Max needs music. You clear your throat and begin to warble: "If I only could, I'd make a deal with God, I'd get him to swap our places..."
"What the hell are you doing, freak?!" Jason snaps. "Stop singing or I'll shoot you!"
You'll take that chance. You have to keep singing. You have to help Max remember all the wonderful things about life so she's able to break free from Vecna's curse.
"It's you and me," you continue. "Won't be unhappy!"
Jason scowls. You brace yourself for a gunshot, but one never comes. Instead, Jason is startled into dropping the gun when Max sails to the ground, dazed but unharmed.
"It worked!" you say, rushing toward Max. "Holy shit. Max, are you okay?"
She winces and nods.
You and Jason both look to the gun. You dive for it and grab it before he can, turning the safety on and tucking it into the waistband of your pants.
Jason scowls and lunges for you, but before he can pummel you, Erica runs in and whacks him over the head with her flashlight. He's knocked unconscious immediately.
"Crit hit!" she says proudly, spinning the flashlight in her hand.
"Erica, holy shit," you say.
"You've been spending too much time with Steve," Max remarks, watching the way Erica spins her flashlight like a baton. Snark aside, Max looks relieved to still be here. She turns to you and quietly says, "Thank you. I heard you singing to me."
"Of course," you say. "I'm just glad I remembered the words. If I hadn't, you would've been hearing The Kinks instead of Kate Bush."
"Can we get out of here?" Erica asks. "Hopefully the nerds got rid of Vecna for us."
GO TO PAGE 39 FOR "THE THREE GATES" ENDING.