GDC Game Narrative Review

This analysis was written as a student at DigiPen Institute of Technology for the 2014 GDC Game Narrative Review Competition. Information on the competition can be found here.

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Game Title: One and One Story
Platform: PC browser
Genre: puzzle platformer
Release Date: 2011
Developer: Mattia Traverso
Publisher: Mattia Traverso (distributed by Armor Games)
Game Writer/Creative Director/Narrative Designer: Mattia Traverso

Overview 

One and One Story follows a young couple as they fall in love, out of love, and in love again. The
player primarily takes on the role of the male character, but also takes on the role of the female
character when the narrative dictates. The story begins with the characters not actually knowing each
other, but the male thinks about the female. As the relationship grows, the two of them fall in love,
though it is just beginning. They experience rough patches, as many couples do, with opposing views
and disagreements. The female runs away, leaving the male, breaking his heart, and leaving him to feel
awful without her. She returns, in the end, promising not to hurt the male anymore. Once again, they
have fallen in love. One and One Story is an elegantly simple telling of this beautiful narrative.

Characters 

• Boy – This is the main player character. A male silhouette outlined in blue, Boy is easy to
identify. Throughout the game, the player experiences Boy’s thoughts about Girl. Based on the
textual, on-screen thoughts from Boy that the player is able to see, Boy is a very feeling-based
thinker. His world almost seems to revolve around his emotions. The love that Boy feels drives
him forward within the story of the game, always reaching out to Girl, the cause of the strong
emotions Boy is experiencing. At this point in his life, Girl, and the love he feels for her, are the
only things that matter to Boy—they are the sole focus of his attention.

• Girl – Girl plays several different roles within the game. She is one of the player characters, she
is the goal, and she is the antagonist. Her biggest role, however, is as Boy’s psychological
Shadow. A female silhouette outlined in pink, she is just as easy to identify as Boy is. She is
unsure of her emotions as she is the one to run away. Not only does she run away from the emotions she is afraid and unsure of, but she also runs away from Boy, leaving him. Her
decisions are based on gut reaction and instinct. In the end, she realizes how she really feels,
having fallen in love with Boy, and she stops running away.

Breakdown 

One and One Story’s narrative is outstanding because of its elegance and simplicity. There are
three pieces of the game in particular that really stand out as being perfect examples of the game’s
simple elegance. The first piece is the interstitial text between chapters, or sections, of gameplay. The
second piece is the use of mechanics as metaphor that exists throughout the entire game. The third
piece is the way the game was cut into chapters. Each of these pieces helps to create a whole that is
narratively excellent and well-communicated to the player.

One of the best ways to communicate an idea in a game is through text. One and One Story uses
the interstitial text between chapters to communicate the story of the game. The first text outside of
gameplay is simple: “Once we were shadows.” During this section, the player can control either Boy or
Girl. Prior to this section, in the tutorial section, the player is told that he can switch to the other
character, but it is in such a way that says that Boy is thinking about her, “I used Z or C to think of her.”
This simple sentence provides a fair amount of information to the player— that Boy and Girl are not yet
necessarily together at this point in the story. This is again hinted at with the interstitial text through the
use of the word “shadows.” Girl, as Boy’s psychological Shadow, represents something unknown within
him. Girl’s thoughts, her reasons for action, and her emotions are all unknown to Boy, and therefore the
player. Shadows are intangible, and Boy, being a physical being, cannot simply reach out and touch the
Shadow. He needs to become one with his Shadow in order to understand it and what really hides in its
darkness. Neither Boy nor Girl is fully aware that they are in love with the other. As they are unaware of
their true emotions, they are living in darkness of their True Selves. By using these simple and elegant
words, the player is given both the conscious and unconscious stories of the two characters. The
interstitial text moves the story forward in a way that makes it easy for the player to understand.
Another example of the text that helps to explain the course of the story near the middle of the game,
is, “And she was running away.” This denotes a major change in the course of the story. At this point,
Girl has possibly fallen out of love and is running away from Boy, hurting him in the process. Without the
text, the story is not communicated quite as clearly as it needs to be as there is no audio outside sound
effects and music. The game is simple, almost too simple for the story to be explained without the use of
words.

