: “It seems funny to say, since it’s just a dull rock that the sun forgot to shine on, but it really is wonderful…”

Eco: ”The only real light comes from the stars, like little bright fires across the atmosphere.”

Eco: “Meteors and comets drift by all the time, piercing the gloom with waves and streaks of silver and blue.”

Eco: “It’s snowing, always snowing… sometimes when you look up, it’s hard to tell what’s what through the shadows in the sky.”

Eco: “Not a day goes by that we have clear weather, but you learn to accept it.”

Eco: “It piles up everywhere, and stretches out as far as the eye can see, well beyond the horizon… like someone draped a pearly white blanket over the whole moon.”

Eco: “Titan is cold… not like a soft winter night… it’s biting and harsh, always nipping at your fur but… it’s home all the same.”

Eco: “And the scents… by the gods the scent… always fresh and crisp like morning dew on a bright blue flower.”

Eco: “Me… me and my friends on lonely nights would go out in our jackets and lay on our backs, just to watch the stars drift by, dreaming one day of touching them.”

Eco: “We always imagined what it would be like to leave… what it would be like to start a life somewhere else, far away from the mines… in a place that was warm and bright.”

Eco: “A place where the world itself wasn’t trying to kill you at every turn.

Eco: “To actually feel a real sun on our fur, and experience a warmth that wasn’t artificial from some stupid generator.”

Eco: “To actually MEAN something… to simply be more than what we were…”

Eco: “It was just a fantasy, but one that we all shared… even if deep down we knew it was never really going to happen.”

Eco: “No one gets off Titan, and definitely not some band of friends with a dream.”

Eco: “One time we were even dumb enough to try and save up enough to get travel passes so we could move to earth… but after a few months of working, we realized it wasn’t possible… at least not for us.”

I chuckle a little, remembering our silly antics.

Eco: “Sometimes on those boring nights, we’d try to find words and letters hidden in the stars… and whoever found the funniest word won…”

Eco: “Like a scavenger hunt, where we tried to make meaning out of the meaningless.”

Eco: “Usually the prize was just a snowball to the face, but it was worth it to win all the same.”

Eco: “We all knew there weren’t actually any words, but we would pretend all the same… it was just a child’s game, played by kids too old to give a shit anymore.”

Eco: “Kids that knew the only thing we had left was hope… nothing but hopes and dreams…”

Eco: “When I was there, all I wanted to do was leave… but now that I’m gone? I… I miss it… I truly do…”

Eco: “Now that I’m here, I have a sun. I have that warmth I was so desperate to feel… and it’s nothing like home…”

Eco: “It’s fake… just as meaningless as the stupid words in the stars.”

Eco: “I just want to go home, Kai… I just want to go home… I don’t want to be sick anymore…”

Eco: “I want to feel the snow beneath my feet… I want to feel the chill on my skin, feel the nip on my nose.”

Eco: “I want to see the sky dance just one more time before this disease takes me to a place I can’t return from…”

Kai sighs deeply against me, and takes my paw in his, twining our fingers together as his chilly body cuddles next to mine.

Kai: “Nothing is going to take you away… as long as I live, nothing will take you. I won’t let you down like I did my father… I swear it, [character].”

His grip on my paw tightens ever so slightly, as if he’s afraid I’ll drift away too… like just another memory on the river.

Kai: “Titan sounds beautiful, [character]. I understand why you miss it so deeply… I can’t wait to see it myself one day.”

Kai: “Keep remembering the sights of home, my little wolf, and do not look away… do not dare look away.”

Home… a memory so distant…

Now, nothing more than a cold embrace… holding me tenderly by the paw as I drift asleep…

(Fade to black)

(Cut BGM)