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Ep 72. Lone Bandit

3/21/25

Dagger, Stylus, and Peanut Butter sit huddled against each other on the pile of store shelves in the dark. Dragonscale has an inner monologue recounting what is happening. She says, The flood stopped after a few days. That night, the temperature dropped. Dragonscale can be seen flying through the city while it snows. She continues, saying, PB had supplies left in her jar, but I began to scour the city for more. Alone. Dragonscale can be seen breathing fire into her hands while she flies to try and stay warm. She continues, saying, Out of guilt. Shame. They didn't know that I was the reason their friend fell in. Dragonscale carries a bundle of blankets towards a window that she broke to get inside of a building. There is glass on the floor and various household items are displaced.Dagger, Stylus, and Peanut Butter sit huddled against each other on the pile of store shelves in the dark. Dragonscale has an inner monologue recounting what is happening. She says, The flood stopped after a few days. That night, the temperature dropped. Dragonscale can be seen flying through the city while it snows. She continues, saying, PB had supplies left in her jar, but I began to scour the city for more. Alone. Dragonscale can be seen breathing fire into her hands while she flies to try and stay warm. She continues, saying, Out of guilt. Shame. They didn't know that I was the reason their friend fell in. Dragonscale carries a bundle of blankets towards a window that she broke to get inside of a building. There is glass on the floor and various household items are displaced.
She says, I can't tell them the truth. What they might think of me, What they'd say, I already have enough on my mind. Dragonscale hands a blanket to Peanut Butter. Dagger and Stylus are already wrapped in a blanket together trying to sleep. The egstrom has visibly frozen. She says, After the flood stopped, the sludge froze. A shot of the store entrance shows the viewer more frozen egstrom. She says, But they were too scared to leave the shelves. Peanut Butter and Stylus can be seen lying back to back in their blankets. Peanut Butter looks depressed.
Dragonscale repeats the things each bandit has said to her in her monologue, quoting them one by one. Stylus says, We probably deserve this. Dagger says, I'm not ready to start over. Peanut Butter says, Where would we go? Dragonscale says, Showing them the ice is safe to walk on doesn't matter. They're traumatized. They need a little more time. Dragonscale stands on the ice at the foot of the pile of shelves, in the cover of its shadow while looking up towards her group members..
Dragonscale continues, saying, I just have to make sure they don't freeze to death. She continues flying over the city, trying to shield her face from snow and winds while threespines and some parasite hives can be seen in the background. Dragonscale enters another building through an open window. Notably, the room is familiar.
Dragonscale can be seen putting on warm clothes, looking up at a backpack that is hanging on a coat hanger, and then filling said backpack with more clothes. On the floor there is a large blood stain and a punctured can of coconut milk. Dragonscale takes a can of green beans out of a drawer. She walks out of the apartment room and into the hallway, struggling to keep her balance. Text says wobble. She thinks to herself, Is this too much?
Dragonscale walks down the hallway. In each panel, her footsteps can be heard and the text says step step. She thinks, I can't believe he's gone. We have nothing to respawn him with. She looks to the side, deeper in thought as the background blurs. She thinks, I don't understand why Ghost couldn't respawn either. The sample in my ring should still be good. Dragonscale looks down, visibly upset. The blurred background gets much darker to signify that she's getting lost in her negative thoughts. She thinks, What's the point of pricking our fingers if the vials don't even fucking work? Her train of thought is interrupted when someone down the hallway says, Hello? Dragonscale gasps, dropping the cans of food that she was carrying in her arms. Hokkaido faces her from down the hallway.
Dragonscale stares at him in disbelief. She stammers the word You. Hokkaido stares at her in silence for a moment before saying, Oh. Hokkaido grins. He says, I remember you.
He says, You tried to kill me. Tears well in Dragonscale's eyes. She says, I'm, Sorry. I didn't, I, Sniff, I wasn't trying to kill you. I don't know what's wrong with me. She rubs her eye with her hand.
Hokkaido says, you still left me to die. Dragonscale places a foot on one of the cans on the floor. Text says step. Hokkaido continues, saying, Because I didn't have any. He's interrupted by a can rolling into his foot, because Dragonscale kicked it towards him. He looks down at it in silence. Text says roll and bump.
Dragonscale turns around and begins walking away. She says, Just stay away from me. It's for your own good. All I do is hurt people. Dragonscale is crying and looking down. Hokkaido says, Wait. Dragonscale stops walking and looks up.
Hokkaido asks sheepishly, Do you, Um. Do you know how to open a can? He stands idly in the hallway holding the can in his hand.
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