The simplicity of the game, and the gameplay, comes from the use of mechanics as metaphor.
With each new section, denoted and described by a piece of interstitial text, there is a slight change in
the mechanics. At the beginning, the player can switch between Boy and Girl. When the player is not
playing as one of them, the character’s silhouette appears slightly transparent, as a shadow, just as the
first interstitial text states. The first time the mechanics change, the interstitial text states, “When she
saw me, she ran to me.” Right off the bat, the player can imagine what this means for the mechanics.
The mechanics are used in such a way that the player understands the part of the story through
gameplay. While they can be told the story through text, by forcing them to be part of the story through
gameplay, the player becomes more invested in the story. By getting immersed in the story, the player
then feels the emotions the story is intended to evoke. The use of mechanics as metaphor within One
and One Story is possibly the strongest element of the narrative the game has to offer. The narrative is
enhanced through the use and authenticity of the mechanics, as well as the evoking of the appropriate
emotions throughout. By having the mechanics change as the story changes, it feels more like the story
is actually progressing rather than a story being told over an unchanging game.

The story feels like it changes and actually progresses because the game does so. The game does
this through chapters. By calling each section a chapter, it helps the player to get into the necessary
mindset to experience a story. Chapters is a word typically associate with books, and therefore, stories,
which is why it helps the player to understand that a story is being told. By cutting the game into
chapters, the player experiences each section slightly differently. The game is split into eight chapters,
each with a different mechanic that helps to tell the story of that section. Each section allows the game
to be delivered in small chunks that make the story much more manageable to take in. The chapters
help to make the game feel simple by forcing it to fit into these blocks that highly simplify the game in
general. As each chapter progresses, the player can easily see the same progression within the game’s
story.

Through the use of interstitial text, mechanics as metaphor, and chapters, One and One Story
presents a narrative that is both simple and elegant. Players can relate to the story and the characters
that feel almost like empty shells that the player is meant to project himself into.

Strongest Element 

The strongest element of the narrative was the changing mechanics throughout the game. Every
time the story changed, so did the mechanics. By changing the mechanics, the player feels the story that
much more strongly. The changing mechanics, like moving from a section where Girl moves with Boy to a section where Girl is always moving to the right, assist the narrative by making it truly interactive.
While some games present their narratives in ways that simply tell the player the story, One and One
Story captures the player and allows him to become invested in the story. By playing through the story,
the player experiences the story almost as if it were actually happening to him. The changing mechanics
immerse the player in the story by supporting the idea that they are part of the story, not just watching
it.

Unsuccessful Element 

 The least successful part of the game was the ending. This small section is the only part where
the interstitial text that comes before it does not adequately describe the mechanics of the section.
Because the text does not describe what it actually going on, it feels like a much weaker piece of the
game. While the section is important in completing the metaphor of becoming one with the
psychological Shadow, it lacks the presentation required to make it both strong and meaningful to the
player. There is an element of trust in the section that certainly makes it stand out from other sections;
however, it still does not quite meet the expectations set up by the rest of the game.

Highlight 

While much of the game has great narrative moments, the highlight of One and One Story is the
section in which Girl is running away. This entire section has the strongest use of mechanics as
metaphor within the entire game. Girl is constantly running away, moving from her typical starting
position on the left side of the screen to the right. There are moments where the player must move
quickly to push a block to save Girl from walking into spikes or so she can still assist the player in
successfully completing the level. However, the most important part of this section is the urgency that it
evokes. When the player sees Girl moving constantly, running away, he feels like he needs to get
through the level as quickly as possible so he can try to catch her. This moment particularly stands out
because of how much emotion it actually evokes from the player as they play through this section.

Critical Reception 

 One and One Story was a finalist in the Student Competition of IGF (Independent Games
Festival). However, even being a finalist, it has not been reviewed by many reputable sources to any
great ends. However, there are a couple short reviews of the game which mention aspects of the game’s
narrative. On the website Indie Game Reviewer, there is a short review of the game. The writer states,
“What is particularly impressive about The One and One Story is how well its creator has married gameplay with narrative. Granted, the narrative maybe a minimalist love story but each beat in the plot
is directly connected to the way in which the two characters interact in the game play. This is a rare
achievement and it should be commended.” Kit Goodliffe, the writer of the article, gave the game a
score of four out of five stars. In another review, on a blog entitled Sit Sam, the author writes that, “The
game’s story is the second unique aspect that sets it apart...The romance of the boy and girl is told on
the text between levels in such a way that the player connects with the breadth of the experience.”

Lessons 

• Minimal text can create a compelling story – One and One Story is possibly one of the greatest
examples of this. This is one of the strongest lessons that can be learned from this game. The
only text in the game is used to teach the player how to play the game while simultaneously
putting the story into words for the player. The interstitial text throughout the game is a great
example of this.

