ChalkZone Lost Episode: Goodbye Snap

One Saturday morning, I came home from work adjustment when I noticed a DVD at my front door. I was sent home early for catching a cold, so I had to watch something. Usually, I'd turn on Amazon, but it didn't work. So, I decided to use the VCR.

The DVD showed your innocent Rudy Tabootie with Snap by his side exploring the unknown on the front.

It played your typical "ChalkZone" episode. I was surprised by the title card, which showed a "Romeo and Juliet"-esque picture of Rudy with a dagger in his heart and looking like he's gonna pass out. The title was written in crude chalk and it played the credits. Though, there was something off about this... episode.

The episode opened with Rudy and Snap exploring ChalkZone, as usual.

The cold night air bit at Rudy's skin as he raced through the tangled forest paths of ChalkZone. Broken tree branches whipped past him and gnarled roots threatened to trip him with each bounding step, but he pushed on relentlessly. His breath came out in frantic clouds, burning his lungs with exertion yet not slowing his mad dash towards the source of the anguished cries echoing through the woods.

Finally bursting into a small clearing, Rudy slid to an abrupt halt, staggering as his feet sunk into the soft soil. What lay before him made his blood run cold. In the faint moonlight filtering through the leafless trees, he saw Snap sprawled out on the ground, chalky limbs bent at unnatural angles. Dark streaks stained the grass around him, contrasting sharply with his pale blue skin now turning ashen.

Rudy rushed to Snap's side, collapsing to his knees. "Snap! Snap, can you hear me?!" He gently lifted Snap's head onto his lap, desperately searching the utter stillness of his face for any sign of life. Snap's multi-colored eyes were barely open, glazed over in a nightmare of agony. With immense effort, he blinked slowly up at Rudy, a strangled cough wracking his broken body.

"R...Rudy...help..." Snap choked out, a thin trickle of vibrant red leaking from the corner of his mouth. Rudy felt hot tears spill down his cheeks at the sheer hopelessness in Snap's fading voice. His best friend, always so full of joy and laughter, was now reduced to this pitiful state. Looking around wildly, Rudy wished for anything, anyone, that could help.

"Don't talk, save your strength. You'll be okay, I promise," Rudy said through his tears, grasping Snap's hand tightly in his own. But he knew it was a futile reassurance as Snap's eyes began to flutter closed, his grip slowly loosening. Rudy shook his head violently, his fear morphing into denial. "No, no, no! Snap, please stay with me!"

With a dreadful final exhale, Snap stilled completely in Rudy's arms. The light vanished from his eyes, leaving them empty shells staring sightlessly at the darkened sky. Rudy sat frozen in disbelief and anguish, unable to accept the chilling finality before him. Choking back a scream, he pulled Snap's lifeless form closer, bowing his head over his friend's still body as gut-wrenching sobs wracked his frame. The once vibrant forest was now deathly still save for Rudy's tormented cries echoing through the branches in his grief.

When at last his tears ran dry, Rudy carefully laid Snap down and stood on shaking legs. A vicious thunderstorm now churned overhead, mirroring his storm of rage building within. He refused to leave Snap alone in this place, not until he found the monster responsible for such a heinous act. Swiping the back of his hand across his raw eyes, Rudy vowed through clenched teeth that whoever did this would pay dearly. They would not escape his vengeance.

With great care, Rudy tenderly lifted Snap into his arms and began the grim journey home, his friend's lifeless form a damning weight against his chest. The next morning, Rudy awoke on the living room couch still curled protectively around Snap's makeshift chalk outline, empty sockets staring unseeingly ahead. Calling Penny and the authorities, Rudy sat numb as Snap was gently taken away for an autopsy. Even after his remains were gone, Rudy continued sitting motionless, alone with the echoes of Snap's final screams replaying in an endless torment within his mind.

A rustling sound pulled him from his stupor. Slowly looking down, Rudy saw an envelope had been slid under the front door. With trembling hands, he opened it to find a single sheet of paper bearing a chilling message in Scratchy ink:

"I don't appreciate trespassers in my domain, friend of Chalk. If you value the lives of your loved ones, cease your foolish pursuit now or suffer my wrath. The hunter becomes the hunted..."

Rudy crumpled the note, grasping it so tightly his knuckles turned white. A feral snarl contorted his features as he glanced out the window into the yawning forest, the insidious rain washing away any traces of the killer's passing. But they would not escape him so easily. His friend's murderer would pay in blood, no matter the cost. Snap's face haunted him, driving his thirst for vengeance to a fiery zenith. The shadows were coming for them all.

I was shocked. Rudy... was not supposed to act this way.

Three days had passed since Snap's brutal end, yet for Rudy it felt like an eternity trapped in a waking nightmare. He barely slept, only finding brief respite in fitful bursts before being jolted awake by memories of that dark clearing. All he saw when he closed his eyes was Snap's ashen face staring back at him. The note left by Snap's murderer had unleashed an inner torment, fueling an obsession that steadily consumed him.

