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Ep 9. Dark is the Knight

10/21/22

Midday in Center Ring, Razor crouches in the grass beside an empty bus stop. Confused, she stands upright, looking up and around.
The sky is blue and scattered with clean white clouds. The streets of the city are empty. Razor looks out over it all and thinks, Why is it so quiet?
Annoyed, she almost looks away, before suddenly noticing something in an upper window of one of the nearby buildings. A book object is pressed against the glass, gashes in their cover and bleeding from wounds on their wrists. They are holding a bat in one hand, panting heavily, and as Razor notices them, they notice her too.
The object swings their bat and smashes the window, and Razor watches them in confusion. Still staring at her, terrified, they begin to climb out of the window. The object shouts, Help me! It hurt me, please!
The object falls from the window, screaming again, Please, and they fall several stories down. Sound effect text says, Thump, as they land on the street. Razor doesn't move, sweating nervously as she watches them lie still.
Then, they begin to get up. Razor recoils, raising an eyebrow in confusion as the object coughs out grubs and fluid. Suddenly, the object's pages burst open into a stretched, howling face, the top of its new head scraping against the pavement of the street as its legs stand up.
Razor quickly turns away, shocked and afraid, and runs away on all fours further into the city.
Later, Razor is walking upright through the city, looking frightened over her shoulders and hugging herself. Razor says, Something's very wrong, and I'm hungry. A thin white fog indicates there is a scent in the air, and Razor follows the scent into the dark storage room of a nearby building. While she's entering the room, her paw accidentally brushes against the light switch, and with a click the ceiling light turns on.
Razor looks up at the light in confusion, hunched over protectively, then looks down again at the object across the room. Sweating, Gum stares back, kneeling in front of some storage boxes and holding a burger bun in her hand. There is a large, sharp needle lying on the floor behind her.
Razor stares at Gum. Gum stares back. Suddenly, Razor snarls. Gum glares back at her, quickly grabbing the needle off the floor with her free hand.
Pointing the needle at Razor like a sword, Gum says, Get. Out. Razor shouts, Even you aren't normal! Why is Center Ring so fucked up? Gum raises an eyebrow, asking, Are you from Outer Ring? Razor bristles, yelling, Are you stupid? Tell me what's going on or I'll eat you! Gum mumbles, But there's food everywhere, before saying, Okay.
With a determined look, Gum lowers her sword and explains, Respawn terminals started printing those things. It can spread, too. Then, lowering her sword, Gum adds, You should leave. Whatever you're here for, it's not worth it. Gum looks sympathetic.
Razor gathers a bunch of cans off a nearby shelf with a clatter, growling, I do what I want. Then, she runs off, leaving Gum behind. Gum stands in silence for a moment, then says, I'm surprised the electricity was running. Later, Gum is eating her burger bun in an empty apartment, sitting by a small purple candle and surrounded by cans. A text box says, Hm.
As she takes a bite of her burger bun, Gum thinks, I wonder who that was, and why they were here. The next panel shows Razor sitting by the edge of a rooftop, resting her elbows and chin on the ledge as she watches the full moon.
Gum curls up to sleep in the dark, hugging her backpack with furrowed eyebrows. Gum thinks, I guess I'm no better than they are. I shouldn't be here at all. Gum begins to shake as she squeezes her backpack tighter. The next panel is a memory in a bright red, showing a bestial object's back. They are a sharps box with furry limbs and a thick, furless tail.
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