• Simple mechanics can be used to create an emotional response in players – While the lesson
learned from this game’s design is mainly about using minimal text, we can also learn that
simple mechanics have their merits. While many people want to experience games with
complex mechanics that make an engaging experience, simple mechanics can be used to deliver
a specific emotional experience. For instance, when the game states that Girl is running away,
the mechanics match the story. With Girl constantly moving, the player feels the urgency and
fleeting hope that the game is meant to create.

Summation 

One and One Story is a narratively beautiful game. The story, while it is a common one, is
delivered in such a way that it almost feels new. The elegance of the game’s simplicity alone makes it
worth analyzing. There is so much narrative designers can learn from something so simple when so
many games are moving towards making stories that are complicated and difficult to explain without an
exceptional amount of text.

Salvage - Full Story v01

Notes - Player character is referred to as Dunham throughout the story.

Part 1: Hey, Asshole

    Dunham could see the ship. It was much larger than he had expected-- at least twice the size. It was the biggest freighter he’d ever laid eyes on. Not to mention it looked almost untouched. As the massive ship loomed closer and closer, Dunham could only think about how well this salvage would pay. He could feel it in his gut-- this ship would make him rich, would save his skin, really. Contract work had been sparse recently, but this job...this would be the best thing to happen to him in months, maybe even years. So without hesitation-- or caution-- Dunham docked his ship with the massive, derelict freighter.

    Once inside, Dunham is surrounded by darkness. The near pitch black made it eerie and difficult to navigate through the Docking Bay. Somehow, though, Dunham managed to find his way to Engineering. He figured there had to be a way to restore the power from there-- he just had to find it. He stumbled over something, tripping and hitting the wall. Fumbling around in the dark, Dunham pulled a switch. Nothing. He let out an exasperated sigh. With his hands on the cold metal of the wall, he slid carefully through Engineering until he found another switch. When he pulled the second switch, there was a loud clanging sound before the ship started to rumble and shake. The next thing he knew, the lights were flickering on. The panel on the wall read Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator-- it was the ship’s emergency power source. As the ship flickered to life, a computerized voice came through the Emergency Announcement System warning of a critical failure.

    “All docked vessels and escape pods will be jettisoned in 10...9...8...”

    Dunham felt a twinge of fear race through his body, coursing through his veins. His ship. He rushed back to the docking bay, cotton in his mouth. He was so close, though. He was almost there, almost through the door… Slam! The door to his ship closed right in front of his face. He was trapped here. This broken down piece of crap would be his grave. How was he supposed to know that the ship would jettison his only way home, that this freighter would trap him here? Dunham looked around, wondering what he should do with himself for the rest of his short life. He could have turned the RTG off, but there was no point now-- unless he wanted to end his life in complete darkness. His gaze was drawn to the window on the doors through which he could see his ship floating away.

    Just as he was ready to sit down and die like a man, the alarms cut out. Silence settled in. Dunham never would have guessed the end would come like this. The silence was closer to nightmarish, rather than calming. He was just getting used to it when a voice came through the speakers.

    “Hey, You. The asshole in the Docking Bay. Y’know...I had turned those alarms off for a reason.”

It was a woman’s voice. Dunham could feel his heart pounding, but not with fear, not this time. This time, it was a flurry of excitement, it was survival. Whoever she was, she was what was going to save him.

Part 2: Exposition

    “We need to get off the ship. There is one emergency escape pod left. It’s on the bridge, where I am. I can get you here. Just do what I say and you’ll be fine. Trust me.”

    Something in the woman’s voice, in her words, made Dunham want to believe her and trust her. It wasn’t like he really had any other option, anyways. Well, he did, but it wasn’t a very good choice-- he could follow her directions and have a chance at survival or he could sit here and do nothing and die for sure. For a moment, though, he wasn’t sure. Maybe it was some kind of trap. Maybe she was some crazy cannibal, luring unsuspecting salvagers to this massive ship just for her next meal. Dunham had to roll his eyes at himself then. That was possibly the stupidest idea that had ever run through his head.

    “There’s a maintenance elevator to your right. Do you see it? Get in.”

    To his right, the doors were opening on an elevator. The woman’s voice seemed to be echoing throughout the Docking Bay in a weird way. There was a second of hesitation in Dunham’s step before he pushed himself forward, his feet carrying him through the open doors of the elevator.