Rudy knew his friends were increasingly worried by his erratic behavior, but their concern fell on deaf ears. All that mattered now was hunting down the monster who did this and delivering the vengeance Snap deserved. After the autopsy confirmed Snap's death was no accident, Rudy spent every waking moment scouring through zones devoid of logic for clues, risking life and limb in his desperation.

"Rudy, please, you need to rest. This isn't healthy!" Penny pleaded as she followed him into a gloomy canyon labyrinth, the sheer cliff walls closing in around them. Rudy ignored her, scanning the ground intently for any sign while Penny struggled to keep up.

"I can't rest until they're dead, Penny!" Rudy snarled, stumbling over loose stones in his haste. A wave of dizziness hit him, his exhaustion catching up all at once, but he fought it off through sheer force of will.

"This isn't what Snap would want. He wouldn't want you to lose yourself like this!" Penny cried desperately, grabbing his arm to halt his reckless charge.

Rudy whirled on her, eyes blazing with manic fury. "Don't tell me what Snap would want!" He shouted, causing Penny to flinch. Immediately regret flooded through Rudy as he saw the hurt on her face. Sighing heavily, he ran a trembling hand through his disheveled hair. "I'm...I'm sorry, Penny. But I can't give up, not when they're still out there."

Penny nodded slowly in understanding, though her concern remained. "Then at least let me help you. You shouldn't be doing this alone." Rudy knew she was right, but the dark voices in his head screamed that he had to be the one to avenge Snap. With great effort, he pushed them down and gave Penny a tired smile.

"Okay. We'll search together."

For hours they combed the treacherous canyon, encountering a few zoners along the way who knew nothing helpful. The sun began to dip low, bathing the cliffs in a bloody light. "We should head back soon," Penny advised, eyeing the shadows warily. But just then, Rudy froze as a glint caught his eye near a crumbling boulder.

Rushing over, he discovered a torn scrap of cloth knotted around a jagged stone, stained with a familiar vibrant red. Snap's killer had been here. Rudy stared at the gruesome trophy, another flashback wracking him of finding Snap's broken body in the forest. His grip tightened until the fabric shredded in his fist, feeling as dead as Snap had looked held lifeless in his arms that cursed night. A almost feral sound tore from his throat, somewhere between a growl and a sob.

Penny laid a gentle hand on his shoulder. "We'll keep searching tomorrow, I promise." But Rudy knew tomorrow would never come for his vengeance if he didn't act now. Without a word, he took off sprinting further into the darkening maze at breakneck speed, ignoring Penny screaming after him. If the killer was here, he had to find them before the trial went cold.

Rudy pushed on even as the sun dipped below the cliffs, casting the labyrinth in an eerie twilight. Glowing eyes watched him from the shadows, the stalking shapes of nocturnal zoners emerging to hunt under the moon's pale light. His reckless flight became uncertain, unfamiliar paths twisting around him in the gloom. He began to realize with dawning horror that he was utterly lost, alone in the maze with unknown predators lurking all around.

A bloodcurdling howl rose in the distance, triggering primal instincts deep within Rudy. He broke into a panicked sprint as heavy footsteps crashed behind him, whatever beast that had given chase closing in with deadly purpose. Rudy careened around corners blindly, the sounds of pursuit growing ever louder. Finally his foot caught on a loose rock, sending him tumbling painfully to the hard ground.

Rolling over with a groan, Rudy looked up with dread to see a hulking shadow looming over him, massive jaws parting to reveal jagged teeth wet with drool. As the beast lunged down to claim its prey, Rudy threw his arms up with a cry, certain this was how his journey would end in terror and pain. But just then, a blazing light flared to life, causing the creature to recoil with a whimper.

"Rudy! Thank goodness I found you!" Penny cried, emerged from the gloom holding a makeshift torch. She offered her hand which Rudy grasped gratefully, pulling himself up on shaking legs. "We have to get out of here, now!" She urged, and Rudy didn't argue, allowing Penny to guide them safely from the maze under the guiding flame.  

When they finally exited the treacherous cliffs, collapsing onto the smooth plain beyond, Rudy could hardly believe they made it alive. Penny sat beside him, waiting patiently as his breath slowed. "Please, Rudy. No more recklessness. I can't lose you too," she pleaded softly, eyes watery with emotion. Rudy nodded mutely, realizing how far he had fallen under the grip of madness. He vowed then and there to temper his vengeance with care, not wanting to inflict further sorrow by throwing his life away. Snap's killer would face justice, but not at the cost of who he was. The shadows still loomed, but for now, the light of his friend's memory would guide him true.

And then... let's just say.. Rudy managed to draw a dagger.

Here we go. I told myself.

Rudy took a calm breath, slowly dipped the knife into his heart as hyperrealistic blood spurted from the wound and fell to the ground. Then Penny did the exact same thing. She took an anxiety pill.. and overdosed. The screen faded to black and I sent the DVD to China.

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