//------------------------------// // This ink is all the same body! // Story: I Am Me // by APStories //------------------------------// Day 7 "Impossible. The Ink Machine contains an astonishingly huge 423 gallons of ink!", Fluttershy said. "If we shut it down, then there's an EXTREMELY likely chance the ink will overflow the entire studio!" "It might be the only way you can get out of here", Boris replied. He raised the ink heart up high. "We need to go back to the Projectionist's lair." In the Projectionist's lair, the foursome spread out once again. Fortunately, it was easier to find the ink hearts thanks to strength in numbers. Sammy was sent to look for the aforementioned villain because the axe will do the most damage to him. "Sheep, sheep, sheep, It's time for sleep. Rest your head. It's time for bed. In the morning, you may wake. Or in the morning, you'll be dead", Sammy said. He heard footsteps. He whirled around. "Hello? Someone there? I know you're here. Come out and show yourself." The Projectionist suddenly grabbed Sammy and threw him into a wall with a locker attached. He opened the locker to reveal the final Safehouse Scrap. He grabbed it and ran. The others found the six ink hearts. The foursome retreated into the elevator. Back at the Safehouse, Sammy put the final Safehouse Scrap up on the wall, completing the mural. Suddenly... Boris saw a glimpse of the man he used to be... and then it was gone. "Who... are you, Boris?", Fluttershy asked. "I will explain... everything", Boris/Daniel answered. "I was a volunteered worker of Joey Drew Studios. A Jewish teenager from the Lower East Side in New York, I dropped out of school because of my decision of working as a delivery boy to help support my widowed mother. I dreamed to become an artist and was invited to the animation studio by Joey Drew in the summer of 1946 to see the great wonders of the studio until I witnessed something wrong one night." He proceeded to explain his entire journey throughout Joey Drew Studios. "After I was ripped in half by Beast Bendy and drowned in the ink along with him, and was revived as Boris the Wolf, Joey revealed what happened to me and even told me to accept my new self and not to talk or make sense of it as it would only frustrate me, even though I was already frustrated to begin with. As I started to lose the ability to speak, Joey attempted to entice me into accompanying him to an undisclosed location, supposedly containing an abundant amount of food. Despite Boris's personality beginning to take control, I was able to resist this for one final act: crushing Joey's hand, throwing him to the floor and running deep into the studio to Level K. As a result, I ended up in The Cycle with my final thoughts being that of me going deeper into the loop. Now, I'm not really Buddy anymore. I am Boris. Descending deeper into this world of ageing, yellowing madness." "No. You are Daniel Lewek, hero of your own story. Don't you want to finish it?", Fluttershy asked. Suddenly, she realized that she hasn't checked the novel. She opened it to reveal its completed state. However, a faded message from Joey Drew marked the final page, though the message became clearer near the end. __ST_O_ _H_ _NK ___ON AND THE _ROJEC____IST AND __U'LL ESC__E A__VE. ___EVE_, A ___RIFICE MUST BE MADE. She wiped some ink of the page to reveal the full message. DESTROY THE INK DEMON AND THE PROJECTIONIST AND YOU'LL ESCAPE ALIVE. HOWEVER, A SACRIFICE MUST BE MADE. The mural started to glow a brilliant white. Daniel touched it, revealing two set of stairs: one ascending towards an unknown location, and one descending towards the Projectionist's real lair. He then remembered Thomas's second message. These blasted elevators... sometimes they open... sometimes they don't... sometimes they come... sometimes they keep on going to Hell and back. I keep telling these people, if Mister Joey Drew keeps cutting corners like this, someone's sure to end up falling to their death. And it sure ain't gonna be me. I'm taking the stairs. "Well... I guess I was wrong. There ARE stairs here", Fluttershy said. "I have a feeling that only Fluttershy can escape. The rest of us are stuck in the studio. This isn't her world", Daniel said. They walked down the stairs heading to the Projectionist's lair. "The Maintenance Department", Sammy said as they arrived at the lair, which was indeed the Maintenance Department. Fluttershy found an audio log and played it. I believe there's something special in all of us. With true inner strength, you can conquer even your biggest challenges. You just have to believe in yourself and remain honest, motivated, and above all, who you really are. Ok, let's stop it right there. I can only do so many takes of this trash a day. And tell the guys in writing I want more use of the word "dreaming" in every message. Keep railing on that, get it? Dreaming! Dreaming! Dreaming! People just eat up that kind of slop. Hmm? What? It's still on? Well, turn it off, damn it! "That's the Joey I knew", Sammy said. The Patron used the ink to travel around the now-inky Maintenance Department like an Inkling. Suddenly, a giant hand grabbed the Patron and pulled him under. The Patron... was lost to the ink. "A sacrifice was made. Now we need to destroy Bendy and the Projectionist", Daniel said. The Projectionist suddenly appeared below the trio. "You'll be a part of this studio, Fluttershy!", the Projectionist shrieked. "You need to know that not everyone escaped! EMBRACE YOUR DEMISE! SURRENDER TO THE MACHINE! THE MACHINE MUST ENDURE!" He attempted to leap upwards, but he couldn't. "Damn ink!" "This ends now, Polk!", Fluttershy retorted. "I'm going to free your... uh... projector right off your shoulders! Sheep, sheep sheep... it's time for... sleep!", Sammy added. "Like a wolf... I'll prowl and prey... on the DARKENED ONES!!!", Daniel added.