    As the doors closed behind him, the woman’s voice returned. It felt closer here, but Dunham was sure that was just because the room was so much smaller than the Docking Bay. “It was hit by an asteroid. Lord knows where it came from… Everyone was able to escape-- well, at least, that’s what it looks like. You’re probably wondering why I’m still here, though, huh?”

    It seemed like she was about to divulge a major secret-- why she was still on this broken down piece of junk-- but the elevator stopped, and the doors opened. Dunham stepped out cautiously, possibly more so than was really necessary, but it was almost making up for the complete lack of caution he had shown earlier when he’d lost his ship. At least the lights were on this time...thanks to his stupidity. Looking around, Dunham could see that he was in the main Cargo Hold. It looked like the Holding Dock or something along those lines-- where all the cargo went before it was sorted into the proper containers. There were a good number of crates sitting around. A few of them had labels marking them as dangerous materials and the like. He would have to make sure to stay away from those ones. Most of the crates, though, seemed to be relatively safe-- just basic crates.

    “There should be a door with a green light over it. Get to that one. The other ones...well, let’s just say that you probably don’t want to go through any of them unless you have an immediate death wish.”

    Without question, Dunham navigated his way through the Cargo Holding Dock. He found himself jumping over and climbing up a great number of crates to get to the door that was-- for some reason-- closer to the ceiling than the floor. Dunham figured that there had been a catwalk of some type or other at one point. Overall, the trek to the door was fairly easy. Maybe he was breathing a little heavier than normal, but it wasn’t anything he couldn’t handle. Letting out a deep breath, Dunham pushed through the door with the green light over it.

Part 3: A Long Way To Go

    Once through the door, Dunham found himself staring at a huge map-like display. It was a tiny room with nothing but the display and a panel of controls-- it certainly wasn’t the bridge. Dunham had nothing to look at but the display that wrapped around most of the room. When he turned around, he found himself looking out a window into the Cargo Holding Dock that he had just come from. His gaze moved back to the display. Upon closer inspection, Dunham could see that the display was, in fact, a map. A map of the ship. Every transit route from the Cargo Holding Dock to basically anywhere else on the ship was shown.

    It wasn’t until he was able to see the display-- this massive display of a map-- that Dunham had really understood just how big the ship was. It was massive. He was certain that had it been converted into a ship that could actually sustain life throughout the ship, it could house the entire population of Harmós-- the largest non-Earth colony in all the systems. Dunham wasn’t even sure how many people that was, but he was certain that it was over one million.

    Studying the map in front of him, Dunham looked for the path that would lead him to the bridge, to the woman whose voice he’d been following. There were so many paths, so many of them overlapping and intertwining, though, that he found himself getting a headache. Then it started to flicker. The fear that the RTG was failing stuck in his chest.

    “Press that big blue button.” There was a layer of static over the woman’s voice, but God, was he glad to hear her at all. Letting out a breath he hadn’t been aware he was holding in, Dunham pressed the big blue button. Luckily, it was the only blue button on the panel. The flickering stopped as a single path was highlighted on the map.

    “That’s the one you want. It’s the only path from where you are to the bridge that isn’t, well, completely destroyed.” Her comment almost worried him, but there was something in the way she said it that made it feel unimportant. Dunham stared at the path, studying it. It looked like it would be easy enough. Besides, it didn’t even look like it would be that long of a journey. Holding up his left arm as though he were looking at a watch, Dunham scanned the map with his Pan-ix device, essentially downloading the map.

Part 4: Baby Steps

    Aside from the door he had come in through, there was only one door leading from the Cargo Control Room. Since going back didn’t seem like a necessarily smart option, Dunham went through the other door. The door had a very different look to it-- bare metal rather than the almost decorated look some of the other doors he’d seen had had.

    Going through the door led Dunham into a maintenance shaft. There was a strange wind gusting through the space, giving it a hollow sound. Dunham hadn’t expected it to be so huge-- then again, he should have expected it considering how massive the ship itself was. It seemed like there were a million different paths he could take through here. Just thinking about it, he got himself all turned around and confused. Stopping to take a deep breath, he held up his left arm and opened the map he had downloaded using his Pan-ix device. Panic was setting in, making it difficult to read the map.

    “It’s the last door. The one with the blinking green light over it.” The woman’s voice was like a godsend. If it hadn’t been for her, Dunham was sure he would have died right here, in this maintenance shaft, lost in the labyrinth of metal. Her voice was just as clear here as it had been in the other parts of the ship. Glad for the direction from his savior, he moved down the corridor, jumping over gaps in the catwalk as needed. Before long, he had come to the correct door-- just to be sure, though, he glanced around to see if any other door had a blinking green light over it.

    Certain it was right, Dunham pushed his way through the door. The next room wasn’t new-- it was Engineering, where he had turned on the power not too long ago. Now, though, he was up on a maintenance catwalk, able to look down on the room below. Unless he wanted to go back to where he started, there was only one way out-- a door on the other side of the room, on the same level as the catwalk he was currently on. He made his way over, avoiding the gaps in the metal walkway has he had done on his way through the corridor earlier.

    Finally, though, he got to the door only to find that it was busted. Completely borked. There was no way anything was going to be getting through that door.

    “Hmm...well...alright. Hang on.” The woman’s voice lingered in the air as the sound of her using the computer came through the system. The beeps and boops were subtle, overpowered in most cases by the clicking of keys being pressed. “There should be...a ventilation shaft...above you. See it?” Her voice was different-- distant, almost-- maybe it was due to her being distracted by using the computer, trying to find a new route.

    Dunham glanced upwards, though, as the woman had suggested. There, above his head, he could see the opening of a ventilation shaft. The cover was missing.

    “Hang on. I’ve got it.” She sounded strangely confident. Not that Dunham even really knew what she’d meant by it. As the thought wandered across his mind, a grating sound screeched above his head. Not too long after, there was a loud crash and a crate fell from seemingly nowhere. The crate landed right in front of him, allowing him to climb up. It gave him just the boost he needed to be able to reach the ventilation shaft.

    Crawling through the ventilation shaft wasn’t half bad. Compared to all the jumping around he’d been doing, it was easy as pie, actually. Dunham thought, just for a second, that maybe he could crawl all the way to the bridge. That wouldn’t have been half bad. Just as the thought was crossing his mind, the panel of the ventilation shaft he was crawling over gave way beneath him. Next thing he knew, we was falling.

    Dunham landed with a thud. Looking around, he figured he could only be in one place-- one of the specialized cargo containers.

    “Well. That was...unexpected.” There were some more clicking sounds as the woman utilized her computer on the other end of the Emergency Announcement System. “You’re in the refrigerated cargo container. You need to get out of there before you freeze.” Another pause in her words as she hit a few more buttons. “Oh, nice going, by the way.” He could almost hear her rolling her eyes at him. “Genius.” Her mocking was endearing in a way, and Dunham was half-thankful for it. It was better than being trapped on this ship alone, after all.

    It looked like half of the cargo in the refrigerated container was thawing. Dunham wondered what kind of things were kept in the frozen crates and prayed to God that it wasn’t anything dangerous. Lost in thought of crates, Dunham surprised himself when he tripped on something. It sounded metal as it scraped along the metal walkway he had fallen onto. Looking down, he saw it was a panel from the ventilation shaft. he wondered how the panel he’d broken had fallen so far from where he had broken through. It didn’t really matter, though. Dunham ignored it and kept going.

    Another step forward, and another. There was a creaking sound coming from the walkway. Dunham looked at his feet, then the door. It was still a ways away. He wondered if he would be able to make it there if he ran. As soon as he bolted, though, the walkway gave way, throwing Dunham down to the half-frozen floor below.

    “Oh geez… Alright. Hang on.” Her voice, despite its exasperated tone, was his only companion. Dunham wondered if she was getting tired of helping him through all of this, through all of his mistakes. Still, he was thankful for her voice, for the calming it provided.

    There was a grinding sound-- the sound of metal against metal-- coming from under his feet. Dunham thought for sure he was going to die-- that the floor of the container was going to give out, dropping him into space. Instead, the panels of the floor rose up into something resembling a staircase. More than a little astonished, Dunham quickly climbed up to the top, glad that the woman hadn’t simply left him to die alone.

    “There should be a button nearby. Press that. The door should open.” Dunham did as she bid him and pressed the button. Not too far away, a door opened. It was almost welcoming. Dunham hurried through the door, exiting the half-frozen container.

Part 5: Oops…

    “Looks like the path ahead is blocked. You’ll have to take a...uh...detour.” The sounds of keys clacking came through the Emergency Broadcast System as the woman on the other end looked at what Dunham could only assume was a map for an alternative route. There was a loud beep followed by the woman’s muttering. “Alright...jump down here.”

    A pause.

    “Go through that...door on the right…” With each word, the woman’s voice seemed to get more distant, as though she were more focused on the map in front of her than the person she was talking to.

    “And you’ll go…right...through…”

    Another pause, longer this time.

    “Oh...the uhhh…” There was a new inflection in her words now. Was it nervousness? Fear? Dunham couldn’t quite put his finger on what it was. “Uhh...the hazardous...materials….container...”

    Dunham could feel his heart buck in his chest. That sounded more than a little dangerous. Maybe he should have given a second thought to trusting her as long as he had already. Already, though, he had come to the edge of a vile green lake. It was...bubbling, eating away at the metal around it. Dunham wanted to go back, maybe there was another way around-- but he couldn’t go back. He’d jumped down, and there was  no way to get back up to where he’d been.

    “Oops…”

    A static silence crept into the air as Dunham waited for some kind of direction from the woman. His eyes couldn’t help but survey the scene before him-- the toxic lake of hazardous materials. He looked for a way across the toxic waste that would surely kill him if he touched it. For the first time since he began following her directions, Dunham began to worry, began to doubt that should could actually help him out of here. The silence stretched on, growing more and more unsettling.

    “Alright.” Her voice was the most welcome sound Dunham could remember hearing in his life. “There should be a console in the middle of the room. Just get to it, and...everything will be...fine.” Despite the doubt that laced her words, Dunham trusted her. A breath that he hadn’t been aware he’d been holding slipped out as he looked around the room, searching for a sign of the console, praying the materials hadn’t destroyed it. When he didn’t see it at first, he started to worry again. Maybe it wasn’t there anymore...maybe he would die in here, choking on acid.

    Then he saw it. There it was, bright and gleaming and beautiful. It was his salvation. It was in the middle of the toxic lake. Somehow, though, Dunham managed to make his way to the console. There was one button in the middle that almost seemed to be screaming Push me. Dunham was reaching for it when the woman’s voice broke through the air yet again. “Push the button. The big one.” His fingers had already been on the button. With the woman’s confirmation, he pressed it. The anticipation was killing him-- he expected something amazing to happen now that he’d pressed the button. From above, there was the sound of metal grating against metal, but nothing else happened. Dunham could feel a frown developing on his face.

    “Okay...hang on…” The woman’s voice sounded exasperated by now, the clicking of the whatever keys she was using on the other end of the Emergency Announcement System sounding more violent than it had before. The next thing Dunham knew, something that looked like the catwalk fell down, crashing in front of him. It made a perfect bridge for the unjumpable gap that would bring Dunham to the exit on the other side of the room. It wasn’t long before Dunham was able to make his way to the exit.

    Safe, he was safe. He’d made it out of the container. Without the help of the woman, though, he was certain he never would have made it. Before him was an elevator, doors open, waiting for him. With no other option, Dunham stepped into the elevator, placing all his faith in the woman he assumed had opened the elevator for him.

    When the elevator doors open, Dunham finds himself on the Crew Deck. Staggering out of the elevator, Dunham stares at the space around him, mouth hanging open, aghast.

Part 6: Space

    Dunham was having trouble not staring at it-- the gaping hole in the ship, that is. Eyes wide, he just stood there.

    “So...yea. I mentioned the whole...asteroid...thing...right?” There was something in her voice that told Dunham she was trying to say something he wouldn’t like. He tried to prepare himself for whatever it was she had to say. It couldn’t be too bad-- he’d just gotten through a room full of hazardous materials that could have easily killed him. How much worse could it honestly get? Dunham was certain that he was ready for just about anything.

    “You’ve got to get across the gap.” Except that. Dunham’s breath caught in his throat. How in the world was he supposed to get across that massive gap? Fear gripped at his throat, making it difficult to breath.

    He wanted to yell, wanted to scream. He wanted to tell the woman that he was done, and that he was content to die here on the ship and she should escape on her own. She wouldn’t be able to hear him, though. Still, he had options-- either he found a way across, as the woman had suggested, or he sit down and die here. After all the hard work he’d put into surviving, the first option seemed to get better and better.

    The sound of the woman using the computer was coming through the Emergency Announcement System. Dunham knew she was doing everything she could to help him. “Tune your Pan-ix radio to frequency 303.0427-- that’s the Emergency Announcement System.” A pause as she waited. “Alright. I hope you’ve got it…” He could hear her in his ear now-- it was strangely comforting to have her voice feel so close. “I’m going to launch you across the gap.” If he could have protested, Dunham would have. “It should give you the momentum you’ll need to reach  the other side.” It was funny-- she almost sounded confident. Maybe, if the situation hadn’t been so deadly, Dunham would have actually laughed.

    There was nothing else he could do. On his own, he wouldn’t be able to reach the other side, and he had already decided trying was better than sitting here and dying, so he had to trust her.

    “There’s a panel on the floor that looks a bit loose-- it’s next to a huge steam pipe. Stand on that panel.” Dunham did as she requested. A deep breath, he tried to calm himself, tried to stop his heart from hammering in his chest. “Alright. Ready?” He was as ready as he’d ever be-- not that he could actually tell the woman that. “Don’t worry. This won’t kill you.” There was a sound coming from the steam pipe. Dunham was half tempted to look back, but if he did, he might lose his target and get lost in space. On the radio, though, was static-- for the moment. “Probably…”

    The next thing he knew, he was launched by the steam pipe and the loose floor panel, hurtling through the massive gap of space where the bulk of the crew desk used to be. His heart was pounding harder than it ever had before. In his ear, though, was the woman’s voice.

    “ It’ll be fine. So when I was twenty-three, I was about to graduate from the Coalition Academy. I was going to be a part of the Coalition-- it was a dream come true. I had decided that I would work up until I was able to be a navigation officer. Neat, huh? Anyways…” As he floated farther out, the sound of the woman’s voice grew more and more static until, finally, Dunham could no longer make out the words she was saying.

    She was gone. His anchor was gone.

    Dunham felt strange-- disconnected and lost. Fear gnawed at him, trying to get under his skin, to make him lose control. He was certain that he was slowing down now. He wasn’t going to make it across. This was the end.

    “--cheeseburgers! We didn’t even know they still existed. I guess it was one of the perks of being a female Coalition officer.” Her laughter floated in his ears then. It was almost an otherworldly sound. Dunham had never been so thankful for the sound of another person’s voice before. It seemed as though she hadn’t realized that the radio had cut out-- that she’d just continued her story while he had floated lost and alone through the silence of space.

    The woman’s laughter died down just as the other side of the gap got close enough to touch. Dunham reached out and grasped at the broken piping, pulling himself to the safety of the ruined ship. “See?” The sound of her voice had an almost smug quality to it as she spoke. “I told you that you wouldn’t die.”

Part 7: Normal

    Slowly, Dunham’s breathing returned to normal. The amount of joy he felt at being back on solid ground and not lost and floating in space wasn’t comparable to the joys of everyday life. It was a joy a person could only understand if they had survived the impossible, if they had avoided death one way or another. Despite the bleak surroundings, he was happy to see them again, to be apart of the abandoned freighter. No longer in need of the radio on his Pan-ix, Dunham turned off the functionality.

    “Up ahead the door’s busted. You’ll have to climb through the ventilation shaft.” The woman’s voice was coming through the Emergency Announcement System on the ship, but it was slightly distorted from the proximity to the hole-- it was screwing with the system. Despite the distortion, though, the sound of her voice was welcome-- more than welcome.

    Dunham realized then that he had missed her-- actually missed her-- when he’d been floating through the silence of the gap. He wondered for a moment if he could actually miss someone he’d never even seen before or if he had just missed the idea of another person’s voice.

    Pushing the thoughts away, Dunham focused on moving forward. He was close to the bridge now, he could feel it. He had come to the part of the ship where the crew had stayed-- there was no way it couldn’t be close to the bridge. Climbing into the vent, he felt a renewed vigor driving him forward.

    “Turn to the right...and drop down at the end of that branch.” Everything was going so well. From here on out, it would be easy as pie. “Y’know the first thing I’m doing when we get off this piece of shit? I’m going to get a fraxxin’ strawberry. A real one. Not one of the fake lab-grown things they call strawberries.” Dunham felt like they were growing closer. How that could be without him ever having spoken a single word to her was beyond him, yet he still felt that way. Maybe it wasn’t reciprocated. Maybe he was crazy. Whatever the case, Dunham could hardly wait to meet her face-to-face.

    Dropping out of the ventilation shaft, Dunham found himself in the Life Support Chamber. It was half destroyed from the asteroid hitting the ship. One of the panels on the wall was sparking in a way that told anyone looking at it that it was faulty. He passed a dented oxygenizer and a flickering environment stabilizer display. The room was littered with scraps of metal that used to be apart of the walls and ceiling of the chamber. Dunham managed to pick his way through the wreck of the room.

    As he moved through the room, he realized he was beginning to be able to feel the cold through his suit. If he didn’t get to the bridge soon, he would likely freeze to death. The thought of freezing made Dunham move a little faster. He hoped that the woman who’d been helping him was at least a little warmer than he was.

    On the other side of the room, Dunham ran right into a half-jarred door-- the panel was sparking to the right. “Oh. That’s easy-- I’ve got that.” Click click click. Click click. Click click click click. The door spasmed before Dunham’s eyes. “Push on it-- it’ll open.” Dunham moved forward just as a massive spark leapt towards his body, causing him to jump backwards. “I think.” One more try. Dunham leaned his shoulder against the door and pushed on it, forcing it back into the door panel, forcing it open enough for him to slip through.

    Behind him, the door slams shut, blocking off the path back. Dunham doesn’t care, though. He’s so close to meeting the woman now-- so close.

    Before him waits the Mess Hall. Abandoned.

    The empty room was more than a little eerie. It looked as though the people had simply vanished rather than escaped. It was unsettling to look at and even more unsettling to walk through. A shiver slipped down his spine, reminding him of how uncomfortable he was in this forsaken and vacant room. He couldn’t get through it soon enough.

    “The elevator-- straight ahead-- will bring you to the bridge.” He wanted to run forward, but it felt like his feet were glued to the spot. Eyes wide, Dunham stared at the elevator as it opened. It seemed so far away, somehow, despite how close it was.

    Everything seemed to click then, and Dunham was running. He basically flew across the room and right into the elevator that was waiting for him.

Part 8: False Assumptions

    Standing still was hardly an option. Dunham found himself pacing back and forth, back and forth in the tiny space the elevator provided him. This was the longest fraxxing elevator ride he had ever experienced. Well, it felt like it, at least.

    Excitement pulsed through his body. Within mere seconds, he would be face-to-face with the woman responsible for saving his life and getting him off this ship. He could still hear the echo of her voice in his head-- the sarcastic remarks and the lovely intonations. He could only imagine what she might look like. As he paced, thinking of her voice, it came through the speaker in the elevator.

    “I almost thought you wouldn’t make it all the way here.” Her tinny voice made him smile. He was so eager to get off the elevator, so eager to see her face. “The name’s Kate, by the way.” Every part of him wanted to respond, but he knew she couldn’t hear him. Soon, though, he would be able to talk to her. Soon, he would be on the bridge with her.

    The wait was agony.

    The elevator stopped.

    The doors opened.

    No one was there.

Part 9: Alone

    A tiny squeal of excitement peals from the woman who was supposed to be on the bridge. As the sound pierces the air, Dunham staggers forward, nearly tumbling from the elevator into the obviously empty room.

    “We did it! You’re here! You’re alive!”

    It had to be some kind of joke. A sick, sick joke. There was no one here. The woman was not on the bridge waiting for him. It’s clear to see that no one had been on the bridge in a long while. Dunham could feel his stomach drop, his hope fade, and his heart break.

    “I never lost faith in you, Kate. I knew you’d be able to get me here. I owe you.” The voice was not the one he was used to-- it was not Kate’s, it belonged to a man.

    “Darn right, you do.” Dunham could have sworn he could hear the smile in her mechanical voice. It ripped through him, making him feel like he was going to vomit. His stomach was churning with the disappointment he felt.

    “Why don’t we get outta here, huh? I’d say we’ve both had enough adventure for one day.” Dunham walked in a stupor to the console where he could see the recording was playing. A recording. She hadn’t been here the whole time.

    “Oh Lord, yes. Say-- what was your name?” Reflex almost brought Dunham to respond. He had waited so long to see her, to meet her-- something that would never happen now.

    “Terrance Dwyer. Call me Terr.”

    “Nice to finally meet you, Terr. Let’s get out of here before we freeze to death.” As Kate’s recorded voice echoed off the walls, the faint sound of two sets of footsteps could be heard coming through the speakers. Tears sting at his eyes, threatening to overflow. Dunham does everything he can to fight them back. “I’m really glad I’m not stuck on that ship alone…” The sound of her last words was the last straw. The tears slide down Dunham’s face. Kate’s voice fades as the sound of the escape pod closing and launching comes through the speakers. A computerized voice comes through the speakers, “Emergency Announcement playback complete. Emergency Announcement playback repeat.”

    There was no doubt in Dunham’s mind.

    “Hey, You. The asshole in the Docking Bay. Y’know...I had turned those alarms off for a reason.” As Kate’s voice played through the speakers again, Dunham knew that this ship would be his grave.